Se exige valientemente el derecho a disfrutar la belleza antes de que la vejez caiga cual guillotina afilada sobre las siete cabezas de Los Campesinos!

Los Campesinos!
“We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed”
We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed
Arts & Crafts, 2008

“We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed”  proviene de tres hermosas y cuatro impetuosos galeses, que se hacen llamar Los Campesinos! A primera oída, cualquiera podría deducir que los campesinos están contentos; pero al prestar atención a la letra, la cual narra una trágica pero cotidiana pérdida amorosa, parece ser que la música acrecienta la angustia en latidos acelerados.

Los siete integrantes de la banda portan el distintivo rural en su nombre: todos se apellidan Campesino, por razones ajenas a la sangre. Gareth interpreta con su ardiente (a veces ardida) voz, las palabras del letrista Tom, quien en el track que acabamos de escuchar, acepta que tiene el corazón destrozado con la humildad de la gente del campo. Sin embargo, cual voraz humanoide de ciudad desea vengarse con los puños en llamas.

No son agricultores, ni pastores, no se les ha encontrado mordisqueando una espiga de trigo, ni balbuceando en español… Pero Los Campesinos! Son tan eficientes que han recogido doble cosecha este año. En Febrero salió a la venta su primer álbum Hold On Now, Youngster y en octubre el segundo We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed el cual contiene diez nuevas y resplandecientes canciones, pero ninguna es sencillo oficial.

Wichita Recordings es el sello que los maneja en Europa, en el caso de la parte norte de nuestro continente, la disquera canadiense Arts & Crafts es quien tolera a este manojo de adolescentes berrinchudos que han logrado fusionar la brevedad y agresividad del punk, con un pop pegosteoso, un fresco sentido del humor, e infantilismo dotado de elocuencia. Elementos esenciales para un shout-along.

A lo largo del 2008 lograron crear un sonido que a pesar de ser compatible con el de Animal Collective, The Fiery Furnaces o Arquitechture in Helsinki, la mezcolanza de Los Campesinos!: guitarra, bajo, violín, glockenspiel, batería y gritos demandantes al unísono; además de resaltar como una propuesta genuina, demuestra que en vez de apanicarse ante la catástrofe, prefieren musicalizarla. Los Campesinos! celebran que son hermosos, aunque estén condenados.

Imagine that Belle & Sebastian and Tilly & the Wall got together and one thing led to another, which led to septuplets; and imagine that those children grew up with no friends, only a Sugarcubes record and a glockenspiel. If you can get past the absurdly crowded delivery room, you may begin to have some idea what to expect from Los Campesinos!(MySpace) debut LP Hold On Now, Youngster. And, really, there is no way this should work. But somehow it does.

Perhaps a few examples are in order. First: glockenspiels have never been rock ‘n’ roll (though, now that Envy & Other Sins have apparently included one in their upcoming album, I may have to rethink that). For that matter, neither has the melodica. Apparently, no one told Los Campesinos! this, because even when doubling the lead guitar on tracks like the frantic opener “Death To Los Campesinos!”, the thing manages to hold its own. Second: 43 minutes of lyrics like “This is how you spell ‘HAHAHA, we destroyed the hopes and dreams of a generation of faux-romantics.’ And I’m pleased” (and yes, that is also the title of the song) should not leave me with a ridiculous smile on my face. It is a juxtaposition of cheery pop (sort of) and cynicism worthy of the best of the early Cardigans.

And thought Gareth’s lyrics can be a bit, shall we say, abstract, e.g. “If you catch me with my hands in the till/I promise you that I wasn’t trying to steal/I’m just swimming in copper to smell and pretend like a robot.” (from “Death To Los Campesinos!”), they read more like Charles Bukowski with an attention span than what passes for lyrics among the more radio-friendly set these days. Add to that a lead guitarist whose repertoire extends beyond the realm of power chords and the result is really is something special—a nice change from much of the new stuff I’ve been encountering lately. Yes, two tracks did appear on the EP Sticking Fingers Into Sockets (“Don’t Tell Me To Do the Math(s)” and “You! Me! Dancing!”), a good 30 seconds have been added to the latter and the other nine songs (ok, 10 counting the bonus track) are well worth the investment.

Track List:

1. “Death to Los Campesinos!” – 2:52
2. “Broken Heartbeats Sound Like Breakbeats” – 3:35
3. “Don’t Tell Me to Do the Math(s)” – 3:22
4. “Drop it Doe Eyes” – 2:44
5. “My Year In Lists” – 1:51
6. “Knee Deep at ATP” – 2:49
7. “This Is How You Spell “HAHAHA, We Destroyed the Hopes and Dreams of a Generation of Faux-Romantics”" – 4:20
8. “We Are All Accelerated Readers” – 2:54
9. “You! Me! Dancing!” – 6:48
10. “…And We Exhale and Roll Our Eyes in Unison” – 2:50
11. “Sweet Dreams, Sweet Cheeks” – 4:31
12. “2007: The Year Punk Broke (My Heart)” [unlisted bonus track] – 4:44

Welsh twee-poppers Los Campesinos! played in Madison, WI to a packed house at the Rathskeller on February 6th, 2009.

