Just in case you haven’t yet danced to this…

The Very Best’s new album is ranked by Pitchfork as one of the best new albums – racked up a 8.6.  Check out their review here.

I’m going to pretend that the last few months haven’t happened – just assume that the extended hiatus of this blog is a figment of your imagination. Yes, I’m a slacker. I’m also a stupidly busy student/journalist/trouble-maker.

OK, poor excuses over, let’s crack on with the music. One of my favourite albums of last year was Vampire Weekend’s eponymous debut – not only because it was a smart, concise album of intelligent and fun pop music, but also because it was pretty much the soundtrack to my first year at university. Having seen them open for Blur at the Hyde Park gig, during which they treated anyone who could muster a smile to a selection of new tracks, it was evident to me that their follow-up might be riskier and bit more grown-up, but would still provide maximum enjoyment.

On the evidence of the new single, “Cousins”, taken from the album Contra, fans of the band will have very little to be disappointed about. The song is snappy and catchy; it has frequent frenetic breakdowns; Ezra Koenig’s famous wit and skills of observation are still very much intact. More intriguingly, the song reminds me of early Police – there’s something about the punky tone of the guitar and the fluid bassline that had me hearkening back to the delights of “Can’t Stand Losing You” and “Message In A Bottle”.

“Cousins” displays a fondness for experimentation, too: the bells at the end certainly do little to link the band with the Afro-pop of their first record. It would appear that the band’s searching for innovative and fun sounds have taken them further afield than Africa, this time round, and this was probably crucial, lest they continue to be considered in thrall to a singular sound. Furthermore, the frantic twin-guitar interplay that fills every chunk of air in the song shows off some fascinating echoes of Arabic music.

The evidence so far suggests that Contra is going to be a bit of everything, musically: the opener, “Horchata”, is heavy on twinkly keys, tribal percussion and programmed beats; live favourite “White Sky” is like a supercharged Afro-pop hit of yesteryear, with call-and-response backing vocals recalling tropical adventures. Now, we have “Cousins” – a brave stab at poppy punk that sees the band unafraid to fill the space that so characterised their debut effort, with chaotic percussion and delightful fretwork. Hopefully, the album’s release will excite and amaze existing fans, while drawing in a new batch of pop music lovers. Because when you cut through all the global/world-music hype, Vampire Weekend excel at making truly special popular music.

Here’s the video for Vampire Weekend’s new track entitled “Cousins.”  The jittery guitar riffs and bouncing Chris Baio bring me great joy.  I’m definitely looking forward to the release of Contra on January 12, 2010.  Okay, I’ll stop the pimpage.

Be sure to check out the Contra website for bonus material.  The Roll Call video is hilarious.

For more:
I Think Ur A Contra
Vampire Weekend Online

They’re back! With a sunny new video for ‘Cousins’! And Ezra, as it turns out, we still love you desperately.

Buzz band Vampire Weekend is back with their sophomore effort to their self=titled debut which was big main talk of many blogs.  Their album is slated for release on Jan. 12 next year.  They have been playing some of their song lives at recent concerts.  Pitchfork got an exclusive of what the album concept is and dates of their new tour.

The artwork (below) is of a blond with a blank stare.  It is actually candid photo in New York in 1983 says Ezra.

Front man Ezra Koenig says Contra takes the definition of against and in opposition of.  The album isn’t about the Nintendo video game Contra or any political stance against Contra of the guerrilla  group of Nicaragua.  Ezra sees the inspiration of the aesthetics of California playing  a large role in shaping this album.  He also mentions 80s movies like Repo Man.  Lyrically it takes on the misconceptions of the band and how many doubters see this band being hipsters or elitists.  Ezra takes this with a grain of salt as he told pitchform.com, “The best thing I can do is recognize that people don’t know anything about me.”

Track Listing:

01 Horchata
02 White Sky
03 Holiday
04 California English
05 Taxi Cab
06 Run
07 Cousins
08 Giving Up the Gun
09 Diplomat’s Son
10 I Think Ur a Contra

First single is Cousins which was released Tuesday Nov. 17, 2009.

