User Score
Generally favorable reviews- based on 598 Ratings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 404 out of 598
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Mixed: 82 out of 598
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Negative: 112 out of 598
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Oct 2, 2019
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May 25, 2011
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Jan 30, 2012The album Contra definitely builds off of it's predecessor (Vampire Weekend), but it is still kind of bland in some areas.
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Jun 19, 2013
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Jan 23, 2014Contra is a bright, bold, fun and exciting 2nd album from Vampire Weekend, where there aren't really any bad songs at all, and no rough patches. This is a clean, and limitless nearby masterpiece.
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Feb 9, 2021
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Jan 15, 2015Contra feels spontaneous but precisely methodical, joyful but profoundly melancholic, frenetic but sensible, free-spirited but analytical, and old but also brand and originally new. It's not a cohesive group of sounds we haven't already heard before: it's way much worked and mature. It has maximized Vampire Weekend's intentions and power to another frontier. It's outstanding!
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Dec 26, 2015This review contains spoilers, click expand to view.
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Jul 31, 2011this album was excellent. the singing and songwriting were good. the album showcases their musical ability. and they are fantastic. white sky and taxi cab are great songs. diplomat's son as also a winner
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Apr 24, 2018All right, I may have actually planned to give this a 9, but the user score is too low. There are some tracks that don't quite hit the mark but more than half of the songs are essentially perfect indie pop. The Caribbean sounding influence really makes this album special (in a very, very good way)
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Dec 26, 2010My favorite album of the year. Richer than their first and a great mixing of playful originality with accessibility. Haters, go back to listening to Motley Crue, then, or Battles, then, whatever your thing is. This is my kind of thing.
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Jun 16, 2021Esse já me pegou bem mais que o primeiro. Ele tem vibe mais "dançante" com letras mais realistas pra mim e temas mais universais. Achei a produção no geral mais interessantes tbm, lenta e animada quando precisa ser mas sem perca pela simplicidade e melodia extremamente contagiante se destaca muito
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Nov 12, 2011Not nearly as good as their self titled debut album, but still fantastic non the less. The only tracks that didn't catch my fancy very much were California English and Run, otherwise, the album is pitch perfect. VW returns with their fun, upbeat, and unique sound.
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Nov 5, 2010It isn't as consistently good as their first album, but this is still worth buying, it has a couple standout songs. I like that they didn't completely abandon what brought them initial success.
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Oct 6, 2013
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Oct 6, 2010One of the few albums I can listen to without changing track. It's far better than their first LP. "near-perfection"? What kinda music are you listening to?, coz it must be terrible.
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Nov 3, 2011Very fun album, although you have to let it grow on you. Vampire Weekend's self-titled album is still better than this one, though. A little softer and more relaxed then their first album.
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Jul 10, 2013The second album has really great songs throughout! I really liked their first album and Contra definitely doesnt disappoint! My fave tracks on the album: White Sky, California English, Cousins
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Oct 15, 2011Vampire Weekend's playfulness from their debut album continues delightfully on "Contra". Although one may feel that they're rehashing some of the formulas they captured the first time around, they have vitality and inspiration all the way through. Highlights, as "Holiday", are songs you'll be humming long after you've turned off the record.
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Oct 23, 2016I think that a music in this album is the best that i ever heard in my entire life, Taxi Cab is the one Vampire Weekend is a must listen for sure! They made my music life a better life!
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Jan 16, 2011Having despised their first album, I had no idea I would love Contra as much as I do. But Vampire Weekend has managed to take everything I hated about their debut and turned it into a much more likable sound.
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Nov 18, 2012Just as good as the first. To me, it feels like they got the good things in their eponymous debut album and mixed it with electronic aspects, creating something even more unique.
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Nov 25, 2013
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Nov 27, 2010"Contra" features many interesting catchy tracks like "Cousins", "Giving Up the Gun", "Horchata" and "Holiday". Maybe your children below age of ten may like this because it is so childlike, and maybe it'll be pass down to the next few generations too. Ezra Koenig & co. really know how to play funky music with their drums, guitars and keyboards.
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Feb 1, 2011
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Oct 7, 2013A solid showing after the brilliant self-titled album. Contra isn't always right on the money, but more often than not the songs will grow on you, and you'll be a huge fan of the album in time. Vampire Weekend experiments a bit more in this album, but sticks to their sound, and they pull it off. Not as good as Vampire Weekend, but just as good in it's own way. A solid album from Vampire Weekend!
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Sep 9, 2011"Contra" had the problem of impossible expectations. Fans want this, they want that.. and if they don't get it it's WW3. Not only does "Contra" do whatever the **** it wants, but it does it fantastically and with the same effortless poise and class at their landmark debut.
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Mar 8, 2013The first one was better. The amount of good songs to bland songs is kinda even. Nothing horrible either, idk, why there is so much hate to this band, but oh well.
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Aug 11, 2010It is not as fun as their first album, and some of the songs are downright frustrating. 'Contra' is, however, a creative and catchy album that serves as a worthy sophomore effort.
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Mar 5, 2015This album is just as amazing as the first and third. With fantastic songs like Diplomat's Son, and some of Vampire Weekend's more popular tracks like Holiday and Cousins, there's no way someone could deny this album's glowing perfection!
Awards & Rankings
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Contra establishes that his band has chosen another path, celebrating the world's contradictions, contraindications, and contradistinctions with a new pop sound made up of old pop sounds that aren't the same old pop sounds.
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Contra is a solidly entertaining, well-constructed album, and if people take to it, the tendency to mock the band will, I think, fade, simply because it doesn't have obviously unfashionable moments to feel uneasy about.
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If Vampire Weekend was Rushmore, Contra is their Royal Tenenbaums: brainy, confident and generally awesome.