Know thy anime
Naturally, Vampire Weekend front man Ezra Koenig has filled the interalbum lull by writing a star-studded Japanese cartoon for Netflix
The premise of Neo Yokio, the new Netflix anime series created, co-written and executively produced by Ezra Koenig, of Vampire Weekend (whose new album is expected in 2018), is more out-there than we have space to explain. But by way of tidbits: its hero is a purple-haired, luxury brand-obsessed millennial called Kaz, voiced by Jaden Smith, who happens to be descended from a long line of “ratcatchers”, or exorcists, and who is called upon by his Aunt Agatha (Susan Sarandon) to cast demons out of the inhabitants of Neo Yokio, a kind-of futuristic New York in which the Lower East Side has lowered into the East River.
In episode one, Kaz’s first gig is to exorcise a bespoke Chanel suit being worn by a fashion blogger (Tavi Gevinson). We also meet his rival Archangelo (Jason Schwartzman), with whom he spars in neighbouring fitting rooms at Bergdorf Goodman. Oh, and he has a giant robot butler voiced by Jude Law. As with everything Koenig does, the credentials are impeccable (the name of his show riffs on 1987 anime classic Neo Tokyo, and his principal director is the esteemed Kazuhiro Furuhashi). It’s arch, it’s weird and it’s infectiously charming.
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Neo Yokio launches on 22 September on Netflix