Vampire Weekend

This article is about the band. For the band's first album, see Vampire Weekend (album).
Vampire Weekend
Vampire Weekend performing at Larmer Tree Gardens in 2018
Vampire Weekend performing at Larmer Tree Gardens in 2018
Background information
OriginNew York City, New York, U.S.
Genres
Years active2006–present
Labels
Members
Past members
Websitevampireweekend.com

Vampire Weekend is an American rock band formed in New York City in 2006 and currently signed to Columbia Records.[6][7] The band was formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Ezra Koenig, multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, drummer Chris Tomson, and bassist Chris Baio. Batmanglij departed the group in early 2016 but has continued to occasionally contribute to subsequent albums as a songwriter, producer, and musician.

The band's debut album, Vampire Weekend (2008), incorporated elements of indie pop, Afropop, and chamber music. Featuring charting singles "A-Punk" and "Oxford Comma", it has been hailed as one of the greatest debut albums.[8] Their sophomore album, Contra (2010), was similarly acclaimed and garnered strong commercial success, debuting at number one on the US Billboard 200, and featuring well-received singles including "Holiday". Their subsequent studio albums Modern Vampires of the City (2013) and Father of the Bride (2019) continued the band's success, with each album receiving widespread critical acclaim, topping US charts and winning the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album in their respective years. They released their fifth studio album, Only God Was Above Us, on April 5, 2024 to universal acclaim.[9]

  1. ^ Clark, Tyler (May 8, 2019). "Did Vampire Weekend Win the Indie Rock Age?". Consequence of Sound. Archived from the original on April 16, 2021. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
  2. ^ Edelstone, Steven (January 25, 2019). "The 10 Best Vampire Weekend Songs". Paste. Archived from the original on July 11, 2019. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
  3. ^ Haider, Arwa (January 3, 2018). "The most exciting music of 2018". BBC. Archived from the original on June 2, 2019. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
  4. ^ Swhear, Alex (May 6, 2019). "Vampire Weekend's Freewheeling Pop Rock and 11 More Albums for Heavy Rotation". Noisey. Archived from the original on July 3, 2019. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
  5. ^ "New music review: Modern Vampires of the City, Vampire Weekend (XL)". May 12, 2013. Archived from the original on May 18, 2022. Retrieved August 5, 2019.
  6. ^ "Vampire Weekend Revamp Website | Pitchfork". pitchfork.com. February 2018. Archived from the original on 2023-06-08. Retrieved 2018-02-20.
  7. ^ "Vampire Weekend Reportedly Sign To Columbia For LP4". Stereogum. 18 November 2016. Archived from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2018.
  8. ^ "Rollingstone". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2018-07-01. Retrieved 2022-04-18.
  9. ^ Empire, Kitty (2024-04-05). "Vampire Weekend: Only God Was Above Us review – their most adventurous set yet". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 2024-04-05.