Vampire Weekend’s first two albums definitely made big splashes in indie, and eventually pop-culture. They made the cover of Spin magazine before their first official release, and gathered a ton of buzz right from the start. While the previous two albums have a lot going for them, Modern Vampires of the City could be argued as an improvement on what Vampire Weekend has presented in the past. Apart from simply containing straightforwardly catchy and well written songs, there are other reasons that MVOTC pushes the band’s catalogue further.

For one thing, the album channels various modes. At times, it seems to pay homage to rock’s early years with the rockabilly “Diane Young.” Other times, the album pushes Vampire Weekend to a slower and more up-to-date sound, with songs like “Ya Hey” and “Hannah Hunt.” The changes in mood and genre show that Vampire Weekend can handle writing songs outside of their feel-good, beach-soundtrack, and preppy sphere. The album still channels the classic Vampire Weekend elements, such as fast-past drumbeats, and lyrics that switch back and forth between finely-combed educated poetry, and tender pleas for recognition, understanding, and love. But in addition to the predictable (though, still very much appreciated) aspects of their sound, Vampire Weekend enhances the album with its occasional use of brass instruments and an organ. The added sounds blend nicely with the guitar and bass, and they provide freshness to the album.

Another thing that the album does well is that it seamlessly blends produced sounds with those that are more organic. For example, “Unbelievers” contains a clean brass accompaniment, as well as less-clean (but equally enjoyable) echoing piano chords. Rather than creating a chaotic sound, the combination sounds great, and the song is one of the best upbeat songs to have been released this year.

The album also handles ominous themes with confidence, while maintaining consideration for the sensitivity of others. For example, the band changed “Dying Young” to “Diane Young,” and the resulting title humanizes death and the end of an exciting life. Consequently, the song still seems to present an anxiety about death and the unknown future, but it also makes any impending fate seem less harmful.

The slower songs also succeed in keeping ahold of the listener’s attention with the artful lyrics. On “Hannah Hunt,” lead singer Ezra Koenig declares, “Though we live on the US dollar, you and me, we’ve got our own sense of time.” The echoing lyrics in the second part of the song evoke a sense of desperation, compared with the clear and lulling lyrics in the first part. The desperation causes a desire for resolution, and stokes interest in the remainder of the album. Desperation continues with “Everlasting Arms,” as Koenig begs the person he loves to reciprocate his actions and feelings.

The album becomes even more interesting during “Worship You,” which reflects something of a cross between an Irish fiddle tune and a Bollywood musical number. Koenig spits out the lyrics as fast as he can to keep up with the pace of the music. Rather than seeming exasperated, it comes across as energetic and exciting, and seems like something that could accompany a comical chase scene in which the goofy protagonist and his love interest outrun the dopey cops.

The elation, however, tones down with the help of the dark choral accompaniment the build-up of “Ya Hey” and again on “Hudson.” The drums on Hudson seem to indicate a person’s walk to his death, and the choral background only serves to advance the eeriness.

After the spooky “Hudson,” they strip down to a piano, bass, and vocals for “Young Lion.” The song provides a pleasant and peaceful end to an exciting, emotional whirlwind of an album.

Rating: W-P-G-3/5

RIYL: Phoenix, Coconut Records, Girls

Key Tracks: “Unbelievers,” “Diane Young,” “Worship You”

Stream “Diane Young” below via YouTube:

Foxygen’s 2013 release We Are The 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic was easily one of the most surprising releases of this year so far.  The new album, which featured a surprising amount of folky elements, showed how talented the band really could be.  So talented, in fact, that they were booked for a headlining slot at Champaign-Urbana’s Pygmalion Music Festival.  Their show, among many others, is one that I am definitely looking forward to, and I think you should, too.  Pick up tickets for Pygmalion here, look out for WPGU.com’s coverage of the event, and last but not least, stream Foxygen’s new video for their track “No Destruction” below!

Finals are wrapping up, it’s getting warmer, and most of all, summer music is on the way.  That means festivals on festivals as well as a slew of new albums to look forward to.  Until you hike on down to Bonnaroo or grab the new Vampire Weekend release, hopefully our mixer can tide you over!