The impossibly cute and ridiculously energetic 7-piece ripped through their catalog with the fury of a punk act and the pop sensibility of anyone in the Top 40. There was no shortage of group sing-alongs, due either to the band’s inherent inclusivity or, more likely, their catchy hooks. Los Campesinos!’s smart lyrics reverberated off the arch of the Rathskeller stage, particularly during “Death to Los Campesinos!” and “Sweet Dreams, Sweet Cheeks”.

Furthering the all-for-one vibe was the band’s interaction with their fans. Whether diving into the crowd or singing into cheering faces,  Los Campesinos! threw down like a rowdy family reunion. A rowdy family reunion filled with pogoing hipsters and ringing glockenspiels.

Los Campesinos! will be touring the US into April – you can find tour dates here.

–

For videos from the show, click here.
For pictures from the show (all 172 of them), click here.

1. Fleet Foxes – Fleet Foxes

Årets album 2008. De skjeggete kara i Fleet Foxes leverer låter om blomsterenger og solskinn omhyllet i en mystisk harmoni som virker så underlig kjent. Føles det pompøst? Nei. Jordnært. Hiv på deg hippieserken og sett på Ragged Wood.

2. Opeth – Watershed

Opeth er blitt beskrevet som et av verdens mest unike band. Med deres niende album i rekken klarer de fremdeles å kombinere metall, progrock, symfoniske elementer og til og med popballader på en mektig imponerende måte. Watershed er et krevende album – men desto mer tilfredsstillende å høre på. Denne kommer til å snurre i hele 2009, banna bein. Sett på The Lotus Eater og bli spist levende.

3. Vampire Weekend – Vampire Weekend

New York-ensemblet på 4 gir deg kammerpop du ikke har hørt maken til. Det er ganske enkelt utrolig morsomt å høre på. Husk matpakka og notatblokka og kom deg til campus med Oxford Comma.

4. MGMT –  Oracular Spectacular

Definisjonen av kult? Utrolig fengende New-York-hipstermusikk som tåler å bli satt på repeat.  2008 har virkelig vært året for MGMT, og hvis man skulle definere musikkåret med kun ei skive ville det vært Oracular Spectacular. Hiv på The Youth og send vannpipa rundt.

5.  Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!

“Men without facial hair are like women with” – Nick Cave. Sammen med maskuliniteten selv i spissen leverer The Bad Seeds et sylfrekt album uten at det høres påtatt eller anstrengt ut. Så hva venter du på? GRAV, MANN!!!

6. Tommy Tokyo & Starving for My Gravy – Smear Your Smiles Back On

Det eneste norske innslaget – men duverden for ei skive. Atmosfæren er et sted mellom knusende melankolsk, nostalgisk og fandenivoldsk. Gråt med et smil om munnen.

7.  Cut  Copy – In Ghost Colours

Med haugevis av referanser til 80-tallets gylne tider er In Ghost Colours en fest av ei skive.  Dansbart, klinbart, sjekkbart – snurr denne skiva om du ikke har råd til Dj.

8. Calexico – Carried to Dust

Med mesterverk som The Black Light og Feast of Wire i bagasjen fanger Calexico essensen av  Mexico, ørken og støvete landeveier som ingen andre. Med Carried to Dust utforskerArizonabandet på nytt dette golde landskapet, og det er stadig nye detaljer og finesser subtilt plassert rundt omkring i sanda. På med sombreroen og opp på eselet!

9. M83 – Saturdays = Youth

M83 sender med Saturdays=Youth en hyllest til outsiderne i skolegården. Med tenåringsangst og full forvirring i konsentrat er dette ei skive som tar deg med tilbake til fredag på ungdomskolen.

10. Los Campesinos! – Hold On Now, Youngster…

2008 har vært et hektisk år for Los Campesinos!, med to album og hissig turnevirksomhet. Med Hold On Now, Youngster… gir indiefamilien på syv fra Wales et intenst album som man ganske enkelt får et stort glis om munnen av.

This past Saturday I was lucky enough to see one of the hardest working acts of 2008.  If you’re not familiar, Los Campesinos! is a 7-piece band hailing from Cardiff, Wales.  Although they’ve only been playing since ‘06 the band has two LPs out, both of which being released in 2008 – both being very well received (when was the last time ANY artist put out two completely unique LPs in the same year… let alone two good ones?).  Due to a limited release of the second album, I’ve only listened to the first, Hold on Now, Youngster… but I can safely say it rips you through a blazing 12 songs and you can’t help but enjoy the ride.

