Back when Ezra Koenig first shared details of Vampire Weekend’s upcoming fourth album Father of the Bride, he revealed that the band would be releasing two songs from the LP each month before the its May 3 release. After two-track drops in February (“Harmony Hall” and “2021”) and March (“Sunflower” and “Big Blue”), the final pair of singles hit the internet this morning called “This Life” and “Unbearably White.”The first track, “This Life,” might be the most sonically upbeat of the six previews of the forthcoming 18-song album so far. While the song’s got a peppy and prominent guitar riff, the song’s lyrical content is hardly sunny. At one point, Koenig signs, “Oh Christ, am I good for nothing?” It was co-produced by Koenig and Ariel Rechtshaid, features a wealth of collaborators like backing vocals from Danielle Haim, guitar from Koenig’s Beats 1 Time Crisis co-host Jake Longstreth, and production credits from Chromeo. As Pitchfork points out, Koenig interpolates lyrics from iLoveMakonnen’s “Tonight” when he sings, “You’ve been cheatin’ on, cheatin’ on me/I’ve been cheatin’ on, cheatin’ on you.”“Unbearably White,” the second single, is much more chill and moody. Featuring additional production from Grimes and Justin Bieber collaborator BloodPop. Here, Koenig sings, “There's an avalanche coming / Don't cover your eyes / Is what you thought you wanted.” Listen to both tracks below.
Advertisement