As LCD Soundsystem once prophesied, the hot New York bands have now traded their guitars and bought … sitars? Maybe, anyway, according to new information about Vampire Weekend’s next album. The band just started a vinyl club for previous live sets, and the first record in the series, Frog on the Bass Drum Vol. 01, is now out. In a newsletter accompanying its release, drummer Chris Tomson dropped a bomb about what singer Ezra Koenig has been up to. “Ezra took a raga singing lesson with Terry Riley in rural Japan and wrote what he considers to be 7 of his all-time top 10 best songs.†(As for Tomson, he got sober and had kids, while bassist Chris Baio served on a jury “with a renowned actress’ husband.â€)
Minimalist, raga-influenced Vampire Weekend wouldn’t entirely be out of left field after the jammy, stoned-out Father of the Bride, but still, tell us you could’ve predicted this one. Tomson continued that being able “to connect, jawbone, and jam†with his bandmates without responsibility reminded him of their formation at Columbia University. “I personally found an immense peace and pleasure from creating with the guys like we had in the Ruggles days,†he wrote. “The vibe was strong.†(FOTB producer Ariel Rechtshaid has been posting about recording with the band, too.)
And the new album is “close to done,†Tomson added in a P.S., promising news by the end of the year. “I feel like it just might be our best yet,†he wrote. “10 songs, no skips.â€