Vampire Weekend - Only God Was Above Us (Album Review)
Tuesday, 09 April 2024
Written by Issy Herring
Photo: Michael Schmelling
Five years in the making, Vampire Weekend’s ‘Only God Was Above Us’ is a far cry from the group’s self-titled debut. Where that 2008 LP offered up insouciant indie-pop, here we have perhaps their most experimental work to date, combining a fixation on raga with slick production and dark, sombre lyrical themes.
Marking their third collaboration with pop grandee Ariel Rechtshaid — who also worked on ‘Modern Vampires Of The City’ and ‘Father Of The Bride’ — the band paint from a varied palette while remaining on top of quality control for the meat of the record.
Ice Cream Piano sounds like a Beatles B-side, complete with frontman Ezra Koenig’s John Lennon-esque vocals.
Taking a pessimistic view of conflicts both personal and geopolitical, their indie-pop sound somehow makes its way through the gleaming production, offering an undercurrent of positivity.
Classical is a poignant highlight that pulls from a similar place, with references to the fall of the Berlin wall folded into antic pop that recalls their breakthrough hits. “I know that walls fall, shacks shake / Bridges burn and bodies break / It’s clear something’s gonna change / And when it does, which classical remains?” Koenig murmurs.
Capricorn, meanwhile, is a perfect, synth-filled soft-rock number that tackles mid-life depression, and Mary Boone delivers a clever, vital shot of wackiness as ‘Only God Was Above Us’ heads into the home stretch following two of its more ineffective songs. The Surfer struggles to connect beyond surface level despite its perky instrumental, while Gen X-Cops is its one real filler moment.
Still, almost two decades on from their arrival in a flurry of right time, right place hype, Vampire Weekend continue to prove that they have more depth to their sound than we initially anticipated.
Vampire Weekend Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Fri November 29 2024 - DUBLIN 3Arena
Sun December 01 2024 - MANCHESTER O2 Apollo
Mon December 02 2024 - MANCHESTER O2 Apollo
Wed December 04 2024 - LONDON Eventim Apollo
Thu December 05 2024 - LONDON Eventim Apollo
Fri December 06 2024 - WOLVERHAMPTON University of Wolverhampton at The Civic Hall
Sun December 08 2024 - GLASGOW OVO Hydro
Tue December 10 2024 - LONDON O2 Academy Brixton
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