Pitchfork

I can't say if Vampire Weekend has more side-projects going than your average band or if, given their MySpace-generation youth, they just make more of it available for public consumption. We've heard joke rap from L'Homme Run and a bit of new wave/r&b from Discovery, and now here's chamber pop from the band's multi-instrumentalist and producer Rostam Batmanglij. We came across this solo version of "Campus", one of Vampire Weekend's highlights, today on Fluxblog, and it dispenses with the band version's peppy drums, bass runs, and organ in favor of an a tense, forward-marching string arrangement. I can't say I prefer it, but it sounds pretty good and also demonstrates how different sorts of pop songs can be easily bent to fit Vampire Weekend's aesthetic. Per MySpace, it is to appear in a 7" b/w a track called "Bollywood", no indication of label. "The Creek Became a River", which is also streaming on Batmanglij's MySpace and which is dated 2006, is also worth a listen, adding a bit of Appalachian flavor to an equally string-heavy arrangement.

Stream:> Rostam Batmanglij: "Campus"
[from MySpace]