When they mysteriously leaked the cover art of their second album online, we were intrigued. When they dropped a couple of new songs on us months before the album’s release, we were captivated. When they zipped through Australia on a whistlestop tour, we were sold – Contra is an album we all must have or else we will surely perish. But is Vampire Weekend’s sophomore full-length worthy of all the media hype, or is it just the product of good PR?

Whatever the answer, one thing the buzz surrounding Contra confirms is that Vampire Weekend have high aspirations. The massive publicity push they have been conducting suggests they are not content being your underground indie heroes for much longer. For the most part however, you couldn’t say these aspirations are reflected in the music of Contra.

There’s definitely a magnetism about this album though, just as there was for their self-titled debut. And there are certain similarities between the two; Afro-beat remains a strong musical focus and there are more hooks than a fisherman’s tackle box. But the extremely encouraging thing about Contra is that Vampire Weekend have built on their aural aesthetic, incorporating a more diverse array of instrumentation and abandoned some of their pretentious, preppy lyrical inclinations.

There’s also a shitload of synthesised sounds. This was obvious enough on Horchata, its tropicalia-tinged episodes indicating a retreat from more traditional pop leanings.

But for all their pop prowess, Vampire Weekend also display the workings of a band capable of more. Like the bold, Postal Service-lite melodia of Giving Up The Gun or the angelic orchestral closer I Think U R A Contra.

Vampire Weekend may have high aspirations, but they firmly remain a pop band with Contra. However this album solidifies the band as one of the finest purveyors of interesting and intelligent pop music going around with hints there are much bigger things lurking in the background.

Jimmy Bollard

CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR E-NEWSLETTER!