At the end of last year, snappy Brooklyn quartet Vampire Weekend arrived in Sydney for a short promo tour. At the time, the group - vocalist Ezra Koenig, keyboard player, producer and multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, drummer Chris Tomson and bassist Chris Baio - were on the eve of revealing their second album Contra to the world, the follow up to their surprise smash debut Vampire Weekend. A month later, Contra was released on January 11th 2010 and shocked nearly everyone by debuting at Number One in the US.

On a typically steamy Sydney summer's day in December, we met the band in the cool confines of the Oxford Arts Factory, the venue where later that night they would introduce a slew of Contra songs for a rapturously received crowd of fans and industry types. (See our review and photos of the show). During the afternoon, members of the band had been portioned out to media around the venue. It was our good fortune that we hooked up with keyboardist, guitarist and backing vocalist Rostam Batmangalij (above, second from right), who perhaps lesser known to some, is the producer and driving creative force behind the band. Interviews are by and large, determined by the interviewees position in the group, and as such, our lengthy, good natured and rambling discussion, revolved around the recording of the band, Batmangalij's approach to becoming a producer and his decision making process within the group.

So long was our chat - we went well over time - that we present it now in two parts. In this first portion, and with just a few listens to Contra for preparation, we talked about the seeds of Contra, the introduction of more electronic elements into the band and the writing process.

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Tell us about the genesis of the new record, how it started?

Even before we'd put the first record to bed, there was a beat I'd started making. It was basically electronic music that I thought we could turn into some kind of B-side. I sent it to Ezra and after a while he said 'I think we should try and make this a song for the band'. And that song eventually became 'White Sky'. So [live], we figured out a way to have the electronic backing, the full drumset, bass guitar, vocals. We figured out a way to make it work and it was approaching our [debut] album release show of Jan 31st 2008. So it was like - what a lot of times has motivated us in the past, has been playing in front of our core audience. Because they've seen us so many times. We felt like we had to have something new, or it's going to be boring for them. So the first time we played that song, 'White Sky', was our album release show for the first record. So in some ways that was like the beginning [of Contra]. We felt like that song was definitely taking a step forward.

Was it frustrating at that point then? To promote and play the debut when you already knew what the next part of Vampire Weekend should sound like?

Well 'White Sky' was an aspect of the [new] record and the record moves in so many different directions. I think [Contra] would be pretty bad if it [all] sounded like 'White Sky'. Although it could've been interesting (laughs). So over the course of touring [the debut], there were ideas being collected - little musical ideas and lyrical ideas that we were collecting individually. And even just in the soundcheck we'd just be testing out a groove and trying out stuff. So then in January of 2009 we got together and we started doing stuff.

So was it figured out live first? Because I was kind've shocked out how electronic Contra is as a whole. At least in terms of - the first record sounds like a garage demo tape with some love put into it. Whereas this one sounds more like one person in a room with a computer figuring it out.

(Laughs)

And I don't mean that in a bad way. Maybe Contra was more of a cerebral way of writing a record?

What we found going in was that we had a bunch of ideas, and some of them lended themselves to working them out as a band. But others we found we couldn't make as a band. So we recorded the drums to about five of the songs first. That was kind've always our recording process, recording drums first and then go on and layer everything on from there. That's true of the first record too - and the first record has so much electronic stuff! (Laughs.) But it's tucked away neatly and it ends up sounding more organic. Which I think is a good thing.

So I would say that we became frustrated at a point because we didn't know how to work on these other five songs, how to make them. Because we realised what we had to do is hunker down. Like you said, sit in front of a computer. Ezra and I needed to spend time more with the construction and the songwriting of these songs. And then revist the original [band] process at the end, as opposed to the beginning. Maybe adding drums and real bass at the end. Or in some cases not having real drums. Which for me was surprising. When Ezra said to me 'I think some of the songs on this record shouldn't have any real drums or real bass', I was very surprised by that.

I took that as maybe your influence from doing Discovery. (In 2009 Batmangalij released a heavily electronic and chintzy soul influenced record title LP, along with buddy Wes Miles, under the name Discovery - read our review) . 'Hey guys, sit this one out'.

