Vampire Weekend’s fifth studio album, Only God Was Above Us, has arrived.
Released via Columbia Records, Only God Was Above Us clocks in at 10 songs, recorded in Manhattan, Los Angeles, London, and Tokyo with Ezra Koening co-producing alongside Ariel Rechtshaid. First announced this past February, its release was preceded by the singles “Capricorn,” “Gen-X Cops,” “Classical,” and “Mary Boone.”
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The album is described in a press release as “direct yet complex, showing the band at once at its grittiest, and also at its most beautiful and melodic.” It takes inspiration from raga singing and 20th century New York City, with lyrics Koening wrote between 2019 and 2020, and then fleshed out with his bandmates in the following years. The title comes from its artwork, a photo of a man reading a newspaper with the headline, “Only God Was Above Us,” a reference to Aloha Airlines Flight 243.
Stream the album on Apple Music and Spotify below.
In support of Only God Was Above Us, Vampire Weekend will hit the road for a North American tour, beginning on April 8th in Austin, Texas. The tour’s kick-off will be a special outdoor performance during the total solar eclipse, which also happens to be Koenig’s 40th birthday. Grab tickets here.
Only God Was Above Us Artwork:
Only God Was Above Us Tracklist:
01. Ice Cream Piano
02. Classical
03. Capricorn
04. Connect
05. Prep-School Gangsters
06. The Surfer
07. Gen-X Cops
08. Mary Boone
09. Pravda
10. Hope
