If you attended a barbecue thrown by anyone under 30 last summer or caught the TV ad for HP Photosmart printers, you’ve heard Vampire Weekend. The four Dockers-wearing, plaid-clad Columbia grads, all in their mid-20s and currently living in Brooklyn, won over the skinny-jeans scene with African guitar pop-influenced songs about collegiate grief, the United Nations and punctuation rules.
On their second album, “Contra,” out Tuesday, they give a shout-out to the Futura typeface, the kind of quirk that has made them the hottest NYC phenomenon since the Strokes and beloved by Pitchfork, NPR, Kanye West and your mom. On the eve of another international adventure supporting “Contra” — the group plays the Music Hall of Williamsburg Jan. 17, Webster Hall on Jan. 18 and the Bowery on Jan. 19 — we asked singer-guitarist Ezra Koenig to salute the hometown haunts he’ll miss the most.
Nicky’s Vietnamese Sandwiches
311 Atlantic Ave., Brooklyn
“Everything about it is excellent. One of the last times I was in there, they were watching ‘Wayne’s World,’ which was a very pleasant surprise. Lately I’ve been getting the tofu or the portobello banh mi.”
Other Music
15 E. Fourth St.
“I remember going to Other Music when I was 13 or 14. They were also one of the first stores to sell our EP. It’s small, but it always has an incredible selection. It kind of shows that a store can function successfully without being [huge].”
The Community Book Store
212 Court St., Brooklyn
“It’s a jam-packed labyrinth of used books. I’m almost scared for the dude who works there, though, like his desk is a huge mound of papers. But I get the feeling that he also knows where every book is in the store.”
Absolute Bagels
2788 Broadway
“They’re really some of the best bagels in New York. A bagel with lox and cream cheese, ever since I was 10, has been my favorite meal, and their bagels are a little bit smaller but really crispy. I think it’s because they do everything in house.”
Bowery Ballroom
6 Delancey St.
“It’s one of our favorites to play. It’s the perfect size for a show. Even when I was in high school, I remember seeing really important shows there. I saw the Walkmen there!”
Bed-Stuy Goodwill
1102 Fulton St., Brooklyn
“They used to have a pretty sweet selection of old calypso records. When I lived in Bed-Stuy, I found this cricket sweater there that had a blood stain on it. If it was another article of clothing, I would have been grossed out, but I guess I liked to imagine some dude playing cricket, and things got a little too rough.”