It was hard to find a shot of them that wasn't blurry! Tom and Neil bounced around almost as much as the audience.

Like the album, their set was energetic and playful, with the band playing the stronger cuts between their two albums.  And although the encore was only one song, the audience seemed more than satisfied to catch this buzz band for their North American tour.

I highly recommend checking out this band, whether it’s recorded or live!

Gareth and Aleksandra sharing vocal duties.

with Xmas in the bag and new years coming at you like ulf samuelsson’s knee. what better to blog about than top ten lists?

with that said this was a pretty good year for music, everyone involved should be proud. so take a second to congratulate someone who you know was involved somehow with music this year on a job well done, except the jonas brothers.

_shame on them.

10.Pink Clouds CS -{{sunset}}

sunset’s pink clouds cassette was actually released last december, after that it was leaked, given away for free, and now i think the band has ran out of copies. if you have the means to find it. (ehrm internet?) it’s highly recomended, lo-fi with hi ambitions and more imagination that all those little creepy dudes on fraggle rock combined.

9.Anywhere I lay My head- Scarlett Johannson

scarlett doesn’t have the voice of an angel, far from it. but neither does miley cirus and neither does tom waits. but most importantly neither does tom waits. so i guess it helps hide a bad voice when your singing a bunch of his songs. but the attitude she has in her voice does a great job of carrying the songs, the fact that she’s a babe and likes tom waits also makes this album worth liking.

8.Hold On Now Youngster-Los Campesinos!

i knew one of los campesinos! albums was going to be on this list. and for now it turns out it’s their first one. some things i might regrett after posting this are: not having both on here, or not having the other one on here. punk without too much punk, emo without too much bullshit, british accents, and proper grammar. what more do you want.

7.Soft Airplane- Chad VanGaalen

this album begs for falling leaves and plastic skeletons, but two seasons down and it hasn’t lost anything after daylight savings time. sounds like he got bored one afternoon and decided to turn on garageband and make songs. soft and hard. sad to extremely depressing. i haven’t gotten around to listening to his other albums yet. but if its even half as good as this one i’m going to have a good time.

6.Re-Arange Us- Mates Of State

i’m new to mates of state. they were one of those bands that i’d wanted to like and for some reason (clarion’s internet) never got around to illegally downloading any of their songs. i’m glad they were on yo gabba gabba! recently or i wouldn’t have listened to this album. these songs are great. a few reviews say it’s not as good as their older stuff. but not having heard that, and taking it for what it is. i can say this is a very great album. if this is what marraige is supposed to sound like, what the hell was wrong with the bundy’s?

5.Fleet Foxes- fleet foxes

can’t say that much about fleet foxes that hasn’t already been said. mixes the old with the new. sounds like neil young at a medeival fair…or maybe thats just the madellin. fudge it. blue ridge mountain is crazy good. can double f bee any hipper? nice flannel and neck beards dude, can i bum a kamel red or are you all smoking cloves?

4. vol. 1- she and him

zoey deschanel, m. ward. country pop folk whatever. zoey’s voice and wards guitar are all you need. sounds like drinking yuengling on a front porch at dusk.

3.Vampire Weekend-Vampire Weekend

vampire weekend… your oppinion was made last year. the album dropped very early this year. i can’t change your mind either way. number three. respec +5 for catchyness

2.We Brave Bee Stings And All- Thao w/ get down stay down

love this album, catchy, friendly, summery, springtime, fall, its got you covered in all situations. thaos voice is soft and powerfull and the way she switches between the two is masterful. the fact that i have a slight bias towards female lead singers has nothing to do with it’s number 2 spot. i think.

1.youth novels- lykke li

lykke li completely took over my ipod one catchy pop gem at a time. there are few things greater than listening to lykke sing. and one of them is watching lykke sing. her “dancing” is just as jerky and frenetic as the songs need her to be to carry them out. every song on this album should be a hit single. none are ever boring. <3 lykke, can’t wait for more… oh yeah she covers the tribe in concert too. Respec +10

near misses: The Renessance-q-tip, The Evening Descends-Evangelicals,In the Aeroplane Over the Sea (except not really)-Madeline Ava, Santogold-santogold, Donora-Donora

[Days 1 & 2 were originally posted on my personal blog, "The Unimportant Superstar".]

It only seems right that, while I’m enduring this period of job instability, that I review an album on which the first words are, “Broken down like a war economy…”.  Heh.

