Helen Rice

Vampire Weekend - Ottomon

Elegant clothes, you want to be seen with her,
under your tweeds, you sweat like a teenager…
Begging you to sit for a portrait on the wall,
to hang in the dark of some parliamentary hall..
Today’s for you…
They 
laid it out for you…
For you…
There will be six bells a-ringing and white women singing for you..
But this feels so unnatural to 
Peter Gabriel, too…
Even more embarrassing than admitting you like Leona Lewis is admitting that you think the new Vampire Weekend song is really, really good. One thing I’ve slagged Vampire Weekend for in the past is their lyrics; sometimes, however, they’re the band’s true strong suit, and they laid down a beautiful song, here, about the idea of being with someone whose status, in spite of all of your self-securities, still manages to get to you, and still wedges itself into the heart of things where it shouldn’t.
Did anybody notice the line from “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa” they snuck in here? “But this feels so unnatural/Peter Gabriel, too.” Interesting to see them stick to that, as if it were some kind of strange, threading mantra. Even more interesting is that Hot Chip and Peter Gabriel will be covering “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa” sometime soon. Together.
Anyway. The takeaway from this song is the “today’s for you” chorus*, which no doubt will be used to greatly theatrical effect in whatever television and movies decide to go with it (Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, being one, as this is on the soundtrack). It has this great, quietly epic quality to it that’s a perfect fit for blustery, intensely Fall days like this one.  / FEK