VAMPIRE WEEKEND

Saturday 7:30 PM at the Tennessee Theatre
Vampire Weekend w/ Abe Vigoda

Describing their sound as “Upper West Side Soweto,” New York City’s Vampire Weekend mixes preppy, well-read indie rock with joyful, Afro-pop-inspired melodies and rhythms. Ezra Koenig, Chris Baio, Rostam Batmanglij, and Chris Tomson formed the band early in 2006, while finishing up studies at Columbia University.  Word spread about Vampire Weekend’s unique sound and erudite lyrics (“Oxford Comma” refers to comma use in a list of three items), buoyed by the band’s self-released EPs, which they recorded in their Columbia dorm rooms and a family barn. Vampire Weekend signed with XL Records in 2007. The Mansard Roof EP was Vampire Weekend’s debut release for the label, followed by their self-titled first album early in 2008.  Their latest recording, Contra, is scheduled to be released on January 12, and according to their website, “explodes any reductive notions of what constitutes Vampire Weekend’s sound and aesthetic.”  Can’t wait to check it out.