Welcome to the Great Albums podcast. I'm Bill Lambusta. And I'm Brian Erickson. And what are we talking about today, Brian?

2008's Vampire Weekend by Vampire Weekend.

On each episode of the podcast, we discuss our favorite records through the lens of our favorite medium, the album, as fans, not critics.

We'll share our stories discussing the sounds we love and taking you track by track through the album.

Finally, we'll highlight the little things that deserve to be celebrated because they make this album great. But before we get to that, first, Brian, please give us a little background

on what we're discussing today. All right, Vampire Weekend is Ezra Keenig on vocals and guitar, Rostom Batmange Lige on keyboard

guitar, vocal harmonies, he's the producer.

They got Chris Beyo on bass and Chris Thompson on drums and supplemental guitar.

They started out in 2006 as a rap project. Yes, you heard correctly, called

Leom Run, between Chris Thompson, Ezra Keenig, and one of Ezra's roommates while they were

students at Columbia University. Meanwhile, Keenig did some touring with Brooklyn's own

dirty projectors. Now, during that time, he embraced world music,

brought it back to the band,

changed their name to Vampire Weekend,

which was the title of a student

film he shot. The roommate

was out. Fellow Columbia

students, Chris Bayo and Rastem Batmong Lige were in.

Shows got booked. A famous CDR demo got passed around.

And in January of 2008, Vampire Weekends self-titled debut was shuffled ever so

percussively into the world by UK-based indie label XL recordings.

Awesome.

...