Pitchfork

Vampire Weekend, a band we've heard from once previously on Forkcast, are especially likely to annoy people who: 1) live in or around New York City; or, 2) spend a lot of time reading music blogs. The common thread, of course, being proximity to hype. Vampire Weekend have been an online buzz band all year-- which these days, oddly enough, means that both The New Yorker and The New York Times are likely to get on board-- and they haven't even released a proper record yet. What's more, they are young, presumably privileged Ivy Leaguers who dress like they're pledging Omega. And they rip off African music, for crying out loud.

Still, despite all these strikes against them, I enjoy listening to Vampire Weekend. They probably should be a small-time local concern at this point, a band whose demo tape a few dozen people have passed around and enjoyed, but those aren't the times were living in. In any event, they've now recorded a Daytrotter Session, and it's not likely to change any minds. I still dig how simple and unadorned everything sounds, with each instrument serving the tune, and "I Stand Corrected" and frequent show-closer "Oxford Comma" are both damn catchy songs. If you want to hear some amazing African pop, read this article and start spending some money. If you want to hear a fun, unassuming, stripped-down American guitar band making certain references to same, here again are Vampire Weekend.

MP3s:> Vampire Weekend: Daytrotter Session