So, here’s (in my mind) the simple formula to create Los Campesinos! -  start with a solid foundation of Brit indie-pop.  Crank up the amount of faux-yelling.  Switch back and forth between male and female lead as many times a song as you can handle (easy to do when the band has seven members).  Then add in some pretty smart (I believe the exact word to use would be “cheeky”) lyrics… and voila.  12 tracks of this and you have Los Campesinos! first album (and one of two to be released this year).

I was first exposed to this bunch watching MTV-U one day – a video played that didn’t have the standard band/song name/record label graphic before and after the song.  It was actually so short, at first I thought it was a new Gap commercial (I’ll link to the video at the end of this post, just to show you what I mean).  After doing a little digging online, I found out that the song was “My Year In Lists”… and it really was just a short song.  That short song remains my favorite of the entire disc to this day.  It’s one of the most upbeat depressing songs I’ve heard in a while… and I’m fairly sure it’s been stuck in my head since the initial listen.

There are a couple of other tracks that stuck out for me.  One of the slower tracks, “Knee Deep At ATP” drew me in with some wordplay (call me a nerd, but using punctuation symbols as metaphors just gets my attention for some reason).  Also, I really dig the lyric, “…and when our eyes meet/all that I can read/is “You’re the b-side.”  Ouch.  Honestly… the lyrics are my favorite part of the album in general, because to be frank – the music really isn’t all that unique.  Par for the course when it comes to indie-pop stuff.  “We Are All Accelerated Readers”, and “You, Me, Dancing!” are easily my two other favorites, “Readers” being slow and kind of morose and “Dancing!” being quite the opposite.  “2007: The Year Punk Broke (My Heart)” really ends the album leaving you feel like it was more epic than it really was.

“Hold On Now, Youngster…” definitely has a youthful, snarky attitude about it.  And I think that intrigues me more than anything.  Enough to check out their second album, at any rate.  I think if you’re into bands like Bloc Party or… well, really any other Brit indie-pop group – give LC! a try.

Check out the video to “My Year In Lists” here, and the songs “Knee Deep at the ATP”, “We Are All Accelerated Readers (Live)” and “You!  Me!  Dancing!” here.

I had been pretty disappointed with new records this year, but was holding out hope for the fall, as so many bands seem to put stuff out and tour in autumn. Well, maybe I shouldn’t have been holding out so much because, besides, for TV on the Radio, I’ve been thoroughly let down in ‘08. (I suppose it doesn’t help that it was this time last year when the new Radiohead came out either.)

But then something wild happened, which was Los Campesinos! bursting onto the scene from Wales, releasing two CDs in their first year playing out. Hold On Now Youngster… was enough to put them on my radar in the spring, but the latest, We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed, which just came out this week, blew me away! You’re going to want to hear this!

So the reason there was no review last night was because I had a marathon session of Super Smash Brawl with Ben and Rebecca, my first time playing that game, and it is a quantum leap from the first two incarnations, but some of the levels are really annoying and distracting, but that’s really my only gripe with the game.

…and THAT WAS THE FIRST AND LAST VIDEO GAME REVIEW BY IAMDC!!!!! CONFETTI!!!!!!

Okay.

Los Campesinos! is the name of an enthusiastic young Welsh(!) band – so enthusiastic that they put an exclamation point in their band name, which is also each member’s stage name; hence, Gareth Campesinos! is the lead singer, Aleksandra Campesinos! plays keyboards and also sings, and so forth.  There are seven Campesinos!’s, meaning seven very young, very active Welsh kids jumping around and playing through popbescence, a term I just coined for music centered around youth and coming-of-age.  Man, that would have been useful for the intro to my Walkmen review.  Oh, well.

Los Campesinos!’ debut full-length, Hold On Now, Youngster… is what I imagine high school emo poets are really trying to say when they make poems about dead leaves and shit.  Los Campesinos! sing about sexual frustration, trying desperately to impress the opposite sex, and just…fucking growing up, dude, you know?  I’ve never heard music outside of Weird Al that relied so much on the lyrics to be appreciated fully.  When I hear lyrics like “You should have built a statue, and so I did of you/And you were ungrateful, and slightly offended at the dimensions of it/You said you looked less like the Venus de Milo, and more like your mother in a straitjacket” in the song “We Are All Accelerated Readers”, that makes me sit up and take notice, and google song lyrics like they want me to.  The main tragedy of this album for American listeners is Gareth’s intense Welsh accent which makes the lyrics kind of hard to understand if you a) aren’t watching him sing them (music videos help), or b) don’t look up the lyrics.  By the by, I found lyrics for it here.

