Embed and Letterman: Vampire Weekend

There's a limit to the room to say anything interesting ahead of these video clips, giving they all come from the same programme:



[Part of Embed and Letterman]

Just to be clear

If they're asking questions about you on Jeopardy, you're not really an alternative any more.


[via Brooklyn Vegan]

Vampire Weekend no longer in Contra case

You'll remember a few months back the model from the cover of Vampire Weekend's Contra turned up, claiming she'd never released the image to be used? The legal action against XL and the band which resulted has been settled and dismissed.

The action against the photographer Tod Brody - who, it has been claimed faked a release from Ann Kirsten Kennis - continues. Brody has apparently been cut free by his lawyers, who say he has neither co-operated with them, nor paid them.

Bookmarks: Internet stuff - Vampire Weekend

Vanity Fair cover the Contra album cover model and her complaint in some depth; it kicks the idea that this was a family photo which someone found in a box sale into touch while it's still taking a breath, and weighs the counterclaims between model Ann Kennis and the man who claims he took the picture Tod Brody.

Kennis says she can't remember the picture being take, but doesn't buy Brody's story; Brody spends a lot of time explaining why the internet paints him as untrustworthy, but the key paragraph is probably this:

If the Contra case does go to trial, the outcome could hinge on a key document: a model release form that appears to be dated July 30, 2009. (The date is crossed out and re-written.) The form is from Vampire Weekend Inc. to someone named “Kirsten Johnsen” (spelled “Johnson” elsewhere on the form), who signed her permission for the band to use her image for a fee of $1. The form contains no mention of Brody, but it does include an address named in the suit as Brody’s residence. No release form from the 1980s has yet been presented in court.

Vampires attract cash-hungry model

Ann Kirsten Kennis. The name might be unfamiliar, but the face won't be.

This is her:



She's unhappy, as she claims that her appearance on the sleeve of Vampire Weekend's Contra was without her knowledge or permission.

Surely, you say, given that she's a model, she must have had a good idea that her picture would be used on things that pictures appear on? Isn't that her job? And wouldn't she have signed a release form?

She's ahead of you:

She also claims someone forged her signature on a release form.

Naturally, being America, she's decided that she needs to sue as only money can overcome the horror for a model of people looking at a photo of her. And, to be fair, if the picture was used against the rules, there is a small case to answer. So what are we talking - a few hundred dollars?

She's asking for two million dollars.

Two million dollars for being on an alt-rock CD sleeve? If that's what she thinks the pricing scale would suggest, it's perhaps no surprise she's not a famous model - "a shoot for a catalogue? Why, yes, I'd be delighted - that's going to be ten million pounds a day. Hello? Hello?"

Bookmarks - Internet stuff: Vampire Weekend and Blink 182

There's a wonderful extract from a Vampire Weekend profile in the New Yorker being shared by Kempa.com. For some reason, Vampire Weekend are interviewing Tom DeLonge. He turns up with a camera crew in tow, too - making a "Blinkumenary", he explains. Then he starts to pitch some mashed-up social networking music company he seems to be running:

“I term it an ‘operating system,’” DeLonge said. “You could sell music, you could sell movies, you could sell advance tickets, you could do advertising, you could do automated V.I.P. parties. We’re gonna be putting in live auctions, e-commerce.” He continued, “We’re doing it with the White Stripes.”
[...]
DeLonge [...] talked about video blogging: “Do you want to do normal blogs – or do you want to do it in the dark and have lasers going and make it look like you’re from space? And not call it a blog, call it a space cam?”

[Massive thanks to Michael M for spotting this]

Embed and breakfast man: Vampire Weekend

It's not all about videos from the past, you know - thanks to The Audio Perv, here's Vampire Weekend off last night's David Letterman Show With David Letterman:

Streaming now: Vampire Weekend

Vampire Weekend are burning through Murdochian cash by streaming new song White Sky over on MySpace. Go have a listen.

[via You Ain't No Picasso]

Downloadable: Vampire Weekend vs Miike Snow

Pause awhile as you toss your pancakes, friends, and download a free copy of The Kids Don't Stand A Chance, featuring Vampire Weekend getting a Miike Snow going over.

Oh yes: free. Thanks, RCRD LBL.

Weekend cancels plans for Saturday

We can see why Vampire Weekend would drop everything to answer a call to appear on Saturday Night Live - getting your music in front of lots of people can give your career a fillip. Even if the people are those with an astonishingly high tolerance for overlong comedy sketches.

But it's a bit of a shame their big chance has come at the cost of actual, paying fans in Orlando and St Augstine. There's room for someone to work out the economics of this - is it better for a band with limited mainstream appeal to drop paying, current fans and risk losing them in favour of potential, half-hearted fans? It's not so clear that the big audience is always the one to chase.

Vampire Weekend pull UK dates

No Vampire action for Glasgow or Manchester, it turns out, according to their MySpace:

“We're very sad to announce that we have to cancel this week's shows in Manchester and Glasgow due to illness. We were very psyched to come, but at least we'll be back in May.

We sincerely apologize to anyone who was planning on seeing us. Hope we can make it up to you in a couple of months.

Please send positive health vibes our way.

Best,
Ezra”

Probably something to do with garlic. It usually is.