Vampire Weekend
by: Vampire Weekend
List Price: $14.98
Prices subject to change.
Your Price: $9.49
You Save: $5.49 (37%)Prices subject to change.
Average Rating: 
Sales Rank: 257
Sales Rank: 257
|
Music : Vampire Weekend |
|
|
see more|
Rating: - * Vampire Weekend ... I stumbled across a track of theirs on Starbuck's radio, and liked the sound. The CD didn't disappoint. A driving beat and funky instrumentals. Different. Rating: - * Le week-end UBUNTU ... This young promise it's a good mix between african music, rock, punk and other vibes. A cool CD if you are tired of the conventional bands. Banga Manga Baby. Rating: - * Fun CD! ... I think people in general are over thinking this album. I listen to this CD before going to work, because it puts me in such a good mood. Isn't that what it's all about? Why do people need to ruin it by worrying what groups Vampire weekend sound or don't sound like? It's a great album, although some songs ("Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa") are better than others ("Bryn"). Rating:  - * Great Album ... This is an awesome album and you know Amazon will get them to you quickly! Add to your collection! Rating: - * An instantly recognizable pop classic ... The impressive thing about new band Vampire Weekend's debut album is not its consistency or eclectic flavor, but instead its immediacy. Instead of any attitude that this weekend will be a weekend that we will remember for the rest of our lives, or that we will get smashed and do things that can't be erased, this weekend resonates of a straightforward, fun, in the moment attitude. It has been a long time since I have heard an album this shamelessly happy, and a long time since that kind of happiness has not been distracting or aggravating. Part of this might be due to the simple, warm instrumentation. The drums are propelling yet anything but tough. The guitars almost sound hushed. And everything else seems to be produced to be comfortable. That isn't to say that the album is boring, however. Although the aim might be comfort and happiness, the sheer consistency of the album keeps it unique and compelling. To say that the band are smart would be an understatement. This kind of utilization of stringed instruments suggests classical training, and anyone who even knows what an Oxford Comma is can't be a chump. Vampire Weekend seem to have discovered the alchemy to make pop gold. Arpeggiations dot songs beautifully throughout, most notably on the string laden M79, which makes use of hooks from a guitar, string section, and harpsichord (or at least the harpsichord setting of someone's keyboard). This song is not lonely in its appeal. In fact, even a new listener could go through the album and never have any even remote desire to switch songs. The fact that they hold attention while flipping through an ocean of variety is that much more pleasing and impressive. From loud Little Richard esque piano pop (Walcott), to African rhythms over simple chord progressions and pleasing switchups (Cape Cod Kwassa), to glowing Mark Mothersbaugh esque chamber pop (Campus), and to giddy electro fun (Blake's Got a New Face), there is not a corner of this album that feels unnecessary or able to be improved upon. This album gets the highest regards for the simple fact that every song is great, and it will appeal to people who listened to The Beatles in high school as well as people who remember the Rugrats theme song fondly. |
But don't worry, there's plenty of wizardry and action in Goblet of Fire. When the deadly Triwizard Tournament is hosted by Hogwarts, Harry finds his name mysteriously submitted (and chosen) to compete against wizards from two neighboring academies, as well as another Hogwarts student. The competition scenes are magnificently shot, with much-improved CGI effects (particularly the underwater challenge). And the climactic confrontation with Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes, in a brilliant bit of casting) is the most thrilling yet. Goblet, the first installment to get a PG-13 rating, contains some violence as well as disturbing images for kids and some barely shrouded references at sexual awakening (Harry's bath scene in particular). The 2 1/2-hour film, lean considering it came from a 734-page book, trims out subplots about house-elves (they're not missed) and gives little screen time to the standard crew of the other Potter films, but adds in more of Britain's finest actors to the cast, such as Brendan Gleeson as Mad-Eye Moody and Miranda Richardson as Rita Skeeter. Michael Gambon, in his second round as Professor Dumbledore, still hasn't brought audiences around to his interpretation of the role he took over after Richard Harris died, but it's a small smudge in an otherwise spotless adaptation. --Ellen A. Kim
On the DVD
The highlight of the two-disc set is a half-hour conversation with actors Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint. They discuss their reactions to the film and other topics with British writer Richard Curtis . Then they answer questions from contest-winning fans, such as what are their favorite kids' books (Watson bypasses the obvious answer in favor of Roald Dahl and Philip Pullman) and what scenes are they looking forward to in upcoming films. More routine extras include the "Reflections on the Fourth Film" featurette (14 min.), though it has comments from some of the other young cast members, and "Preparing for the Yule Ball" (9 min.). The 10 minutes of additional scenes are mostly skulking and skullduggery, plus a long musical number from the ball. The remaining material is grouped along the lines of the Triwizard Tournament, with behind-the-scenes looks at each of the competitions (about 22 min. total), two longer featurettes on He Who Must Not Be Named (11 min.) and the workday of the other contestants (Robert Pattinson, Stanislav Ianevski, and Clémence Poésy, 13 min.), and four games, playable with the directional arrows on the remote control, that can be frustrating to figure out. --David Horiuchi
