Vampire Weekend are back with news of their first new material since their second album, Contra, was released in 2010. Preview track videos, Diane Young and Step, have been posted online and their third studio album has been announced as Modern Vampires of the City.
Set for release on the May 6th 213, the new album will see New Yorkers, Ezra Koenig, Rostam Batmanglij, Chris Baio and Chris Thomson return to the surf world indie pop rock music trail. Still with XL Recordings, the band will undoubtedly be tagging in a chunky tour and festival outing on the back of the album release and with a growing back catalogue they’re whirling together a legacy of musical landmarks.
If the the first two tracks are anything to go by, Vampire Weekend will be adding even more to the potential of a greatest hits album in a few more years times. Packaged as a double A side single, the tracks start out with the junkie tug of Diane Young, which features some mental vocals, a thumping pace drum backdrop and the adoption of effects manipulation like never before. Though the effects draw a little too close to being silly, they also pull in enough Flaming Lips style to carry it through. The guitar tone is excellent adding to the addictive qualities of the song.
Step, meanwhile, is a slower beast with baroque pop tendencies that have been a big part of Vampire Weekend’s stand out sound. It’s a track with beauty, style and smart lyrics at its heart.
Both of the videos from the double A side single are totally random, but also a bit cool. Diane Young is a bizarre slow motion vid featuring flaming Saabs, which get a bit techno as the song flicks around towards the end. Step is like an architect’s photo-shoot holiday in New York with the song lyrics jumping onto the buildings like a modern take on Bob Dylan’s hand written drawl.
If the first listens of tracks from Modern Vampires of the City are as much an indicator of what’s to come as Oxford Comma, A-Punk, Cousins and Giving Up the Gun were for Vampire Weekend and Contra then the band has got another big release in the offing. You can watch the videos to both Diane Young and Step at Vampire Weekend’s website, https://vampireweekend.com/.
Vampire Weekend, Modern Vampires of the City track listing:
1. Obvious Bicycle
2. Unbelievers
3. Step
4. Diane Young
5. Don’t Lie
6. Hannah Hunt
7. Everlasting Arms
8. Finger Back
9. Worship You
10. Ya Hey
11. Hudson
12. Young Lion