This album fascinates me, to be honest.  I do sincerely regret not having listened to it a week earlier, so it could further put The Walkmen in perspective, but it mainly fascinates me because it seems so in the moment, so contemporary (two songs are titled “Knee Deep at ATP”, which is a series of music festivals, and “2007: The Year Punk Broke (My Heart)”), but feels like something that people are going to love for a long time, one of those albums that will be rediscovered and rediscovered with new mini-generations of young, awkward indie kids who can really connect with these lyrics on a visceral and intellectual level.  I guess I get a feeling of importance from this record.

That being said, I don’t think it’s one of my top albums of the year so far, because of the paradox of necessary-to-the-music words that are hard to understand, as well as an abrasiveness that goes beyond intended levels because let’s be honest, these guys can’t sing very well.  So that’s that for the review, but I want to post a few more snippets of song lyrics, because they’re really fun to read.

From “Knee Deep At ATP”

And though underexposed, i could see from the quality, his K Records t-shirt and you holding his hand
And I know he took you to the beach, I can tell from how you bite on your cheek, every time the sand falls from your insoles
And when our eyes meet, all that I can read, is “you’re the b-side”.

From “My Year In Lists”

You said “send me stationary to make me horny”
So I always write you letters in multicolours
Decorating envelopes for foreplay
Damn extended metaphors, I get carried away

From “This Is How You Spell ‘HAHAHA, I’ve Destroyed The Hopes And Dreams Of A Generation Of Faux-romantics’”

The trails on your skin spoke more to me than the reams and reams of half finished novels you’d leave lying all over the place
And every quotation that’d dribble from your mouth like a final, fatal livejournal entry
I know
I am wrong
I am sorry

Depois de lançar suas primeiras músicas em versão demo, a banda de indie pop Los Campesinos! demorou quase dois anos para gravar seu primeiro álbum, “Hold On Now, Youngster…”, que saiu em fevereiro nos EUA e na Europa. Agora, parece que os galeses querem recuperar o tempo perdido. O grupo anunciou o lançamento do segundo disco, “We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed” para 13 de outubro – ou seja, só oito meses depois do álbum de estréia.

O curto período de tempo entre os dois lançamentos gerou algum estranhamento entre os fãs da banda, mas, em seu site oficial, o septeto explica que o novo disco não terá lados B, remixes ou sobras do álbum anterior. “São 10 novas canções que ninguém jamais ouviu antes”.

Ainda no comunicado, os músicos brincam, dizendo que pensaram em relançar uma outra versão com “You! Me! Dancing!”, grande hit do grupo, que fez sucesso desde as primeiras gravações divulgadas na Internet. “Claro que nós pensamos em relançar uma outra versão para ficarmos famosos e podermos fazer uma nova turnê por causa disso, mas nossos pais concordaram unanimemente que, se nós fizéssemos isso, eles nunca mais falariam conosco”.

Band: Los Campesinos!
Album: Hold on Now, Youngster…
Erscheinungsdatum: 22. Februar 2008

Tracklist:

1. “Death to Los Campesinos!” – 2:52
2. “Broken Heartbeats Sound Like Breakbeats” – 3:35
3. “Don’t Tell Me to Do the Math(s)” – 3:22
4. “Drop it Doe Eyes” – 2:44
5. “My Year in Lists” – 1:51
6. “Knee Deep at ATP” – 2:49
7. “This Is How You Spell. “HAHAHA, We Destroyed the Hopes and Dreams of a Generation of Faux-Romantics”" – 4:20
8. “We Are All Accelerated Readers” – 2:54
9. “You! Me! Dancing!” – 6:48
10. “…And We Exhale and Roll Our Eyes in Unison” – 2:50
11. “Sweet Dreams, Sweet Cheeks” – 4:31
12. “2007: The Year Punk Broke (My Heart)” [Hidden Track] – 4:44

Nach der Ankündigung zum zweiten Album folgt nun endlich das Review zum ersten “Los Campesinos!” Album. “Los Campesinos!” besteht aus sieben jungen Studenten, die sich 2006 an der “Cardiff University” kennen lernten und wenig später die Band gründeten. Schon Ende 2006 unterschrieben sie einen Vertrag beim renomierten Indie-Label “Wichita Recordings“. Das erste Album, welches im Februar 2008 erschien wurde von Kritikern überwiegend positiv bewertet. Das zweite Album erscheint schon im Oktober. Stilistisch sind sie dem Indie-Pop zuzuordnen.

Neil – Gitarre
Ellen – Bass
Ollie – Schlagzeug
Tom – Gitarre
Gareth – Gesang, Lyra
Harriet – Violine, Keyboard
Aleksandra – Gesang, Keyboard

Das Album beginnt schnell. “Death to Los Campesinos!”, dass zuvor schon als EP erhältlich war, besticht durch den abwechselnden Gesang von Gareth und Aleksandra und den Baking Vocals der gesamten Band. Sehr schöne Drums- und Keyboardssounds und einfach ein herrlich frischer Grundton eröffnen das Debütalbum.

