Watch: Vampire Weekend wheel along in music video for 'Cousins'

If there were ever a VW rollercoaster, you're on it

By Katie Hasty Thursday, Nov 19, 2009 5:29 PM

Vampire Weekend frontman Ezra Koenig in "Cousins"

This stuff may be made of duct tape, a good scanner and some camera tracks, but the new Vampire Weekend music video for "Cousins" is anything but cheap-looking.

It's a good-time clip that pushes the band along on the same track, over and over again, down an alleyway, moving toward a target, moving away from a target. Lots of mock-playing instruments. Yup easy on the eyes.

The editing is quick, approximate, and probably took as long as it did to film the thing: 50 minutes, plus free lunch. Professional grade stuff here.

OK, I give up: this lo-fi, minimalist approach to "Cousins" is a hoot, despite, and because of, its near-mindlessness. I see something new every time; thanks, director Garth Jennings. Just shut up and watch it, and get excited for the Jan. 12 release of Vampire Weekend's sophomore set "Contra."

You can hear another track, "Horchata," here. The group is scheduled to play Dec. 11-12, in Portland, Ore., and Oakland, Calif., respectively.

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Katie Hasty
Managing Editor

After five years as a columnist and editor at Billboard, Katie Hasty joined HitFix in 2009 for music and film reporting out of New York. The Midwest native has worked as a writer, music promoter and in A&R since 1999 and performs with her band Numbers And Letters.