Vampire Weekend announce new album ‘Only God Was Above Us’
Vampire Weekend have announced their new album, Only God Was Above Us. The long-awaited return is set for release on April 5th through Colombia Records.
The band’s upcoming fifth record is set to be trailed on February 16th with the release of two singles, ‘Capricorn’ and ‘Gen-X Cops’. The genesis of Only God Was Above Us dates back to 2019 and 2020, when singer Ezra Koenig wrote the bulk of the lyrics which appear of the forthcoming album.
According to press materials, Only God Was Above Us is “inspired and haunted by 20th Century New York City”. Part of the album was recorded in Manhattan, but the band also voyaged to London, Tokyo and Los Angeles.
Only God Was Above Us has been largely produced by Koenig and frequent collaborator Ariel Rechtshaid while Dave Friddmann was on mixing duties with Emily Lazar mastering the album. The title of the LP is taken directly from a New York Daily News headline on the artwork, which features photos taken from a subway graveyard in New Jersey by Steven Siegel in 1988.
Official news of Only God Was Above Us arrives after the band revealed last year they’d completed work on the project. In a newsletter, published on December 14th, bassist Chris Baio told fans, “LP5 IS DONE.”
Meanwhile, in a previous newsletter last summer, drummer Chris Tomson said the record was “close to done” and added, “I feel like it just might be our best yet. 10 songs, no skips.”
Vampire Weekend are set to return to the road to promote Only God Was Above Us. The indie giants were previously announced for Barcelona’s Primavera Sound, Kilby’s Block Party, and New Orleans Jazz Festival. Furthermore, they have now announced a new headline show at Moody Ampitheatre in Austin on April 8th.
See the tracklist for Only God Was Above Us below.
Vampire Weekend – Only God Was Above Us tracklist:
- ‘Ice Cream Piano’
- ‘Classical’
- ‘Capricorn’
- ‘Connect’
- ‘Prep-School Gangsters’
- ‘The Surfer’
- ‘Gen-X Cops’
- ‘Mary Boone’
- ‘Pravda’
- ‘Hope’
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