I swap the bruising for a bumping sensation
I’ll be Ctrl-Alt-deleting your face with no reservations

“Broken Heartbeats Sound Like Breakbeats” macht genau da weiter wo “Death to Los Campesinos!” aufgehört hat. Los geht es überrachend mit zählen. Von links und rechts kommt immer abwechselnd ”One! Two! Three! Four!” bis auf einmal die Instrumente einsetzen. Auch in diesem Song singen Gareth und Aleksandra zusammen. Diesmal aber auch wunderbar chaotisch gleichzeitig, mit passendem Hintergrundgesang der Band. Nach ca. 3/4 des Liedes wird es aufeinmal deutlich langsamer. Aleksandra singt ruhiger von “broken heartbeats” während im Hintergund der Track langsam ausklingt.

These constant broken heartbeats sound like breakbeats
Looping round and round to me
You know he’s so much more like Spiderman than you will ever, ever be

Mit einem direkten Übergang wird “Don’t Tell Me to Do the Math(s)”, ein Highlight des Albums eingeleitet. Als erstes fällt hier das Glockenspiel am Anfang auf, welches fast den gesamten Song zu hören ist. Sehr fröhlich gehts auch gleich weiter: Keyboard, Schlagzeug und Gitarren setzen ein. Aleksandra singt: “We know that we could sell your magazines/If only you could give your life to literature” und wieder wird der Gesang mit Gareth getauscht. Die typischen Rufe der Band dürfen natürlich auch hier nicht fehlen. Ein fantastischer Song der einfach vor Leichtigkeit strotzt.

Tonight we’re gonna smash this place up
And then we’re gonna deck it out with fairy lights
Til we are content!

“Drop it Doe Eyes” ist etwas ruhiger. Hier ist vor allem der Refrain von den weiblichen Mitgliedern der Band sehr markant. Zum Ende wirds aber wieder, in typischer “Los Campesinos!”-Manier, wilder.

Deer die with their eyes wide open, eyes wide open, eyes wide open
Deer die with their eyes wide open

Ihre aktuelle Single “My Year in Lists” ist der fünfte Track auf dem Album. Auch dieser ist etwas ruhiger, hat aber nichts vom “Los Campesinos!”-Style verloren. Leider etwas kurz.

My year in lists
Stomping on your fingers as you’re clinging on to the abyss

“Knee Deep at ATP” beginnt anders als der Rest des Albums. Ruhiger und keine chaotischen Refrains oder wilde Drums. Nicht gerade der beste Song der Platte aber eine willkommende Abwechlsung. Zum Ende hin singen dann nochmal alle “Campesinos” zusammen:

They said “it’s not what you like, it’s what you’re like as a person”,
Well, I need new hobbies, that’s one thing for certain
Not what you like, but what you’re like as a person,
Well, I need new hobbies, that’s one thing for certain.

Den Titel als besten Songname hat “This Is How You Spell. “HAHAHA, We Destroyed the Hopes and Dreams of a Generation of Faux-Romantics” wohl sicher. Aber auch das Lied hat es in sich. Gareth singt, ja erzählt fast, seinen Songtext bis alle wieder zusammen den Refrain singen. Wunderbarer Song. Anderes aufgebaut als der Rest der Tracks auf dem Album aber immer noch typisch “Los Campesinos!”.

We have to take the car ’cause the bike’s on fire
We cannot trust your friends ’cause they were born liars

“We Are All Accelerated Readers” ist wieder ruhiger aber definitiv nicht schlechter. Aleksandra singt im Refrain von “accelerated readers” die nie das Haus verlassen.

And I’m not Bonnie Tyler, and I’m not Toni Braxton
And this song is not gonna save your relationship
“Oh, no shit”
And this sentimental movie marathon has taught us one thing
It’s the opposite of true love is as follows:
Reality!

Das nächste Highlight lässt auch nicht lange auf sich warten. “You! Me! Dancing!” beginnt mit einem längerem Intro bis endlich die Instrumente richtig anfangen zu spielen. Bei dem Song muss man einfach “mitwippen”. Der Refrain ist wieder schnell, wieder mit Glockenspiel und herrlich simplen Lyrics (“It’s you!/It’s me!/And there’s dancing!“). Kurz vor Ende des Albums nochmal ein richtig guter Track der Lust auf mehr macht.

Because there’s only so many places you’re guaranteed on getting a hug when you leave.
And then on the way home, it always seems like a good idea to go paddling in the fountain, and that’s because it IS a good idea.

“…And We Exhale and Roll Our Eyes in Unison” ist wieder ein “Gemeinschaftsprojekt” der Band. Wechselnder Gesang mit Baking Vocals der ganzen Band. Teilweise relativ langsam, im Vergleich zum Rest des Albums, dennoch ein sehr solider Song.

