Infinite Shuffle

I realize most, if not all, of you are well aware of Vampire Weekend, but I’ve been kinda busy this week and am up against a deadline, so I don’t have time to discover a lesser-known artist.

Vampire Weekend broke onto the indie scene in 2007 with a self-titled EP and had already become a hipster’s wet dream before releasing their first full-length album (also self-titled) in January 2008. With their Peter Gabriel-like mix of rock, folk and African beats, the New York City quartet was unlike anything being played at the time.

Their sound might’ve been something of an acquired taste, but that didn’t stop them from putting out numerous catchy songs, including “Oxford Comma”, “A-Punk”, “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa” and “The Kids Don’t Stand a Chance”.

The initial success led to immense hype as they prepared to release their follow-up, Contra, in January of this year. Despite everyone clamoring for its arrival, it took me awhile to finally listen to it. Mostly, all the hype inevitably soured me on wanting to like it, and the first track I heard, “Horchata”, rubbed me the wrong way.

I was also delayed by the fact that I couldn’t find it anywhere online to illegally download and was eventually forced to — gulp! — actually purchase the hard copy.

I probably would’ve waited longer until I could get it for free, but I had agreed to see them in concert and needed to actually hear the album beforehand. I was a little concerned with seeing them live, because I didn’t think their sound would translate well to the stage. But I was dead wrong. They totally rocked my socks off.

Their latest album has definitely grown on me, with such strong tracks as “Cousins”, “Diplomat’s Son” and “Giving Up the Gun”. Who knows, I might even end up being one of those bloggers who are foaming at the mouth in anticipation of their third album.

Now, following a suggestion from one of my loyal readers, I thought I’d embed some videos instead of just songs.

Here’s one from each of their albums. Enjoy the cameos in the latter.