Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend

When Colin, Edith and Whiley jump on a bandwagon it's often difficult to muster optimism over the rise of any new act. But with Vampire Weekend it seems this grizzly trio of nauseous DJ's have hit the button with uncharacteristic accuracy. The New York quartet's debut self-titled long-player is far removed from the banal Indie™ tripe normally championed on Radio One's guff-spurting airwaves; instead what transpires over the course of 35 tune-laden minutes is a plethora of infectious afro-rhythms entangled in a sun-kissed daze of restless, jangling melody. Granted, little originality emanates from what is, essentially, a Graceland-reprise for the Noughties, but buried deep within Oxford Comma's blissful dreaminess and the synth-jittering saunter of One (Blake's Got A New Face) is a vanilla-coated centre of wistful pop purity laced with virulent guitar spindles and quirky, brush-struck percussion. Once bitten by the sound of Vampire Weekend you might find yourself forever smitten. [Billy Hamilton]