08
Mar
Jake Gyllenhaal and Joe Jonas in short shorts…in a Vampire Weekend video. Could my life get any better? I don’t think so, and I don’t think you do either.
Vampire Weekend’s new video for “Giving up the Gun” off their latest record “Contra” contrasts (no pun intended) with videos the group of Columbia grads is used to making. In comparison with the obviously low-budget and kitschy video for their first hit “A-Punk” several years ago and even with their simple, track video for “Cousins” from the “Contra” album, the parade of celebrities (Joe Jonas, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Lil Jon) in a Japanese futuristic, shiny white tennis court seems to signify a new level of fame for the guys.
They do maintain their usual style in parts of the video. Firstly, the fact that tennis is the main action speaks to the preppy past of Vampire Weekend. They often reference the “Cape” (Cape Cod, that is) in their songs-the summer hideaway for wealthy New Englanders from which the boys of VW come. Lil Jon is also dressed in an exaggerated hip-hop version of a Cape country club patron on Sunday morning when he plays a tennis instructor at the end of the video.
Some of the cinematography also is typical of Vampire Weekend videos-around the two minute mark, shots of the instrument-players quickly change across the screen with the beat that reminds the viewer of the “A-Punk” video.
It is clear that Vampire Weekend is attempting to draw in the masses with their new album and it is especially clear with this new video. I just hope they don’t sell out, start making videos with gimmicks and no meaning, and keep with their roots. But should I really complain about celebs I love supporting a band I love? I guess not.
-KP