It’s bad enough you ever use the word as an adjective
But to suggest we do it in heels is really quite crass

Der letzte “offizielle” Track ist “Sweet Dreams, Sweet Cheeks”. Nochmals eine fröhliche Indie-Pop Nummer mit “Mittanzqulitäten” und einem herrlichen Refrain. Wunderbar, was will man mehr?

One blink for yes, two blinks for no.
Sweet dreams, sweet cheeks, we leave alone

Da denkt man, dass das Album schon vorbei, weil auf dem Back Cover “nur” 10 Songs angeben sind, doch aufeinmal geht es weiter mit “2007: The Year Punk Broke (My Heart)”. Dieser Hidden Track rundetet “Hold on Now, Youngster…” perfekt ab. Wenig Gesang, nur am Anfang etwas von Gareth und den Rest machen die Instrumente: Glockenspiel, Drums, Gitarren, Violine und Keyboard dürfen alle nocheinmal zeigen was sie können. Super Ausklang des Albums.

Me, in your back garden
With my Walkman tucked inside my forearm

Fazit

“Hold on Now, Youngster…” ist einer der musikalischen Indie-Höhepunkte des Jahres. Selten hat eine eine Band ein so starkes und ausgereiftes Debütalbum abgeliefert. Auch wenn einige sehr gute Songs, die auf vorherigen EPs veröffentlicht wurden, nicht mehr Platz auf der Platte fanden ist das ganze Album ein Genuss. Es gibt kein wirklichen Patzer. Alle Songs sind einzigartig und doch sind alle eindeutig “Los Campesinos!”. Man kann nur von Glück sagen, dass dieses erst das erste Album war und dass hoffentlich noch viele weitere Scheiben dieser Qualität in den nächsten Jahren von “Los Campesinos!” bekommen werden.

Weiterführende Weblinks

• Offizielle Website
• Wikipedia (de)
• Album bei Wikipedia (en)
• MySpace
• Last.fm
• Lyrics
• Offizielle Musikvideos bei YouTube

Campesino is a spanish term meaning farm worker. It is quite interesting that young UK indie pop band would choose a name such as Los Campesinos. Hold On Now, Youngster is their debut album and came out in Europe a while ago, but has recently been released in the states. I swear they had material before this, but I guess I was wrong. Los Campesinos has accomplished what my friends and I have always wanted to do. Which is start a band straight out of college and gain instant fame.

Consisting of mostly songs from their prior EPs, the album is not much of a surprise. The band stays true to the basic indie sound with catchy synths, chanting, and violins layed on top. Comparisons to bands like Broken Social Scene, the band has yet to completely prove all their abilities on this album. But after seeing them perform at Lollapalooza this summer, I will say that are great performers. As cheesey as it sounds, these kids are excited for life and that makes me excited too, well at least for them. “Sweet Dreams, Sweet Cheeks” is by far the catchiest song off the album and is constantly stuck in my head. I mean you really wouldn’t think you could ever hear yourself singing one blink for yes/ two blinks for no/ sweet dreams/ sweet cheeks/ we leave alone but I do. But this album is highly recommeneded for those wishing to find the formula for creating the perfect indie band. I’m not saying that they are perfect, but I think they could play a part of it.

Los Campesinos – Sweet Dreams, Sweet Cheeks [MP3] [Myspace] [BUY]

(to download track: right click and save target as)

Hormonas, granos, y más ganas de hacer música que varios de los que conocés.

Si te digo que éste es un álbum maravillosamente perfecto me fui al pasto ¿no? Sí, está bien. Pero fijate: empieza el disco con un 1,2,3,4 ramonero pero coral. Onda muchacho: one, muchacha: two, muchacho: three y muchacha: four. Empieza la empatía. Y sigue, mientras los tracks suceden de indie, pop, un poco quizás de textura hardcore divertido, hasta que llegamos al bestial “You! Me! Dancing!”. Uf. Un crescendo onda “Where the streets have no name” que sube sube e implosiona en una guitarrita muy pegadiza y unas campanitas y una letra muy adolescente pero no naif (¡todo lo contrario!) (Not sure if you mind if I dance with you but right now I don’t think you care about anything.) cantada con bella y aniñada voz (y esperemos que no crezca). Lo bueno es esa mezcla que no tan bien le ha resultado a otros de batir potencia y mugre punk con melodía pop. Son siete amigos de Gales (¡aguante Gales!) que responden (otra vez los Ramones) al apellido Campesinos! Suenan frescos, jóvenes (deben tener entre 15 y 18 años o menos). Son lo más divertido (sí, torturados, la música sirve para divertirse too) en bastante tiempo. Te dan ganas de ser guachito de vuelta, onda volver al 92 y ser fan de Los Campesinos! Y comprarte la remera y salir a mostrarle al mundo que te la bancás y que al fin existen unos pibes que te representan y a los que escuchaste hace mucho, apenas salieron los demos, no cuando se hicieron famosos y bla bla bla. Lo que hacen todos, osea.

