Description
Label Review.
2019 album also available on CD.
Our Overview.
‘Father Of The Bride’ is Vampire Weeked’s first album since 2013’s Grammy-winning ‘Modern Vampires of The City’ and is a much anticipated fourth studio album from Ezra Koenig and company and has already received an ecstatic critical reaction including:
“Sprawls out with lush symphonies, communal vibes aplenty”—Billboard
“Wraps misgivings in three-chord elation”—The New York Times
“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
Ezra Koenig revealed some details about their 18 track and first album in 6 years in an interview with Beats 1, and said that ex band member Rostam Batmanglij contributed production to “Harmony Hall,” and that there’s another track that they “worked very closely on.” He also said that guitarist Greg Leisz plays the solo on “Harmony Hall” and is “all over the record,” while Dave Longstreth contributed another guitar part to “Harmony Hall.” Danielle Haim is also credited on the track. Jenny Lewis sings the “boy” motif in “2021,” speaking about “2021,” Koenig said that the track samples Japanese music icon Haruomi Hosono. “This is music that he composed in the ’80s to be played in Muji stores in Japan,” Koenig explained. “And when I first heard it, I was so struck by it and I immediately started looping it and I started writing this song on top of it. So anyway, shout out to Haruomi Hosono, who has graciously cleared the sample for us, and I guess shout out to Muji, too. They don’t own it anymore, he does, but, you know.”
Congratulations are also 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.
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.