"Father of the Bride" casts a light over Ezra Koenig's shrouded lyricism on the deterioration of both romantic and societal mishaps. It's bright, celebratory, and larger than life. It's certainly the album people need in 2019.
Hailing from the Brooklyn indie rock boom in the late 2000's, Vampire Weekend have always been a talking point ever since their controversial debut album in 2008. I say controversial lightly, but still was an conflicting record amongst listeners, nonetheless. A record that was a huge statement at the time of its release, Vampire Weekend boasted both huge critical acclaim from critics and annoyances from them too. Who knew that a group of four sweater clad Columbia grads would combine African pop with intellectual literature references to make a huge splash in the music world in 2008? A band that quickly became one of indie's biggest names across the landscape, Vampire Weekend was always a talking point amongst fans, including myself. If I had to pick just one, Vampire Weekend is in fact my favoriteband, considering the tons of artists that I dearly love. The band's numerous name checking references, whimsical production, coyly fun Afro-pop rhythms (one the first two LP's), and an absolutely stellar discography (Vampire Weekend, Contra, Modern Vampires of the City) that few bands in their genre really have. All three records hail as all-time faves for me, each being able to stand on their own. I could write about their past all day, really, but the fact of the matter is that Father of the Bride, their first album in over six years, is finally here.
A lot has happened in the past few years in between albums. Rostam Batmanglij, the band's key producer and creative member, left to focus on his solo efforts. Chris Baio and Chris Tomson pursued solo efforts, including an excellent debut from Tomson. Ezra Koenig started a lovely internet music show, Time Crisis, on Apple Music (that I highly recommend) and is now a father of a child with Rashida Jones. The band also left their longtime indie label XL and joined major label heavyweight Columbia of Sony Music. In terms of sound, the album is a very different venture from the band. Consisting of heavy Bob Dylan, Grateful Dead, and Phish influences, it sounds much more of 60's jam rock instrumentally. On Father of the Bride, the band's sunny, celebratory, larger than life instrumentation casts a light over Ezra Koenig's shrouded, bleak lyricism over the deterioration of both romantic and societal mishaps. Ezra's lyrics are the most upfront and personal of any VW record prior. Not looking into Ezra's lyrics, you would probably not even realize the many dark undertones of the record, peering into many of Ezra's apocalyptic crossroad moments, such as "wicked snakes inside this place you thought was dignified / I don't wanna live like this, but I don't wanna die" on the stellar lead single "Harmony Hall."
The album is labeled a "double album" (if you can even call it that) spanning just under an hour, being the band's largest feat to date. Many guests appear on the record including multiple appearances from HAIM's Daniele Haim and The Internet's Steve Lacy and was produced by all star Ariel Rechtshaid, who helped produce the band's last album. The overall pacing of the record acts as a compilation of Ezra and his closest friends in the studio, having a great time. If there's anyone who acts like the bride, it's certainly Haim, who lends her hand to a handful of tracks. Many songs that feature Haim result in cutesy, often traditional country-tinged duets, such as the Hans Zimmer-sampled "Hold You Now," "Married in a Gold Rush," "We Belong Together" and "Stranger," the latter really resembling some of HAIM's best songs. Some songs act like sunny, springtime jamming in the park events, such as the Van Morrison-like "This Life," "Harmony Hall," and "Flower Moon." Of course, what's not to love when there's a few left-field curve balls to throw at the listener. "My Mistake" is a cold, moody piano ballad that's absolutely gorgeous, while "Sympathy" is fiery flamenco pop with short acoustic solo bursts, rapid drumming, and glitchy electronics that spurt here and there.
Let's talk about the absolutely smile inducing fun cuts too. "Sunflower" is a short and sweet infectious jam with jumpy guitar riffs and actual scatting thrown into the mix. It's the most notable song that obviously draws the Phish and Dead comparisons. "How Long?" and "Bambina" is radio-ready indie pop that would please longtime fans. "Big Blue" and "2021" are quick and simple. The first is a quick, wavy and jangly guitar ballad with deep choir vocals (reminiscent of Mac Demarco) and the second is a skeletal ballad centered on both Haruomi Hosono and Jenny Lewis samples, respectively. "Spring Snow" is a gorgeous ballad with autotune crooning Ezra over crunchy percussion and piano. "Rich Man" is a very gentle ballad on wealth and privilege with a very pretty classical sample. The album closes with a traditional piano ballad, "Jerusalem, New York, Berlin," hinting at some production similar to Rostam. I do wish there was more to the song, though, considering not having many change-ups.
Considering the six years of patience-testing, Father of the Bride is worth the wait. It's a different stylistic pace for the trio, but a great one. Although its album art isn't very 2019, its subject matter is. Ezra Koenig isn't a 20 year old Columbia student anymore. He's a 35 year old father now. He's done discussing about oxford commas and Cape Cod. He's had a lot of life-defining moments in his career and a lot to address, whether it's about the country's crisis or heartbreaking love. Father of the Bride is the start of the next chapter in the band's career that hopefully doesn't come to a close just yet. It's bright, celebratory, and larger than life. It's certainly the album people need in 2019.
Rating: 9 / 10
Favorite Songs: "Harmony Hall," "Sunflower," "Sympathy," "My Mistake," "Hold You Now," "Rich Man"
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