Vampire Weekend - Contra

These indie rockers got pegged as Ivy League preppies, because they attended Columbia University and sang literate songs about co-ed infatuations and English grammar. But Vampire Weekend created a thrilling hybrid sound, mixing new wave and Afro-pop on songs like “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa” that garnered rave reviews. Here, singer-guitarist Ezra Koenig and his bandmates keep up the infectious worldbeat mix, resembling Graceland–era Paul Simon on “Diplomat’s Son” and the sweetly cascading “White Sky.”