Vampire Weekend, "Contra" (2010)

These days, music fans are hard-pressed to find sounds for which they can't pinpoint the source. At his most spirited, Usher can make one nostalgic for Michael Jackson, and Madonna devotees raise torches and pitchforks upon the release of synth-heavy Lady Gaga singles. However, on Vampire Weekend's self-titled, 2008 debut, the New York band pitted African pop beats against lyrics about yachts, prep schools and WASPs, carving themselves a niche in the world of alternative pop. Their second album, last year's "Contra," is more diverse, surprising and emotional than the first, proving the band's worth as an artistic force to be reckoned with.

Vampire Weekend's music usually has a laid-back vibe, invoking images of summer and Ray-Ban sunglasses, but "Cousins," the album's opener, barrels forward with an almost frenzied sense of urgency felt in none of their other songs. It starts with a jarring guitar riff and and a drum cadence like an airplane propeller, before lead singer Ezra Koenig joins in with yelps resembling the noise a puppy makes when you accidentally step on his tail. Then the beat becomes quieter, but no less present, while Ezra unleashes incomprehensible lyrics about shoemakers and finding sweaters at the bottom of the ocean. To say that Vampire Weekend wouldn't be Vampire Weekend without drummer Chris Tomson's spark is no stretch; After all, he's the one supplying the band's signature African beats, and on uptempo songs like this one, his itch to have fun is irrepressible. Even when the rhythm slows, he's revving up for his next spurt of energy.

Freedom and silliness dominate "Contra," especially on songs like "White Sky." Here, Ezra's light and buoyant vocals are in full swing, and his falsetto yelps bring forth images of a wild bird crooning. The sound is so unexpected, and the the music is so joyous, that you may start laughing and bouncing along with him. His willingness to musically experiment recalls the cheeky lyrical attitude of the band's debut, which was present in lines like "Lil Jon always tells the truth" and "Who gives a fuck about an Oxford comma?" (which is especially funny if you know that Ezra used to be an English teacher). For the brief, but beautiful, "California English," Ezra even delves into auto-tuning, and the effect, which has been so over-used in recent music production, finally lends itself to an interesting melody. Ezra is a rare singer whose talents support the technology even more than the technology supports him.

The most emotional experience comes from "Giving Up the Gun," which sounds as if it was written by someone much more weary than 26-year-old Ezra. "When I was 17/ I had wrists like steel/ and I felt complete/ And now my body fades/ behind a brass charade/ and I'm obsolete," he sings, and his words portray his fear of aging, becoming irrelevant and fading away, which is a sentiment that everyone has felt or will feel at some point in their lives. "Your sword's grown old and rusty/ burnt beneath the rising sun/ It's locked up like a trophy/ forgetting all the things it's done." Combined with the rest of the music, "Giving Up the Gun" has a haunting, ominous quality that can't be quickly forgotten.

For all the leaps and bounds the band makes, there are still a couple songs that fall flat. The dullest is "Taxi Cab:" Sandwiched between two of the most inspired songs on the album, this one drags like no other. Ezra sounds sleepy, as if the song was recorded right before he passed out at the end of the night, and even Chris's drums plod along with a strange lack of interest. The band sounds so bored that you may wonder why the song made it onto the album in the first place. At its best, though, "Contra" is creative and uninhibited, carrying Vampire Weekend's signature sound into a unique category unlike the rest of the radio fodder surrounding it, and opening listeners' ears to international influences. "New England Afro-pop" would certainly be an interesting addition to your next playlist.