Contra [LP]

( 4 )

Editorial Reviews

All Music Guide - Heather Phares
The scholarly Upper West Side Soweto of Vampire Weekend's debut sounded self-assured, but on Contra, they step out of their ivory tower with just as much confidence. In all senses of the term, this is a sophomore album. The band still flaunts the collegiate sense of discovery that made Vampire Weekend charming -- and sometimes too precious -- but with more maturity and creativity. Another Discovery is just as much of a force on Contra as any of the band's much-noted influences (Afro-pop, Paul Simon's Graceland): Rostam Batmanglij's electro-hip-hop-pop project with Ra Ra Riot's Wes Miles, which released its album LP after the pair found acclaim with their day jobs. While ...
See more details below
Vinyl LP
$18.04
BN.com price
(Save 5%)$18.99 List Price
Other sellers (Vinyl LP)
  • All (4) from $23.74   
  • New (4) from $23.74   

More About This Product

Editorial Reviews

All Music Guide - Heather Phares
The scholarly Upper West Side Soweto of Vampire Weekend's debut sounded self-assured, but on Contra, they step out of their ivory tower with just as much confidence. In all senses of the term, this is a sophomore album. The band still flaunts the collegiate sense of discovery that made Vampire Weekend charming -- and sometimes too precious -- but with more maturity and creativity. Another Discovery is just as much of a force on Contra as any of the band's much-noted influences (Afro-pop, Paul Simon's Graceland): Rostam Batmanglij's electro-hip-hop-pop project with Ra Ra Riot's Wes Miles, which released its album LP after the pair found acclaim with their day jobs. While Vampire Weekend aren't as shiny and sugary as Discovery, some of that adventurousness rubbed off on Batmanglij's Contra production, which plays to the band's biggest strength: inspired juxtaposition. The album's artwork, which pairs a blonde WASP princess in a popped-collar polo shirt with the term given to Nicaraguan rebels, hints at the flair with which Vampire Weekend play mix-and-match on Contra. They throw listeners into the deep end with "Horchata," which features a four-on-the-floor beat, thumb piano, rubbery synth bass, and massed harmonies -- almost everything except the spry guitars that helped define their first album. "California English" goes further, tweaking Ezra Koenig's yelp with Auto-Tune, the bête noire of those who value "realness" in their music; for Vampire Weekend, it's just another instrument for them to play with. On paper, Contra's hybrids seem more contrived than they actually sound: "Giving Up the Gun" fuses baile funk, house, and stadium rock into a sweet melody propelled by choppy rhythms. "Diplomat's Son" is even more far-fetched and fantastic, adding samples of M.I.A. and Toots & the Maytals -- exactly the kind of things you'd expect to hear on a young globetrotter's iPod -- to nostalgic chamber pop. The album bustles with so many sounds and ideas that it challenges listeners to decide where to put their ears first, particularly on the single "Cousins," a blur of guitars and jump-cut drums that sounds like abstract punk. Despite this busyness, Vampire Weekend are looser and less cryptic than on their debut, allowing them to tell stories like "Holiday," an Iraqi war protest set to skanking guitars (ever the font snob, Koenig can't resist mentioning a headline in "96-point Futura"). Even the few quiet moments are complex: "I Think UR a Contra" closes the album by wanting, and hating, the kind of privilege that brings "good schools and friends with pools." And though the band is committed to change, the same joy that soared through Vampire Weekend pops up on "White Sky," which boasts a melody so irrepressible that Paul Simon just might want to borrow it. With Contra, Vampire Weekend make Auto-Tune and real live guitars, Mexican drinks, Jamaican riffs, and Upper West Side strings belong together, and this exciting lack of boundaries offers more possibilities than anyone could have expected. [A vinyl version was also released in 2010.]
Read More Show Less

Product Details

  • Release Date: 1/12/2010
  • Label: Xl Recordings
  • UPC: 634904042912
  • Catalog Number: 40429
  • Sales rank: 3,919

Tracks

Disc 1
  1. 1 Horchata
  2. 2 White Sky
  3. 3 Holiday
  4. 4 California English
  5. 5 Taxi Cab
  6. 6 Run
  7. 7 Cousins
  8. 8 Giving Up the Gun
  9. 9 Diplomat's Sun
  10. 10 I Think Ur a Contra
Read More Show Less

Album Credits

Performance Credits
Vampire Weekend Primary Artist
Read More Show Less

Customer Reviews

Average Rating 4.5
( 4 )
Rating Distribution

5 Star

(2)

4 Star

(2)

3 Star

(0)

2 Star

(0)

1 Star

(0)

Your Rating:

Review Guidelines
Add Recommendations
Your Name: Create a Pen Name or

Barnes & Noble.com Review Rules

Our reader reviews allow you to share your comments on titles you liked, or didn't, with others. By submitting an online review, you are representing to Barnes & Noble.com that all information contained in your review is original and accurate in all respects, and that the submission of such content by you and the posting of such content by Barnes & Noble.com does not and will not violate the rights of any third party. Please follow the rules below to help ensure that your review can be posted.

Reviews by Our Customers Under the Age of 13

We highly value and respect everyone's opinion concerning the titles we offer. However, we cannot allow persons under the age of 13 to have accounts at BN.com or to post customer reviews. Please see our Terms of Use for more details.

What to exclude from your review:

Please do not write about reviews, commentary, or information posted on the product page. If you see any errors in the information on the product page, please send us an email.

Reviews should not contain any of the following:

  • - HTML tags, profanity, obscenities, vulgarities, or comments that defame anyone
  • - Time-sensitive information such as tour dates, signings, lectures, etc.
  • - Single-word reviews. Other people will read your review to discover why you liked or didn't like the title. Be descriptive.
  • - Comments focusing on the author or that may ruin the ending for others
  • - Phone numbers, addresses, URLs
  • - Pricing and availability information or alternative ordering information
  • - Advertisements or commercial solicitation

Reminder:

  • - By submitting a review, you grant to Barnes & Noble.com and its sublicensees the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right and license to use the review in accordance with the Barnes & Noble.com Terms of Use.
  • - Barnes & Noble.com reserves the right not to post any review -- particularly those that do not follow the terms and conditions of these Rules. Barnes & Noble.com also reserves the right to remove any review at any time without notice.
  • - See Terms of Use for other conditions and disclaimers.
Search for Products You'd Like to Recommend

Recommend other products that relate to your review. Just search for them below and share!

Create a Pen Name

Your Pen Name is your unique identity on BN.com. It will appear on the reviews you write and other website activities. Your Pen Name cannot be edited, changed or deleted once submitted.

 
Your Pen Name can be any combination of alphanumeric characters (plus - and _), and must be at least two characters long.

Continue Anonymously
Sort by: Showing all of 4 Customer Reviews

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 30, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted March 27, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted April 15, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted January 27, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

Sort by: Showing all of 4 Customer Reviews