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Cover of Contra by Vampire Weekend
Cover: Contra

Song · Vampire Weekend

“Cousins” by Vampire Weekend

From the album Contra (2010)

“Cousins” by Vampire Weekend appears on 40 radio countdowns from 31 stations between 2009 and 2026. It was first released in 2010 on the album Contra. Its best result is #5 on the KSLG Top 94 Slugtunez of 2010. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #27 alternative song of 2010, #3,318 alternative song of all time and #97 of the '10s.

40countdowns
31stations
#5best position
0#1 finishes
2top 10 finishes
2009–2026years charted

Watch

Vampire Weekend - Cousins (Official Music Video)

Video from YouTube (XL Recordings). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"Cousins" was the first taste of Contra, Vampire Weekend's second album, out as a single in November 2009, and it's the band at full sprint, a wiry, breakneck rush of guitar and clatter. They cut it in Mexico City and played it live for the first time a few days later in Guadalajara. Rostam produced it and helped engineer and mix it, Ezra Koenig wrote the words and sings over his own jittery guitar, and Baio and Chris Tomson share the music credit.

Garth Jennings directed the video in New York's Cortlandt Alley, with the band shuttling up and down on a platform riding a track, trading places and wearing masks of each other's faces until confetti rains down. Stereogum saw a band of Ivy Leaguers happy to poke fun at their own preppy image.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Alternative & Modern Rock

Indie & Adult Alternative

All Rock Formats

Year-end countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
2009 100 WFNX Boston, MA WFNX Top 101 Songs of 2009 101
2009 75 102.7 WEQX Southern Vermont and the Capital District of New York (Albany) WEQX Top 102.7 of 2009 103
2009 45 KSLG Eureka (Humboldt County), CA KSLG Top 94 of 2009 94
2009 49 107.1 The Peak Westchester County, NY WXPK Top 107 Songs of 2009 107
2009 22 Triple J Australia (national) Triple J Hottest 100 of 2009 100
2010 11 KROQ Los Angeles, CA KROQ Top 30 Songs of 2010 30
2010 24 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana 91X Top 91 Songs of 2010 91
2010 8 WFNX Boston, MA WFNX Top 101 Songs of 2010 101
2010 16 CD101 Columbus, OH CD101 Top 101 Songs of 2010 101
2010 64 CFNY 102.1 The Edge Toronto, ON 102.1 The Edge Top 102 Songs of 2010 102
2010 36 (tie) WBER Rochester, NY WBER Listener Countdown 2010 95
2010 28 WXPN Philadelphia, PA WXPN Year in Review: Top 100 Songs of 2010 100
2010 20 93XRT Chicago, IL WXRT Listener Poll: Top 25 Songs of 2010 25
2010 65 89.7 The River Omaha, NE / Council Bluffs, IA 89.7 The River Top 89 of 2010 89
2010 45 99 Rock Lebanon-Hanover-White River Junction, NH-VT 99Rock WFRD Top 99 of 2010 99
2010 17 88.3 The Sting Cleveland, OH 88.3 The Sting WBWC Top 88 Songs of 2010 88
2010 46 103.1 The River Kalispell-Flathead Valley, MT 103.1 The River Top 103 of 2010 102
2010 59 89.9 WLCA St. Louis, MO WLCA Top 89 of 2010 89
2010 70 94.1 The Zone Rochester, NY 94.1 The Zone Most Played Songs of 2010 91
2010 21 Channel 92.3 San Jose / San Francisco Bay Area, CA Channel 92.3 Top 92 Songs of 2010 92
2010 40 FM 102/1 Milwaukee, WI FM 102/1 Top 50 of 2010 50
2010 75 The Current Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN The Current Top 89 Songs of 2010 88
2010 37 102.7 WEQX Southern Vermont and the Capital District of New York (Albany) WEQX Top 102.7 of 2010 103
2010 40 ALT 104.5 Philadelphia, PA Radio 104.5 Top 50.5 Songs of 2010 51
2010 5 KSLG Eureka (Humboldt County), CA KSLG Top 94 Slugtunez of 2010 94
2010 38 WRNR 103.1 Annapolis, MD WRNR Top 103.1 Songs of 2010 104
2010 23 90.5 WERG Erie, PA WERG Top 90 of 2010 90
2010 49 WTMD Baltimore, MD WTMD Top 89 Songs of 2010 89
2010 39 Exit 97.7 Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY WEXT Top 97 of 2010 97
2010 60 WFPK Louisville, KY WFPK Top 100 Songs of 2010 100
2010 59 WBRU Providence, RI WBRU Top 95 Songs of 2010 95

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
2010 1648 CD101 CD101 Top 2011 Songs of All-Time (December 2010) 2011
2011 993 CD101 CD101 Top 2012 Songs of All-Time (December 2011) 2011
2013 1008 CD101 CD101 Top 2013 Songs of All-Time (December 2013) 2012
2014 895 CD101 CD101 Top 2014 Songs of All-Time (2014) 2013
2022 834 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the 2000s 907
2024 881 WYEP WYEP Best Songs of the Past 50 Years 1049
2024 652 WXPN WXPN The 885 Greatest Songs of the 21st Century (2024) 885
2025 597 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the 21st Century 909
2026 460 KXT KXT 917 Song Countdown 917

Charting alongside it in 2010

Best songs of 2010 →
  1. 1Little Lion ManMumford & Sons
  2. 2Tighten UpThe Black Keys
  3. 3RadioactiveKings of Leon
  4. 4The High RoadBroken Bells
  5. 5AnimalNeon Trees
  6. 6Lay Me DownDirty Heads

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