Album Review: Vampire Weekend - Father of the Bride
While their 2008 debut album is more a flawed demonstration of a peculiar take on indie pop than an untouchable classic, Vampire Weekend's sparse output in the decade since did eventually lead to them striking gold with 2013's captivating Modern Vampires of the City. Returning at last with the fourth album (and first in over five years), what is at first most evident about Father of the Bride is its intimidating length; fans have no doubt been desperate for more music, but it is hard to imagine the group's sunny, often superficial, and arguably inconsistent style holding together for a full hour at a time. As expected, the record does fall somewhat short of its promise, yet buried within is an ample offering of entertaining material, as well as numerous innovative compositions as memorable as the most timeless songs from the past.
Instrumentally, the band's palette has never been more varied, one of the major upsides to releasing such a lengthy project. From the frantic flamenco-tinged Sympathy to the baroque pop of Rich Man, many of the tracks that diverge from their standard indie pop sound go over fairly well. Surprisingly effective as well is the closer Jerusalem, New York, Berlin and its piano-driven melody, bouncing between spritely and solemn while underscored by bass-heavy synths. The strangest low point from a production standpoint is easily We Belong Together, sporting both incredibly kitschy lines and overblown, terribly mixed percussion hits; an inexplicably amateur mistake from an otherwise accomplished group.
The compelling lyricism that has, since their debut, separated Vampire Weekend from their contemporaries is more or less present, albeit lacking the emotional punch that made Modern Vampires of the City such a landmark progression. The aforementioned Rich Man muses on wealth and chance using an upward numeric spiral, yet its depressing queries like "A billion to one, don't the odds make you sick?" are framed between a repulsively positive declaration of "When I was young, I was told I'd find/One rich man in ten has a satisfied mind/And I'm the one". Even the less accessible moments are filled with clever quips that showcase Ezra Koenig's writing talent; the plodding Unbearably White uses its title as a device to discuss relationships, success, and perhaps even his struggle to maintain such poetics: "You walked to the bedroom/And sat down to write/The page in your notebook was unbearably white".
That it's so easy to separate the higher points of the album from its more mediocre tangents is likely its most damning flaw. As amusing as the spirited piano melodies of Harmony Hall or the surf guitar and painfully blunt lyrics of This Life are ("You've been cheating on, cheating on me/I've been cheating on, cheating on you"), their positions early on the record leave them to function mostly as faint memories of Vampire Weekend's often absent ability to write hooks. Shorter, forgettable moments like Bambina, Big Blue, and 2021 litter the spaces between more daring cuts that, admittedly, are quite often excellent. The absence of good is not a problem; that many of the eighteen tracks here feel unnecessary is a regrettable oversight.
The animated guitar plucking provided by The Internet's Steve Lacy on Sunflower and Flower Moon is a late highlight that recaptures some of the record's earlier magic. Where the former is a distressingly catchy diversion filled with scatting and quirky strumming that is nevertheless expertly played, the latter is a groove-heavy jangle pop anthem centered around a hook as impressive as it is unforgettable: "Flower moon cursed the night/If the sun don't make things right/Then it's gonna take a year/Gonna take a year". In contrast, the multiple cuts with ample vocals from guest Danielle Haim are some of the record's most underwhelming slogs, the album opener Hold You Now being a particularly sedated acoustic ballad that is simply uninteresting to the core.
The best parts of Father of the Bride encapsulate pop in its purest, most enjoyable form: well-written hooks complimented by stellar instrumental performances and a general need to slather everything in infallible positivity. It seems that Vampire Weekend's ambition has slightly overtaken their talent, however, as this hour-long odyssey is not nearly as consistent as it ought to be, especially compared to their previous album. Still, their songwriting abilities are as sharp as ever, and supported by the most creative and diverse production of their career, the result is an experience that almost justifies its egregious runtime. Modern Vampires of the City will remain their peak, but the band proves here they still has more than enough energy to keep things going for the foreseeable future.
7/10
Favourite Tracks: This Life, Sympathy, Flower Moon
https://open.spotify.com/album/1A3nVEWRJ8yvlPzawHI1pQ