Indie-Rock Dreams of Africa: Vampire Weekend

You've mentioned in the past the differences between the way Vampire Weekend uses African influences and the way someone like Paul Simon did on Graceland—i.e. Simon basically built pop melodies over existing African tunes, whereas you're going beyond that. Can you elaborate on how this process works?

Ezra Koenig: I wrote the guitar riff for "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" while listening to a CD of accordion music from Madagascar, so I wasn't attempting to approximate any specific guitar technique or style. I think your brain just kind of sub-consciously registers the things you like about a type of music. It's a very un-academic process. We don't do too much dissection or analysis of the music that influences us. We just try to capture parts of the same vibe.

How do you typically answer criticisms that the band is appropriating African music in a manner that divorces it from its origins? Are you ever parodying the source material—or yourselves? Do you have any concerns that being Caucasian kids playing with African styles will come across as satirical in any way?

Koenig: I think we don't reference African music in a way that divorces it from its origins. If anything, I think we're acutely aware of the fact that we're non-Africans referencing music from Africa. Given that most of the African music we like is played on electric guitars and drum sets and references Latin-Caribbean music and Western pop, it doesn't seem like such a loaded appropriation. I hope [we] don't come across as satirical. I think our music would be much more of a parody if we tried to be a grunge band.

Do you have any thoughts on the ongoing debate over whether indie rock has lost its connection to African and African-American music, becoming blander and more "white"?

Koenig: Because there's so much music made, it's pretty easy to selectively choose examples and make pseudo-historical claims. It's like saying the '60s were really crazy because there were bands like the 13th Floor Elevators and Captain Beefheart, but the '90s were boring because of Celine Dion and Marcy Playground. At any given moment, there are bound to be some white (and black) people making both exciting and bland music.

Can you cite some specific African artists/styles/techniques that you've thrown into the mix on the upcoming full-length?

Koenig: The clean-guitar sound of a lot of South and West African pop was definitely an influence. The minimalism of the Madagascan band Les Smockers was also an inspiration.

Much of the discussion about indie bands borrowing African influences ends up snagged on the question of "authenticity." Can you describe what "authenticity" means to Vampire Weekend?

Koenig: Worrying too much about "authenticity" can be limiting for a band. I defy anyone to say what music would be "authentic" for our band to play. We're four guys from diverse backgrounds who grew up in America listening to all sorts of different music.

If we tried to pass ourselves off as a Kenyan guitar band from the '70s, we'd be acting dishonestly, but we're just a band from New York that's interested in music from around the world. In this sense, our music is extremely authentic, since it reflects who we are.

Further Reading:
Indie-Rock Dreams of Africa: Bamako to Brooklyn (PLAY)
Indie-Rock Dreams of Africa: The Dirty Projectors (PLAY)
Indie-Rock Dreams of Africa: Mahjongg (PLAY)
Indie-Rock Dreams of Africa: Extra Golden (PLAY)
Indie-Rock Dreams of Africa: Rafter (PLAY)
Vampire Weekend Celebrity Playlist (PLAY)