To be perfectly honest, i missed the whole Vampire Weekend bandwagon its first time around with their eponymous debut CD. i have this music snobbery problem where it's very hard for me to listen to the latest "hot" band. The problem was far greater when i was younger, in those pre-Interweb days of yore, when such bands seemingly were all one could listen to on the radio. I had the exact same problem with Nirvana back then. It wasn't until well after Kurt decided to figure out what bullets tasted like that i got into those cats, but they now rank as one of my favorite groups. Anyway, as of yesterday, fans of VW can stream the band's entire sophomore release, Contra, at a variety of places, from their MySpace page for the technologically non-hip to NPR's website for the liberal coffee drinking intelligentsia. In keeping with my desire for more and more blog-on-blog love, those cats at Hear Ya, another incredible blog, just posted VW's latest free mp3 love, Horchata. Now, for those of you not in the know, horchata is a wonderful and creamy rice-based drink largely consumed by our neighbors south of the US border. My college roomie, Yim, worked at a Mexican restaurant in Evanston, and that fine establishment made a damn fine horchata, if i do say so my damn self. With such fond memories stirred up by the beverage PLUS the endorsement of one of my favorite blogs, of course, i had to check it out for myself.
And you know what? Much like my one-time favorite summer drink, VW's single is a frothy, delightful affair. As a matter of fact, i can't remember the last time i heard something this infectiously catchy and bouncy. This, boys and girls, is the kind of music you listen to when you want to smile. And with all the shit i've had on my plate lately, a smile is what i needed today. While the lyrics are borderline nonsensical, goddamn it, this is what indie pop music is meant to be--lighthearted, engaging and downright fun. So consider me fully on that bandwagon, kids, and the next rice milk drink is on me.
(Ed. note 1: Hear Ya tends to focus on indie rock. We both share similar perfectly acceptable stalker man love for the likes of Dan Auerbach, The Devil Makes Three and bands of that ilk. So if that kind of stuff blows wind up your skirt, check those cats out regularly, if not more often.)
(Ed. note 2: Geoghegan, if you somehow stumble across this post, you daffy bastard, drop me a line. i probably won't even make you pay me back that $250 you've owed me since college.)
2 comments:
Ugh. Cannot stand this band. A friend called this song a "Little Mermaid b-side", which I think is about right.
Yeah, but wasn't that one of Disney's last good flicks, music-wise?
i completely agree that VW is pop music and nothing more, but i don't think that is automatically a bad thing. This track is a toe tapper, if nothing else, and that sometimes is just what the doctor ordered.
Are these tunes going to give you greater insight into the human condition? Of course not. But does every song need to accomplish that goal to be meaningful? Not in my book.
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