Horchata has leaked on the web as well

California English (live)

Holiday (Live)

Run (live)

for more information check out:

http://pitchfork.com/search/news/?query=vampire%20weekend

and download horchata @ http://vampireweekend.com/

1. Too Too Fast - Ra Ra Riot

2. John Wayne Gacy, Jr. - Sufjan Stevens

3. I Was A Lover – TV On The Radio

4. Warm Heart of Africa (featuring Ezra Koenig) - The Very Best (mp3)

5. Heads Will Roll – Yeah Yeah Yeahs

6. Ring Ring – Sleigh Bells (mp3)

7. While You Wait For The Others – Michael McDonald

8. Fake Blues – Real Estate (mp3)

9. Walkabout (w/ Noah Lennox) – Atlas Sound

10. The King of Carrot Flowers, Pt. 1 & Pt. 2- Neutral Milk Hotel

11. Brother Sport - Animal Collective

12. Fashion Is Danger – Flight of the Conchords

13. Song For Noone – Miike Snow

14. Dance Dance Dance – Lykke Li

15. A Stroke of Genie-us – The Strokes vs. Christina Aguilera

16. Get Me Away From Here I’m Dying – Belle & Sebastien

17. Sunday Girl – Blondie

18. Rapture - Blondie

19. When I’m Gone – Vivian Girls

20. I’ll Make A Man Out of You – Jackie Chan

Allen Ginsberg helped dispose of a body?  Will this be portrayed in the movie starring James Franco?

Lit.

• A.V. Club reviews Philip Roth’s The Humbling.

• Village Voice go back to 1966 to hang out with Ed Saunders.  Fug, and “Fuck You” publisher.

• The Daily Beast takes a look at the best of British literature.

• Stephen King’s Under the Dome has “the scope and flavor of literary Americana” says the New York Times.

• The guy that put out The Simpsons: An Uncensored, Unauthorized History, gets the Book Notes treatment over at Largehearted Boy.

• Miami New Times talks to Jonathan Lethem.

CNN has one less A-hole on their payroll.

• Lou Dobbs says “peace out” in his own Dobbsy way.
  

• Gawker makes odds on what the next move of Mr. Dobbs will be.

Hilarious.

• Neil Hamburger is on tour.

Music

• Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend is thankful for Contra.

• Atlas Sound gives us more free music.

Brooklyn

• Williamsburg bookseller, Spoonbill and Sugartown turned ten years old. Somebody took pictures of the celebration.

• New York buys back Coney Island.  Sorta.

• The geeks shall inherent the earth.  Thank god.

1. .SWEATER WEATHER.

2. .PULLING ALL-NIGHTERS.

3. .IT’S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA.

Is it just me, or is this season especially absurd/crossing the line? I don’t now but I don’t hate it.

4. .CUTIE MUSICIANS…LIKE EZRA KOENIG OF VAMPIRE WEEKEND & SUFJAN STEVENS.

5. .KATE MOSS’S STYLE ICON-NESS.

6. .STUDYING HERE.

How spectacular is it that this courtyard is in the middle of the Boston Public Library?

7. .HUGS.

8. .A PERFECT ARGUMENT…and READ THIS…if you want.

9. .COZY WINDOW BEDS.

10. .PRIMPING FOR A BIG NIGHT OUT.

Have a beautiful day.

Peace,

Sources: a beautiful mess, nytimes, bear , a cup of jo , that obscure object , the abbey studio

Johan Hugo of Radioclit and The Very Best produced the above track with terry lynn. there’s a whole free EP floating somewhere on the net if you’re interested. there are a few goodies on there, but the single is the best (mp3 below). its a good party jam and the electro-reggae dancehall fusion is pretty fresh even if the whole MIA wannabe thing isn’t. my other favorite track here would be the Very Best track with Kano, Julia. at first the chorus sounds too sunny for the dirty synth bass and atonal blips and scrapes but it grows on you and ultimately makes the song a keeper. the british rap of Kano is obviously lacking at points, but it helps the sound, and you just gotta love his promise to “never Chris Brown” his girl: a true gentleman.

Jamaican Girls – Terry Lynn and Johan Hugo
It Was Written – Terry Lynn and J.H.
Julia (feat. Kano) – The Very Best
Warm Heart of Africa (feat. Ezra Koenig) – The Very Best

If you are a Punk:

Just so you know, I get a daily list of all the searches that are entered into the search bar on my blog. Of course, all the searches are anonymous but I feel like this brings us closer together. It helps me know what you really want to see on my page.  Judging by the reoccurring searches, I’m well aware that many of you are into, “women shitting,” “boys in gold underwear,”  ”poopie,” and “Ezra Koenig.” I’ll try to deliver on those requests.

The Very Best's album delivers a fresh selection of afro-beat pop

PREVIEW: DOWNLOAD The Very Best’s “Warm Heart of Africa” (Ft. Ezra Koenig) MP3
WE GIVE IT: 14/20 Watts

The Very Best bring an eclectic and global sound to the scene with their new album Warm Heart of Africa.  Fans of anyone from Vampire Weekend to Bob Marley will have no trouble falling in love with the voice of Esau Mwamwaya and the rhythmic beats provided by producers Johan Hugo and DJ Tron.  This trio revives a sound that has been missing from music for decades.

