Following up on last week’s seismic announcement of its fifth studio album, Vampire Weekend made waves again today with the release of “Capricorn” and “Gen-X Cops,” the trio’s first new solo music since 2019. These tracks set the tone for Only God Was Above Us, pairing the indie rock vanguard’s trademark bookish sentimentality with scathing newfound grit. This release is accompanied by a pair of high-concept music videos and the grand reveal of the sprawling Only God Was Above Us Tour, which will bring the band to 39 engagements throughout the US and Canada from April 18 to Oct. 17.

Vampire Weekend’s latest offerings are defined by bold stylistic decisions forged from five years of deliberate transformation. The pairing of “Capricorn” and “Gen-X Cops” reflects a balance in the band’s new sonic and lyrical perspectives, between unflinching, rough-edged doomsaying and inextinguishable hope. While “Gen-X Cops” manifests new-age malaise in riotous, frenetic guitar riffs, instilling the stark revelation that “each generation makes its own apology,” “Capricorn” finds melancholy resolve in a tender, dewey-eyed melody, picturing a listener “sifting through centuries for moments of your own.” These songs plot the emotional poles for a project fueled by first-hand experience, exhibiting a deep understanding of the human condition honed in nearly two decades as the alternative’s zeitgeist.

To complete the artistic vision laid out in these songs, Vampire Weekend has released two music videos built around footage of New York in 1988 from Steven Siegel, who captured the photo that provides the album’s cover and title. Directed by longtime collaborator Nick Harwood and acclaimed filmmaker Drew Pearce, these videos show a faded vision of yesterday and a band racing through the ages on the rattling axles of a subway car, exuding the weight of history that defines the scope of Only Go Was Above Us.

Vampire Weekend will take its new material on the road with the Only God Was Above Us Tour, which will kick off with the group’s April 18 engagement at Austin, Texas’ Moody Amphitheater, set to align with the historic total solar eclipse. This performance will be followed by festival headliner appearances at New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival on April 27, Kilby Block Party in Salt Lake City on May 10 and Primavera Sound in Barcelona, Spain on May 30. The newly announced dates begin on June 6 and run through Oct. 17, with appearances across North America highlighted by three pairs of evening and matinee shows in Berkeley, Calif., Bonner, Mont., and at Madison Square Garden in the band’s home city of New York.

To support its massive new tour, Vampire Weekend has carefully curated a litany of icons that reflect the group’s range of stylistic influences and crossover appeal. La Lom, Ra Ra Riot, Cults and Phish’s Mike Gordon will all join the band for extended stints, while one and two-off guest appearances from The English Beat, Voodoo Glow Skulls, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Turnstile and more are scattered throughout the tour. Read on for a complete list of tour dates.

Only God Was Above Us is set to release on April 5 via Columbia Records and is available to pre-order and pre-save now. Citi presale for the Only God Was Above Us Tour begins on Feb. 20 at 10 a.m. local time, followed by an artist presale on Feb. 21 at 10 a.m. local time. General on sale for the tour will open on Friday, Feb. 23 at 10 a.m. local time. Visit vampireweekend.com for tickets and more details.

Vampire Weekend Only God Was Above Us Tour Dates:
April 8 – Austin, Texas – Moody Amphitheater (Solar Eclipse)
April 27 – New Orleans – New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival
May 10 – Salt Lake City – Kilby Block Party
May 30 – Barcelona, Spain – Primavera Sound
June 6 – Houston – 713 Music Hall
June 7 – Irving, Texas – The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
June 9 – Phoenix – Arizona Financial Theatre
June 10 – San Diego – Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre
June 12 – Los Angeles – Hollywood Bowl
June 15 – Berkeley, Calif. – The Greek Theatre at U.C. Berkeley
June 16 – Berkeley, Calif. – The Greek Theatre at U.C. Berkeley (Matinee Show)
June 18 – Burnaby, British Columbia – Deer Lake Park
June 19 – Bend, Ore. – Hayden Homes Amphitheater
June 20 – Seattle – Climate Pledge Arena
June 22 – Bonner, Mt. – KettleHouse Amphitheater
June 23 – Bonner, Mt. – KettleHouse Amphitheater (Matinee Show)
July 19 – Morrison, Colo. – Red Rocks Amphitheatre
July 22 – Kansas City – Starlight Theatre
July 23 – Lincoln, Neb. – Pinewood Bowl Theater
July 25 – Maryland Heights, Mo. – Saint Louis Music Park
July 26 – Chicago – Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island
July 27 – Chicago – Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island
July 30 – Minneapolis – The Armory
Aug. 1 – Milwaukee – BMO Pavilion
Aug. 3 – St. Charles, Iowa – Hinterland*
Sept. 19 – Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio – Blossom Music Center
Sept. 20 – Cincinnati – The ICON Festival Stage at Smale Park
Sept. 21 – Indianapolis – Everwise Amphitheater at White River State Park
Sept. 23 – Rochester Hills, Mich. – Meadow Brook Amphitheatre
Sept. 24 – Toronto, Ontario – Budweiser Stage
Sept. 25 – Laval, Quebec City – Place Bell
Sept. 27 – Boston – TD Garden
Sept. 28 – Philadelphia – TD Pavilion at The Mann
Sept. 30 – Washington – The Anthem
Oct. 2 – Charlottesville, Va. – Ting Pavilion
Oct. 5 – New York – Madison Square Garden
Oct. 6 – New York – Madison Square Garden (Matinee Show)
Oct. 8 – Wilmington, N.C. – Live Oak Bank Pavilion
Oct. 9 – Raleigh, N.C. – Red Hat Amphitheater
Oct. 11 – Nashville, Tenn. – Ascend Amphitheater
Oct. 12 – Atlanta – Cadence Bank Amphitheatre at Chastain Park
Oct. 13 – Asheville, N.C. – Rabbit Rabbit
Oct. 15 – St. Augustine, Fla. – St. Augustine Amphitheatre
Oct. 17 – Austin, Texas – Moody Center