Contra

some bands stay in a holding pattern their whole careers. others jerk the steering wheel hard and fly off the road. on their second album, vampire weekend do neither. or maybe they do both. "i think we sound more like vampire weekend than we did on the first record," says drummer christopher tomson. 'contra' pulls off a series of impressive feats: it's bustling with fresh ideas, and yet it sounds immediately familiar; it's heavily layered but taut and kinetic; it chews ravenously through sound palettes and rhythms, and yet it's nimble and assured; it's still breezy, and yet it smolders with a newfound emotional heft. "it's sadder than the first one, a bit more sentimental," says singer ezra koenig. the songs are catchy, fast, twinkling, clattering - the darker themes of loss, doubt and regret accumulate almost imperceptibly, but they land a powerful blow. ideas for this record had been bubbling since before the release of their debut. the band started recording in january 2009,