{grate 2.5} It’s hard to back a band that sings about Louis Vuitton and
Peter Gabriel unironically, but then again, I don’t live in
cop traditional South African style and fit it into a three-minute academic pop
box. This “world” sound has been branded innovative and cool in a new context,
even if it amounts to a half-baked, ska-Strokes approach with occasional djembe
beats.
First strike: Ska tends to share a space with bagpipe jazz
and Christian rap as a genre with no redeeming qualities. Thankfully, Vampire
Weekend leaves the fluttery trumpets behind, but curiously saves the awful
chord jangles (see “A-Punk”).
Second strike: This album isn’t going to age gracefully. A
few days after the first listen, its trashy references are still embarrassing,
and the college theme still an overdone shtick. What happens when the four
grads grow out of their campus fascination? Can they be sweater-tied scholars
forever? Maybe lead singer Ezra Koenig will get a teaching degree and write as
a professor for their second album.
And strike three: There’s hardly an appropriate listening
environment for this disjointed debut (besides Urban Outfitters and trust-fund
yacht parties). Song parts often stand jarringly alone, as in new wave-y number
“One (Blake’s Got a New Face);” the band can’t manage to blend afro indie-lite
with Walkmen rock bombast, so it shuffles between the two awkwardly, selling
both short.
That’s not to say their bookish antics never pay off: opener
“Mansard Roof” embraces minimalism well, with sparse but effective drum hits,
symphonic/tropical keys and mandolin-style guitar strums. Koenig’s dynamic
range and quaint melody on the track hints at a potential his group may or may
not have. One thing is certain: if it weren’t for music blogs, Vampire Weekend
would’ve spent an extra few months in the oven to everyone’s benefit.
