Even Billboard Magazine has Gone Vampire Crazy

In late January, the music scene jumped on the vampire bandwagon with the band Vampire Weekend’s second album, Contra (released on January 11) debuting at #1 on the Billboard 200. This was the bands first number one CD, and really it was a much better alternative than suffering through Twilight on Showtime or watching New Moon at all.

The band, comprised of four Columbia University students, have created a fun, upbeat and thought provoking sound clearly influenced by African pop music. More importantly (at least for me) their lyrical content and versatility is amazing and clearly way ahead of the majority of artists that populate the music scene today.

I remember seeing their videos on Fuse or Havoc and just passing them by. As I discovered after hearing Contra, that was a huge mistake. Their music is very reminiscent of Paul Simon and his work on his great CD Graceland, but they have a totally different appeal.

The groundwork for this meteoric rise to the top of the charts was actually laid by their impressive debut CD, Vampire Weekend. Unfortunately, I did not hear this CD until last week. As my friends realize, my usual music tastes lie outside of the mainstream. I am a psychobilly, punk, and new wave junkie. I was actually more excited about Laughin' And Cryin' With The Reverend Horton Heat more than Contra at first. That was until my wife played it in the car. From that point, I was hooked! In fact, I don’t usually recommend much of my playlist for many people, but I definitely recommend this band to anyone who will listen.