Tag Archives: Vampire Weekend

Vampire Weekend: Father of the Bride

On May 3, 2019, “Columbia” label released “Father of the Bride”, the fourth Vampire Weekend studio album. It was recorded January 2016 – August 2018, at “Effie Street” in  Silverlake, California, “Vox” in Hollywood, “Sony” in Akasaka, Minato, Japan, and was produced by Ariel Rechtshaid, Ezra Koenig, BloodPop, DJ Dahi and Rostam Batmanglij.

Personnel:

  • Ezra Koenig – lead vocals, guitars, mixing
  • Rostam Batmanglij – 12-string acoustic guitar
  • Tommy King – piano
  • Buddy Ross – synthesizers, Wurlitzer, piano, strings, backing vocals 
  • Matt Chamberlain – drums
  • Greg Leisz – electric and pedal steel guitar
  • David Longstreth – guitar, backing vocals
  • Jake Longstreth – guitar
  • John Nixon – guitar
  • Ariel Rechtshaid – guitar
  •  Steve Lacy – lead and backing vocals, acoustic guitar
  • Sam Gendel – saxophone
  • Serena McKinney – violins 
  • Danielle Haim – lead and backing vocals
  • Jude Law – lead vocals
  • Jenny Lewis – vocal sample
  • Ariel Rechtshaid – engineer, mixing
  • Buddy Ross – engineer, mixing
  • Shawn Everett – engineer, mixing
  • Rostam Batmanglij – engineer, mixing
  • Dalton Ricks – engineer
  • Nick Rowe – engineer
  • Chris Kasych – engineer
  • John DeBold – engineer
  • Hiroya Takayama – engineer
  • Takemasa Kosaka – engineer
  • Dave Schiffman – engineer
  • P-Thugg (Patrick Gemayel) – engineer
  • Michael Harris – engineer
  • Jude Law – engineer
  • Manny Marroquin – mixing
  • Chris Galland – mixing
  • Robin Florent – mixing assistant
  • Scott Desmarais – mixing assistant
  • Emily Lazar – mastering
  • Chris Allgood – mastering assistant
  • Nick Harwood – art direction
  • Primo Kahn – cover design
  • Public-Library – cover design
  • Brendan Ratzlaff – illustration

Track listing:

All tracks by Ezra Koenig, except where noted.

  1. Hold You Now – Ezra Koenig, Hans Zimmer
  2. Harmony Hall
  3. Bambina
  4. This Life – Ezra Koenig, Makonnen Sheran, Mark Ronson
  5. Big Blue
  6. How Long? – Ezra Koenig, William Shelby, Stephen Shockley, Leon F. Silvers III
  7. Unbearably White
  8. Rich Man – Ezra Koenig, S. E. Rogie
  9. Married in a Gold Rush
  10. My Mistake – Ezra Koenig, Ludwig Göransson
  11. Sympathy – Ezra Koenig, Ariel Rechtshaid
  12. Sunflower
  13. Flower Moon – Ezra Koenig, Ariel Rechtshaid
  14. 2021 – Haruomi Hososno, Ezra Koenig
  15. We Belong Together – Ezra Koenig, Rostam Batmanglij
  16. Stranger
  17. Spring Snow – Ezra Koenig, BloodPop, Sam Gendel
  18. Jerusalem, New York, Berlin

Vampire Weekend: Modern Vampire of the City

On May 14, 2013, “XL” label released “Modern Vampires of the City”, the third  Vampire Weekend album. It was recorded in 2013, at “Downtown Studios” in New York City; “Echo Park Back House”, “Vox Studios” in Los Angeles; “Slow Death Studios” in Burbank, and was produced by Rostam Batmanglij. “Modern Vampires of the City” was ranked at number 1 on “Rolling Stone’s” list of the “50 Best Albums of 2013”, and at number one of “Pop Matter’s” list of “The 75 Best Albums of 2013”.

Personnel:

  • Ezra Koenig– lead vocals, piano
  • Rostam Batmanglij – lead vocals, harmony and backing vocals, piano, guitars, banjo, drum and synth programming, keyboards, shaker
  • Chris Baio– bass
  • Chris Tomson– drums
  • Ariel Rechtshaid– additional drum and synth programming, additional bass, engineer
  • Jeff Curtin – additional drums, engineer
  • Brendan Ryan – accordion
  • Adam Schatz – saxophone
  • Johnny Cuomo – flistle
  • Danny T. Levin – trumpet
  • Elizabeth Lea – trombone
  • Seth Shafer – tuba
  • Angel Deradoorian– backing vocals, additional vocal arrangement
  • Fanny Franklin – backing vocals

Track listing:

All lyrics by Ezra Koenig, except where noted. All music by Rostam Batmanglij and Ezra Koenig, except where noted.

  1. Obvious Bicycle
  2. Unbelievers – music by Ezra Koenig
  3. Step
  4. Diane Young
  5. Don’t Lie – lyrics by Ezra Koenig and Rostam Batmanglij
  6. Hannah Hunt
  7. Everlasting Arms
  8. Finger Back
  9. Worship You
  10. Ya Hey – music Rostam Batmanglij, Ezra Koenig, Ariel Rechtshaid
  11. Hudson – music by Rostam Batmanglij, Ezra Koenig, and Chris Tomson
  12. Young Lion – music and lyrics by Rostam Batmanglij

Vampire Weekend: Contra

contra

On January 11, 2010, “XL Recordings” label released “Contra”, the second Vampire Weekend album. It was recorded in 2009, and was produced by Rostam Batmanglij.

Personnel:

  • Ezra Koenig – lead vocals, guitar, keyboard, piano, programming
  • Rostam Batmanglij– lead and backing vocals, vocal harmonies,, guitar, piano; keyboards; harpsichord; VSS-30; drum; synth, sampler programming; shakers; hand drum; snares, mixer, audio engineer
  • Chris Baio– bass, additional synth, backing vocals
  • Christopher Tomson– drums
  • Mauro Refosco– marimbas, rebolo, zabumba, shekere, shakers, auxiliary percussion
  • Jeff Curtin – hand drums, shakers
  • Marcus Farrar – shekere, auxiliary percussion
  • Nat Baldwin– double bass
  • Jonathan Chu – violin, viola
  • Hamilton Berry – cello
  • Seth Rosenfeld – cello
  • Jesse Novak – additional instrumentation
  • Libby Gery – backing vocals
  • Anne Donlon – backing vocals
  • Shane Stoneback – shaker, mixing assistant, engineer
  • Tito Fuentes – engineer
  • Fernando Lodeiro – engineering assistant
  • Justin Gerrish – mixing

Track listing:

All lyrics by Ezra Koenig except where noted; all music Ezra Koenig, Rostam Batmanglij, Christopher Tomson, Chris Baio and Mauro Refosco, by except where noted.

  1. Horchata
  2. White Sky
  3. Holiday
  4. California English
  5. Taxi Cab – music: Ezra Koenig, Rostam Batmanglij
  6. Run
  7. Cousins
  8. Giving Up the Gun
  9. Diplomat’s Son – Ezra Koenig, Rostam Batmanglij
  10. I Think Ur a Contra – music: Ezra Koenig,Rostam Batmanglij