While each song has a very different feel, the flow of the album as a whole is not disrupted.  Boredom is not an option as the pace of the album moves from relaxing, to racy, from one song to the next. Unlike most artists in today’s afro-beat genre, this album provides a natural, rather than forced sound. Wirth this in mind, The Very Best do a perfect job in combining traditional African music with the modern twist it needs to be relevant.

Any fan of afro-beat, hip hop or dance music will find at least one song to fall in love with on this album. The start of every song lures listeners in, be it with the electronic noise of dance music or the natural sounds of a rainforest.  The vocal harmonies, paired with the circular rhythms of the drums and industrial vibes provide a unique and uplifting musical experience that’s both enjoyable and infectious.

Also, the guest artists on this album, Ezra Koenig and M.I.A., could not have meshed better with the voice of Mwamwaya. The title track, “Warm Heart of Africa,” which features Koenig, has obvious influences from his main act, Vampire Weekend. Meanwhile, M.I.A. steps a little further out of her usual niche on “Rain Dance”, a song which could not have been more appropriately titled. It’s just one of the various tracks on Warm Heart of Africa that will inevitably cause spontaneous dancing.

Though the album may lack depth lyrically and conceptually, it surely makes up for it with its unparalleled level of fun, as well as its ability to capture a listener and take them to a far away place, instantaneously.  The Very Best have done an incredible job at bringing something much-needed to the music scene and are sure to receive mainstream recognition for their pronounced talents after such a well-crafted effort.

– Alyssa McKinley

After an extensive viral campaign on Pitchfork and other indie music ‘relevant‘ blogs and websites that featured a comely looking blonde girl (pictured above) posted within the ad sections, we finally have breaking news from the Vampire Weekend camp. We have heard from Ezra Koenig that the upcoming LP, Contra, draws extensive influence from California and with the lead-off single “Horchata“, which is a Latino juice/soda, California residents understand what he means. VW are up to their old tricks as Koenig, much like Colin Meloy of The Decemberists, makes sure that his listeners have a dictionary on hand to fully understand the content within.

Words that may need a dictionary depending on learnedness (excluding ‘horchata’):

‘Balaclava’ – a cap that is close-fitting and woolen and covers all of the head but the face.

‘Masada’ – (Hebrew מצדה, pronounced Metzada, from מצודה, metzuda, “fortress”) is the name for a site of ancient palaces and fortifications in the South District of Israel on top of an isolated rock plateau, or large mesa, on the eastern edge of the Judean Desert overlooking the Dead Sea (we’re not sure if this is what is meant by ‘Masada’, but we’re trying).

‘Aranciata’ – San Pellegrino (also S. Pellegrino) is a brand of mineral water with carbonation added, produced and bottled at San Pellegrino Terme

Lucky for us, by downloading the song from VW’s website, we received the lyrics to Horchata, which seem to have something to do with wistfully dreaming of becoming a Mexican wrestler (hence, the “Balaclava” reference):

“In December, drinking Horchata/ I’d look psychotic in a Balaclava”

Vampire Weekend – Horchata

8.2/10. Ezra Koenig and his crew of Columbians have taken a wonderful and new approach to their over-sophisticated tunes with “Horchata”. It is a fun-filled track that is a cross between Koenig’s work with The Very Best, a slower West Coast jam and an Ivy League orchestra club.

Lewis Corson

Vampire Weekend have been teasing us about their forthcoming album Contra for weeks now. Today they posted the albums first track, ”Horchata,” on their website for you to download. 

Lead singer Ezra Koenig said via his Twitter feed, “we just put up Horchata, the first track on our new album, as a free download. enjoy!”

Listen to it below, and be sure to head over to vampireweekend.com to download the song for yourself.

Yeah, the dude from Vampire Weekend going all punk rock and shit alongside Fucked Up:

Chris Thomson, Ezra Koenig, Rostam Batmanglij,Chris Balo of VM

New York indie band Vampire Weekend have had quite a wild ride since their 2007 song “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa” first won over music fans in the U.S. and U.K. Now, nearly two years since they appeared on the proverbial indie rock radar, the band has become one of the biggest buzz bands of the past 18 months, gracing the cover of Spin magazine, appearing on Saturday Night Live, and touring extensively to sold out crowds on three continents.

Vampire Weekend’s unique blend of catchy indie pop with upbeat African influences – the band prefers to call it ‘Upper West Side Soweto’ – has made them extremely popular. But some other music fans dismiss the ‘Vampire Weekend hype’ arguing the band has only put out one album (their follow-up album is due out this fall).