1 -Susan Tedeschi – “Feeling That Music Brings”

It’s summer. You get to go to shows…OUTDOOR shows. Here’s a celebration of that feeling you’re bound to get at the first great concert you get to this summer, thanks to the one woman over 40 that I would most certainly marry in a heartbeat–Susan Tedeschi.

Written by Charlie Weller

2 – Bloc Party – “Helicopter”

This (kind of) throwback from 2005 will remind you what driving fast is all about.  Helicopter is off Bloc Party’s critically acclaimed album, “Silent Alarm”, and points to the degradation and laziness of Americans in the 21st century.  This song would be right at home in a documentary about the world’s fastest Ferris Wheel.

Written by Sean Rowader

3 – Smash Mouth – “I Just Wanna See”

Growing up, my entire block always spent our summer days floating in my family’s pool, listening to “summer music”–either The B-52′s, Louis Prima, The Beach Boys or, for some unexplainable reason, Smash Mouth. Go ahead and roll your eyes, but this underestimated Smash Mouth track illustrates what the perfect summer day should be: a day in which everything works in complete tandem, the people are calmed by the breeze and warmed by the sun and Smash Mouth blasts while neighborhood kids splash around in a pool. “Mister Moon checkin’ on how you’re all living, the stars all winkin’ at the day that’s given, I just wanna see.” Pretty poetic for the guys that wrote All Star.

Written by Lise Graham

4 – Spoon – “Stay Don’t Go”

“Stay Don’t Go” is a great track by indie rock superstars Spoon featuring a fun backing made by people noises(that was the most eloquent way I could word it). Like most of their tracks, it is pretty dance-y, and this one is actually pretty chill too. One of many great tracks on their critically acclaimed 2002 album “Kill the Moonlight,” this record has been added to the indie canon.

Written by David Christians

5 – Danny Brown – “I Will”

Everyone loves a little summer romance. Danny Brown gets romance like veterinarians get euthinasia. Play this song when you just want to kick back and relax with that special summer someone.

Written by Sam Halpern

6 – Paul Simon – “You Can Call Me Al”

I’d like to think that I was Paul Simon in a past life. What’s this song about? I don’t know. All I know is it makes me want to dance in the sun or lay on a beach somewhere in South Africa. Also, who knew Chevy Chase had such chops?

Written by Joe Winner

7 – Pavement – “Summer Babe”

Summer Babe is easily one of my favorite Pavement tracks. It’s a noisy, easy going and laid back song that exudes warm vibes. Kick back and give this track a spin to get into that summer mood.

Written by Eric Holmes

8 – Telekinesis – “All Of A Sudden”

This song is off of the debut Telekinesis LP from a few years ago. It is a great upbeat song that is perfect for blasting from the car stereo while driving to your summer job, or while driving on roadtrip. The latter being preferable.

Written by Claire Schroeder

9 – Kids These Days – “Summerscent”

Over the past couple of years, I’ve included a borderline-sickening amount of Kids These Days on various mixtapes.  This one, however, comes with some saddening news.  The hip-hop/jazz collective announced their breakup last week, and in honor of that, go ahead and vibe out to perhaps the most appropriate summer track I’ve ever heard.

Written by Boswell Hutson

10 – Vampire Weekend – “Step”

As with all old things ending, new things come to take their place.  While I may be devastated by KTD’s breakup, the new vampire weekend gives me hope for new music yet again.  The quirky lyrics are no surprise from Vampire Weekend, but they never fail to put me in a good, warm mood. Go ahead and spin this and try not to be happy.

Written by Boswell Hutson

Earlier today, The National dropped the first video off of their next album Trouble Will Find Me.  The track, titled “Sea Of Love” is a little more upbeat than I’m used to from these guys, but all in all, I think this album is shaping up to be a good one.  Check back to WPGU.com for an official review of the new album, and in the mean time, check out the new visuals below!

Everyone’s favorite Chicago indie music stars are back with their first video from Soft Will as well as a slew of new announcements.  The new video, for the song “Varsity”, features a young couple “exploring a dream world of young love” as Pitchfork so eloquently puts it.  Along with the new video, which you can watch below, the band also announced the shifting of their album release date from June 11th to June 25th as well as some new tour dates.  Let us know what you think of the Alex Del Rio Ortiz-directed visuals below and click on over to Pitchfork to check out the new tour dates!