(Laughs). That's why I was surprised because I thought that Vampire Weekend as a band, every song needs to sound like a band. But here's the thing, I think that when you listen to our record that ultimately it does sound like a band. And we've figured out ways to perform all these songs [live]. Even the more complex, band sounding songs. We've figured out ways to play them. Although we're not doing any of the more elaborate ones [tonight].

But yeah, for me in terms of making music I feel very open to doing it any way that seems natural. So for us being a band, I [originally] felt it would be more natural - even the songs that don't have a band, real drums or real bass - we tried recording real drums and real bass on all of them. But ultimately it became a matter of knowing when it felt right and when it didn't feel right.

So did the writing process then almost become the end product? And it had to be filtered back through the band?

For about five of the songs that became the case. It was more of arranging as a band, being able to perform the song live before we recorded it. But you're right, there's five songs on this record that we couldn't play live until we taught ourselves.

Which five? It feels to me like some of the later songs have more of that electronic element, like 'Giving Up The Gun'. When I first heard that I could almost imagine Madonna coming in over the top.

(Laughs). I was listening to some Madonna at the time. I think we're all actually fans of Madonna. I think the tambourine is maybe what takes it to the Madonna place and I'm proud of that.


Vampire Weekend - 'Giving Up The Gun'
 
'Diplomat's Son' as well has that sound almost, the Phil Collins-esque gated snare.

There's a couple of songs that have that. 'White Sky' and another called 'Run'. We've been working with our sound guy to try and recreate that. The songs we're going to play live (tonight) are the ones we figured out as a band. Except for 'Horchata' which was really constructed out of ideas and built up - written as it was recorded. More so than anything we've done I think. So that one when we came back we needed to figure out how to make it happen. We knew that it would have to sound different , but I like our live version as much as the recorded version even though they're very different. I think we all felt proud that we were able to. I mean a good song is a good song and it doesn't matter how you play it.

Has recreating the sound of the the record become less of a concern for this batch of songs? Because especially with something like 'Giving Up The Gun', there's these house-y synths going on and it almost sounds like a club track. Does it sound like that when you play it live?

(Laughs) TBD. To be determined. No, we've played it live and we have real drums going on. We have fake drums going on. We have real drums that sound like fake drums going on. Just like on the record. I think it will ultimately work. Because we had 'White Sky' as a [proven] way to do it. To have real stuff and electronic stuff working in tandem. So, yeah it's going to sound like the record. It's going to sound big and club-y hopefully.

How do the Chris' feel about the not putting live instruments on there? Were they into it?

I think that the four of us shared the idea of not wanting to make a record that sounded like the first one. I would say that they were into it. Totally. I would say that we only have two songs without real drums on them.

But a lot of it's cut up and - I don't know what it's called off the top of my head, I've only heard it once - but..

Yeah it's tough that. You're doing pretty well. When I hear something once I have no idea if it's good or not. I only know if I want to hear it again.

There's a track with the upright bass on it...

'Taxi Cab'

...and even that's quite cut up. You got someone else to play it. Not Chris?

He's actually learning how to play it right now. But we got our friend Nat Baldwin who tours with the band the Dirty Projectors and also makes his own records that are really cool.

So even that, when you have live, organic sounds it still gets processed. I wondered if being the producer - and for lack of a better term, the 'svengali' of the band -  it was you that took it in that direction?

To make things cut up? Well yeah...I never had a distinct idea that it should sound more produced [than the debut]. But I played [the record] for a friend who's actually a musician. Her name's Miho Hatori, she used to be in Cibo Matto, and she was the first person who said 'This is so different from the first record, there's so much production!'. And I was like 'What?'. You know, we were in the midst of making it, or it was just done. And that's when I realised that there was this element of 'production'. I just hadn't thought about it. It wasn't a conscious thing. With a lot of things, everyone in the band is making a progression with what they do. I think it's just a natural groove.

READ PART 2 OF OUR VAMPIRE WEEKEND INTERVIEW