Vampire Weekend
Last week Vampire
Weekend released the songs “Harmony
Hall” and “2021" from their
upcoming fourth album, Father of the Bride, to an
ecstatic critical reaction including:
“Sprawls out with lush symphonies,
communal vibes aplenty”—Billboard
“Wraps misgivings in
three-chord elation”—The New York Times (Playlist lead)
“Buoyant, filled with the kind of
sunlit energy created when throwing open the shutters.” —Pitchfork
“A swooning tune packed with kind
vibes” —Rolling Stone
“A vibrant romp that seamlessly
blends folksy fingerstyle guitar, ’90s rave music, a gospel choir, baroque
piano, and the Grateful Dead… it’s absolutely delightful”—Stereogum
Father of the Bride will be released spring 2019 on Columbia Records.
In other news, congratulations are due to Vampire Weekend and XL Recordings on
the band's eponymous debut album being certified Platinum by the RIAA for
U.S. sales in excess of 1,000,000.
Vampire Weekend was released January 29th, 2008 by XL, and debuted
at #17 on the Billboard Top 200 charts. In addition to being newly
certified Platinum in the U.S., the album has previously been
certified Platinum by the BPI in the UK, and Gold by Music Canada and
ARIA in Australia.
The first band to grace the cover of SPIN magazine before an
album was even released, Koenig, Baio, Tomson and former member Rostam
Batmanglij met in 2005 at Columbia University in New York City.
“Even without an album, Vampire Weekend has made one of the year’s
most impressive debuts,” said The New York Times of the band’s
earliest recordings.
The
accolades continued through the album's release, as Vampire Weekend appeared on
2008 Top 10 lists of Time, NPR, Rolling Stone, New York Magazine, Pitchfork and
countless others, as well as winning the NME award
for “Best New American Indie/Alternative Band." The band also made
its first of three appearances on Saturday Night Live, as well
as debut performances on The Late Show with David Letterman and Jimmy
Kimmel Live!.
Since their
debut, Vampire Weekend have released two additional albums, both of which
debuted at #1 and have been certified Gold in the U.S.: 2010’s
GRAMMY-nominated Contra, and 2013’s Modern
Vampires of the City, which won that year's GRAMMY for Best
Alternative Album.