Wow is this huge news.  Not only is it huge that Neutral Milk Hotel is reuniting for a tour this coming Fall, but also that they are hitting college towns.  When this announcement was made a couple of weeks ago, I though surely they wouldn’t be coming to UIUC.  It seems that outside of Pygmalion, all of the good fairly large tours seem to pass us by and I’m not sure why.  Not this time, though.  Jeff Mangum and Co. and opener Elf Power are coming to Canopy Club in Urbana on October 15th!  No word yet on when tickets go on sale, but check back to Canopy Club’s website frequently to see when.

Even after four Deerhunter albums, it’s hard to claim that you know exactly what their next effort is going to sound like. And on Monomania, Deerhunter’s fifth album, that rings true again. After the huge success of their last album, Halcyon Digest, Deerhunter drops the electronic aspects and returns to their roots for a raw garage rock sound, filled with squalling, thrashing guitars while still staying true to their own well developed sound. With more energy and attitude than any of their previous albums, Monomania is at once both familiar and fresh and the result is exhilarating. This is Deerhunter’s most accessible album to date, with many tracks catching your attention immediately and refusing to let go.

Monomania begins with a ruckus that almost sounds like a different band entirely, especially “Leather Jacket II”, an album highlight that combines an insanely catchy hook with raw screeching guitar noise. It isn’t until the third track, smooth and quiet relative to the album openers, that Monomania starts to sound like a Deerhunter album. “The Missing” acts as this album’s “Agoraphobia”, a track that shows the dreamier side to Deerhunter’s music, but it is quickly interupted by “Pensacola”, a Dylan-esque rock romp and one of the best tracks on the album. It’s aggressive, loud, catchy and fun to listen to, a quality that Deerhunter’s music has mostly lacked previously.

The mid-section of Monomania is a collection of mellow tunes that range from solid to great. “Dream Captain” is instantly accessible and “T.H.M.” has one of the catchiest and most satisfying break-downs that Deerhunter has ever made, especially when accented by the staccato breaths at the end. The title track begins with a screech of feedback and ends with thrashing, squalling guitars creating a wall of sound that dissolves into the sound of a motorbike starting. This leads directly into “Nitebike”, a ballad featuring only heavily reverbed vocals and an acoustic guitar, which offers a nice respite from the onslaught of guitar noise at the end of “Monomania”.

This album serves as a step in a new direction for Deerhunter, who sound like they’re having more fun making music than they ever have before. It contrasts so extremely from Halcyon Digest, that one can’t help but appreciate the diversity of sounds that Deerhunter is capable of pulling off. Monomania is energetic, brimming with attitude and a truly solid album from a band that has yet to make a bad record.

WPG-1/2

Highlights- “Leather Jacket II”, “Pensacola”, and “T.H.M.”

RIYL- Atlas Sound, Lotus Plaza, Ty Segall 

Check out our full album stream via Spotify below:

Vampire Weekend have seemingly perfected the art of the “lyric video”.  The videos for both “Step” and “Ya Hey” both picture the lyrics laid over picturesque images of New York City (and in this case, popping champagne).  Their third video from their upcoming album Modern Vampires of the City is called “Ya Hey” and is almost certainly destined to be a classic (OK, maybe I’m getting a little ahead of myself here…but it’s damn good).  The album is out on May 14th and can be pre-ordered here.  Check out the video below and let us know what you think!

The good folks over at Pygmalion Music Festival announced some of the headliners for their annual festival in Champaign-Urbana…and damn, is it a good one.  Foxygen, Dawes, Major Lazer, Chance The Rapper, Youth Lagoon, and The Head And The Heart as well as local favorites Elsinore and Grandkids all headline the festival, which runs from September 26th through the 28th.  Check out the official lineup and announcement here.  Tickets will be available starting this Tuesday, with more acts being announced through the early summer.

Here it is, guys.  The moment you’ve all been waiting for.  Though we still have to wait a week for The Great Gatsby to hit theatres, thanks to the good people over at NPR, we how have a full album stream of the soundtrack.  As with most Baz Luhrmann films, the soundtrack is star-studded and impressive, including cuts from The xx, Lana Del Rey, Jack White, and Jay-Z to say the least.  Stream the full album below and let us know what you think!

Stream the soundtrack here!