While taking a break from Vampire Weekend, two of the band members have been working on other music projects. Keyboardist Rostam Batmanglij teamed up with Ra Ra Riot leader singer and friend Wes Miles – who began recording together back in 2005 – under the moniker Discovery. Their spectacular debut album, simply titled LP, was released earlier this month. LP oozes with electro pop and hi-fi sonic sounds, sounding at times like Kayne West meets Animal Collective meets Vampire Weekend.

So it is no surprise that Vampire Weekend vocalist Erza Koenig leads vocals on one of the album’s best tracks, “Carby.” Other highlight tracks include “Orange Shirt”, “Osaka Loop Line” and “I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend.”

M.I.A.’s “Rain Dance” from the album, above.

[Via Steve; welcome Gemma]

The Very Best

Very Best LP

Warm Heart of Africa ft. Ezra Koenig

Contra cover art

When Vampire Weekend formally debuted a new track from its upcoming album in March on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, it was only a matter of time until they formally announced a new album. Shortly after playing “White Sky,” a song the band had included in some of their live shows, Fallon asked frontman Ezra Koenig when we could expect the next record. “Hopefully fall,” he replied.

So yesterday on VW’s MySpace, the quartet delivered the news fans have been waiting for: Album #2 is on its way. Except in typical music industry fashion, it’ll drop months after the original ETA. Contra, looking eerily (OK, maybe not eerily) similar to the self-titled debut, text and all, will hit stores Jan. 12, 2010 and feature 10 tracks, including the aforementioned “White Sky.”

Check out one of the other new tracks, “Cousins,” performed live in Copenhagen:

Smashing 6 has new music by Massive Attack (reminds me of Ghost Town by The Specials), Radiohead, The Longcut, A Place to Bury Strangers, Weezer, O. Children (who sound like Nick Cave)  and more.

Click here or the album art to download.

This is an M4A file that when played through iTunes, is capable of forwarding to the next chapter (song). Look for the ‘Chapters’ tab at the top of the player when playing. These files will play in all iPods. You may also convert it to a single mp3 file within iTunes by going to the ‘Advanced’ tab at the top of the player and selecting ‘Create MP3 Version.’ You may also subscribe to this blog by clicking on the ‘Entries RSS’ and using an aggregator (feed reader, such as Google Reader) to get notifications sent to you whenever a new post is made.

Over here in the West, everybody loves what middle class adults and liberal newspaper review columnists call ‘world music’. And nowadays, there’s a strong bond with contemporary youth, which is the right atmosphere for collaborations like THE VERY BEST to crop up. I remember a while back hearing Esau Mwamwaya singing over some popular tracks, then hearing he was hooking up with production team Radioclit. They later went big on the blog scene as The Very Best, probably due to Vampire Weekend’s Ezra Koenig swooning about on one of their tracks.

But I’m a little surprised people are eating this up. It’s a little like the Ladysmith Black Mambazo popularity in the 80’s thanks to Paul Simon, or the middle class’ preoccupation with Peter Gabriel’s Real World, and WOMAD. Then now we have trendy DJ’s like Diplo and artists like MIA, but kids being kids, we want MORE. I was gonna put up some true bands from South Africa (BLK JKS) and Kenya (Extra Golden), but instead I’ll put up some summer-friendly tracks from Malawi (Esau Mwamwaya) and Mali (Amadou & Miriam). The latter is brand-spanking new, and features MIA for a little bit of a London-via-Sri Lanka swagga…and the former is from the last Amadou & Miriam album, and features Somalian rapper K’Naan. Nice:

“Rain Dance” (ft. MIA) – The Very Best (zshare)

“Africa” (ft. K’Naan) – Amadou & Miriam (zshare)

I can’t say enough good things about this song.  It’s the kind of summer feel-good song that resonates on a whole bunch of levels. The Very Best is a collaboration between Radioclit and Malawi-born Esau Mwamwaya. On ‘Warm Heart of Africa’ they get a little help from Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend and he absolutely nails the hook. It’s the sort of thing that can get stuck in your head all day. A effortless piece of pop that doesn’t come off as cheesy.

It’s really hard to pigeon hole the group. Part Afrobeat, part hip-hop, part pop, part classic, part indie. Hell, my iTunes tells me it’s Tropical/Dance. On their mixtape, they shine the brightest when they are ripping apart a song like ‘Birthday’ and then piecing it back together their own way. Even when Mwamwaya speaks in a dialect you can’t understand, much like he does on M.I.A’s ‘Boyz’ remix, it makes a perfect companion piece to the original, without taking anything away from it.

Their debut album is due out soon but right now Gorilla Vs. Bear have ‘Warm Heart of Africa’ and another new song ‘Yalira’ available to download for free as a promotion for the 7-inch that is available for sale. Once you’ve downloaded those you should probably also head over to The Very Best’s MySpace page and download their mixtape ‘Esau Mwamwaya and Radioclit are The Very Best.’