Vampire Weekend is a gimmick—much of the band's initial appeal lives in their painstakingly planned image, both visually and musically. Just as Angus Young dressed in prep school clothes to bring attention to AC/DC, the members of Vampire Weekend consistently don Wayfarers, polo shirts and boat shoes to reinforce their prep-school image.
While some may argue that this focus on image makes the band phony, it shows Vampire Weekend may be more honest than other indie bands about their upbringing. Bands like MGMT cover up their east-coast privilege with eccentricity, and whether this is intentional or not, it shows a discomfort with their social status. Meanwhile, the Columbia-educated members of Vampire Weekend write songs about screwing on Benetton sheets.
Since releasing their eponymous debut album in 2008, Vampire Weekend have been branded ""the whitest band"" by Christian Lander, the author of ""Stuff White People Like."" While most indie bands tend to retreat into the eccentric and leave all traces of ""whiteness"" behind, Vampire Weekend play songs with topics as preppy as their clothes. Contra reflects that same comfort with showing (but not showing off) their privilege and does so with infectious, neatly packaged songs.
On ""Horchata,"" Ezra Koenig rhymes the name of a Spanish rice drink with ""balaclava"" and ""Aranciata,"" almost gloating over his irreverent cultural references. Although this tactic could quickly become tiresome, the song's quaint marimbas, saccharine vocals and synthetic boops make it worthwhile.
""White Sky"" offers blinking guitars and percussive handclaps accompanied by Koenig's typically airy pop vocals. The chorus soars when Koenig's tidy singing gives way to a birdcall with equal measures of assurance and desperation. Using Afro-pop styling to serenade Manhattan's art crowd, this song ultimately draws the usual reminders of Paul Simon's Graceland.
""Holiday"" is a welcome venture into more conventional rock. ""California English"" pairs Auto-Tuned vocals with a cumbia beat handily, but Koenig rushes through the inane lyrics like they are quickly running out of gas—no matter how hard he tries, he can never match Elvis Costello's punky lyricism.
The charming keys and strings of ""Taxi Cab"" cut through the usual frenetic self-absorption, and ""Run"" uses triumphant synths before breaking into snares and horns to reclaim the album's breakneck pace.
""Cousins"" is easily the best track of the album, supported by no-nonsense ska beats, jangling surf-rock guitars and a plodding bass line. It is irresistibly poppy, and Koenig even channels Ted Leo's whiny pop-punk vocals.
""Giving Up the Gun"" takes the earnest vocals of '90s pop-rock to a more mature level, but the album ends with two unremarkable tracks. ""Diplomat's Son"" starts off sampling the music of M.I.A. but otherwise has the same faux-African instrumentation, and ""I Think UR Contra"" uses dreamy strings and vocals to give the album a soft but not strong landing.
Contra solidifies Vampire Weekend's reputation, and despite the gimmicky nature of their songwriting, they deserve credit for accepting their privilege instead of denying it. What's wrong with being honest?Bottom of Form
