At first glance, Vampire Weekend don’t seem particularly trustworthy. Setting the blog world alight with their world-beat-inspired indie rock, the group’s awful name and verging-on-precious appropriation of African rhythms and accented pronunciations could spell disaster for a band of lesser talents. At first listen, Vampire Weekend hints at classic pop songcraft so spotless it’s easy to get over their shtick.

The lovely “Mansard Roof” sets the bar high for 2008 album-opening tracks — a flutter of strings, jungle keyboards and propulsive percussion all adding up to a mere two minutes and eight seconds of joy, setting the stage for what is already one of the year’s finest recorded debuts. “A-Punk” would suit the next ’80s college rock nostalgia film, awkward co-eds bouncing around their dorm rooms. Closer “The Kids Don’t Stand a Chance” exits on a lovely refrain of strings and reverb-laden guitar.

Granted, one could argue that Vampire Weekend are cashing in on the ball that Islands got rolling in 2006 with Return to the Sea, but given how everyone from Islands to Grizzly Bear are wearing thin their used copies of Paul Simon’s Graceland, it’s hard to complain. Vampire Weekend, stupid name and silly tendencies aside, opens up 2008 with a definitive burst.