Mention the name Vampire Weekend, and all you might get are blank stares here in Singapore. In contrast, the band from New York City set blogs abuzz even before their self-titled debut album was released in 2008. They went on to sell nearly half a million copies of it and debuted on the Top 20 of both American and UK charts, according to MTV and αCharts.

Predictably, the band received some backlash for their instant popularity that most new bands can only dream about.

Critics questioned whether they could keep up their popularity or fade to oblivion as a one-album hit band, while detractors grouse about the band’s pretentious image.

In truth, the band is a walking contradiction. The group, in their mid-20s, made up of Ezra Koenig (vocals, guitar), Rostam Batmanglij (keyboards, guitar, vocals), Chris Baio (bass) and Christopher Tomson (drums) met in Columbia University, an Ivy League college. They look just like it too, with their cardigans and plaid shirts, living in a world of butlers and Louis Vuitton (if the lyrics in their debut album are anything to go by). Yet, they’re dabbling in West African rhythms.

Defying cynics, Vampire Weekend have produced yet another great album. Besides, who can call them pretentious anymore when they openly admit their sophomore album, Contra is actually named after a video game?

For those unfamiliar with the band that named itself after a movie that Koeing made over the summer vacation in his freshman year of college, Vampire Weekend’s sound is probably unlike anything you’ve heard before. They fuse Afro-pop with Western Rock, which they dub “Upper West Side Soweto”. A term previously only associated with Paul Simon, most famous for being one half of Simon and Garfunkel, whose music was influenced by world music.

Lyrics-wise, Contra has matured since their debut album. This time, the band bemoans the state of society, internationally and locally to a joyous beat, dropping college life from one of its themes. However, the lyrics never get too heavy going and retain brightness in their melody like the first album.

But then again, the lyrics are still as opaque as ever. For instance, in their single, “Cousins”, the first stanza goes, “You found a sweater on the ocean floor / They’re gonna find it if you didn’t close the door / You and the smart one sit outside to the side / in a house on a street they wouldn’t park on at night”.

This is also partly due to Koenig’s love for obscure word play. The frontman who taught High School English for a year after graduation, rhymes the title of their first song “Horchata” (a Spanish beverage) with Aranciata (an orange flavoured soft drink), balaclava (a form of headgear that resembles a ski mask) and Masada (a site of ruins originally built by Herod the Great).

They’ve also have toned down the brand name-dropping a notch this time, (perhaps due to the backlash?) sticking to more subtle hints like going on ski trips, aristocrats, and having a friend who’s a diplomat’s son.

Thankfully for their listeners, most of whom may not be able to make head or tail of the lyrics, their songs are fabulously unique and exotic sounding. On top of Afro-pop, this second album borrows sounds from Mexico, Puerto Rico, Jamaica and California Ska-punk, and actually sounds more exciting than the debut album.

“White Sky” and “Run” make use of stereo sound, reverberating from your left ear to right to dizzying perfection, and showcases Koenig’s stretchy, malleable voice.

“Holiday”, “Cousins” and “Giving Up the Gun” are surprisingly infectious tunes that lean more towards pop inclinations. Die-hard indie fans might disparage this, but the mainstream audience, probably the ones these are written for, will lap it up.

“California English”, which describes the disparity between the rich and the poor, using contrasting lines like “someone took a trip before you came to ski in the Alps” and “no one sits inside a freezing flat and stays there ’til May” 2 stanzas down, without getting overtly angsty, unlike punk rock bands like Green Day. However, the synthetic voice effect that lends itself to make this piece the most unconventional of the lot is used a tad too much here.

While there’s no unanimous decision as to which track is the best, “Diplomat’s Son” is a quick favourite. The chants of what sounds vaguely like “chachalaca” and Koenig’s hauntingly hypnotic vocals, eccentric music arrangements somehow work when juxtaposed together.

2 songs that stood out for their slower tempo, “Taxi Cab” and “I Think UR A Contra” show the softer side and emotional depth of the band. Especially so for the latter that uses what appears to be an acoustic guitar in the background, which is unheard of for Vampire Weekend.

All in all, if you happen to be tired of the same old songs on your play list, Contra is a nice addition to spice it up, but even if you aren’t, it’s still worth the listen.

Title: Contra
Artiste: Vampire Weekend
Language: English
Record Label: XL
Release Date: Jan 12

Tracklist:
1. Horchata
2. White Sky
3. Holiday
4. California English
5. Taxi Cab
6. Run
7. Cousins
8. Giving Up the Gun
9. Diplomat’s Son
10. I Think UR A Contra