Don't Wake the Scarecrow

Two bands – two sophmore albums being worked on. Both MGMT and Vampire Weekend arrived on the music scene last year with debut LPs that garnered a lot of buzz and catapulted both groups towards mainstream success. While the bands couldn’t sound more different from each other they seemed to constantly be mentioned together. Getting notable magazine interviews and seeing some songs show up in movies and commercials helped to expose these artists to a wide audience….but the question still remains – will their second albums be able to live up to the first?

Coming together while attending Columbia University, Vampire Weekend proved to be a surprise hit. Their African-influenced drumming and catchy lyrics won over many fans and got them a spot playing Saturday Night Live. The band is currently in Brooklyn, NY recording the followup to their self-titled debut album. The new album, like the first, will be produced by keyboardist Rostam Batmanglij and promises to have “new sounds”. The band has said they are trying to challenge themselves and experimenting with different instruments. The album is scheduled for a release in September.

MGMT hit it big with their first single “Time to Pretend” and were the “It” band for hipsters and hippies alike. Their sound, described as psychedelic pop, was infectious from the getgo. Creating a soundscape on most of their tracks with help from David Fridmann, (music producer for the Flaming Lips) they gained popularity by making stops on many late night talk shows and having singles featured in movies and video games. Ben Goldwasser told Rolling Stone “Some of the songs are definitely a little more introspective and then there’s definitely some more surfy, beachy stuff going on. It’s going more in a rock direction”. The duo are currently recording the second album in Upstate New York.

So only time will tell if these bands prove to be successful musicians or fade away like many other bands who hit it big with a debut album.