I rarely
truly dislike music. Once upon a time I would be savagely offended by certain genres or aesthetics, but I suppose it was more because I associated it with something that I wasn’t a part of, or it was the opposite of what I liked very much. Some songs do bug me though and ‘White Sky’ by ‘Vampire Weekend’ is one of them.
I must say… it really does get under my skin in a way that few tracks do. I can’t help but feel I’m listening to a sort of an ‘in joke’ at the listener’s expense, with its unmusical guitar sounds, ‘sqeaking clown nose’ sounds (from the second chorus) and post-chorus ‘wailings’. All of which are very unconventional and blasé in and of themselves… but here it’s so
deliberate. Together the whole thing bounds along in a chirpy manner, like a child relishing that it’s being obnoxious.
The lyrics regard a trip to New York by a couple of bohemians, cheekily alluding to sex and drugs. The chorus particularly yanks on my ear:
You’ve waited since lunch….
It all comes at once….
(OoooOOoOOoooO x4)
Despite my disapproval, I’ve been fascinated with it for many years, occasionally revisiting and trying to work out whether I’m missing something and quietly hoping that I will come to the realisation that it’s actually really good. I haven’t got there yet. Regardless, I have no doubt that in triggering such disapproval (with the aforementioned provocative quirks) they have actually achieved
exactly what they set out to do. Vampire Weekend therefore ultimately have the last laugh.