¿El tema pulenta? “Sweet dreams, sweet cheeks”: voces líderes que se entremezclan, un corito detrás y todo sobre pulso punk. La frase:

“One blink for yes Two blinks for no. Sweet Dreams sweet cheeks we leave alone”

(¡Son buenazos!)

¿La sensación final? No sé tú, pero yo pienso que se van a convertir en los portavoces de toda una generación, la más difícil, la que se está dando cuenta de que son generación. Para muestra, this one:

“I’m sticking your fingers into sockets, to kick-start your little heart and maybe sleep a tiny bit more.

Oh maybe we should read more into the books that we adore, perhaps we should drink less vitamin C, and now I’m shouting out in capital letters “I WILL THROW YOU HIGH FIVES IF YOU KEEP YOUR OWN SECRETS!!”

Suite à la parution de leur nouvel album Hold On Now Youngster, sorti en Amérique au début avril 2008, le groupe des Pays de Galles, Los Campesinos, sera en spectacle au Petit Campus le 22 mai.

You! me! Dancing!

Death to Los Campesinos

Eve

When I first heard the Los Campesinos! demos about 18 months ago, I thought it was one of the best demos I had ever heard. It was called ‘Hold On Now Youngster’. A few weeks ago, they released their debut album, also called ‘Hold On Now Youngster’ and I have to say it was rather disappointing. Too many of the songs sounded similar, there was far too much reliance on tweeness and not enough on brilliance. Certainly, some of the lyrics are inspired but the lack of musical diversity really holds it back, I think. It was a shame considering how good I thought it could have been. Despite that, the one ‘new’ song to me that really stood out was ‘My Year In Lists’ which they are now releasing as a single. Have a peek at it above.

My Bloody Valentine – Title TBC  Due Sometime 2008

Apparently, this is mostly done. According to Kevin Shields, it’s a continuation of the record they started in the mid-nineties, which he then described as ‘like drum & bass at 33RPM’ with some new tracks as well. Hopefully, it’ll be out in time for the gigs this summer which is all very exciting. There are some bands you’d hate to see recording together again (The Pixies, The Smiths)  but My Bloody Valentine are one band that just might pull it off.

Portishead – Title TBC (Rumoured Title: ‘Alien’) Due April 2008:

This looks like it could well be a stonker. They played some of the new material at their recent ATP appearance and reports all-round were excellent. You can see one of the tracks, Peaches here which is excellent and other tracks I’ve heard also seemed rather wonderful and very different for Portishead. Everything sounds much more upbeat and it seems like 60’s psychedelia may be a key influence on the record. But we’ll have to wait and see…

 Goldfrapp - ’Seventh Tree’  Due February 2008:

Having heard much of this, I have to say I’m really looking forward to it. I was a big fan of ’Felt Mountain’ but have been fairly indifferent to anything since. But the new material is stripped-down and more ethereal with a Beatles/Cocteau Twins influence on the material I’ve heard. A&E is the first single to be released from the album and is already getting regular play on Phantom 105.2.

Los Campesinos – ‘Hold On Now Youngster’  Due February 2008:

It feels like a lifetime since I first heard their demo’s and got very excited by Los Campesinos!, which is unfortunate because a lot of their songs seem old to me now and they seem to be over-doing the twee factor the more I learn about them. But I’m still holding out hope that they’ll pull a great album out of the bag, I’ll forgive them their tweeness-overload and it’ll all be okay again. They play The Village on February 11th 2008

Cap Pas Cap  – Title TBC  Due Sometime 2008

They originally claimed that their album would be released in 2007 along with a split 7″ but neither made an appearance. In fact, their only release of the year was a re-press of their 2006 ‘Not Not Is Fine’ EP. Hopefully, it won’t take too much longer and we’ll be rewarded with releases in the near future. Hurry up, would you?

 The Jimmy Cake – ‘Spectre & Crown’  Due February 2008

The Jimmy Cake finally get around to releasing their follow-up to ‘Dublin Gone, Everybody Dead’, which is now six years old. They recently played some of the new tracks on The Indie Hour which sounded more piano-led and almost simpler than The Jimmy Cake you might be used to.

The Breeders: ‘Mountain Battles’  Due April 2008:

Steve Albini is involved and it includes a song in Spanish and a song in German. They play Dublin on April 7th 2008 in The Ambassador.

 Jape – Title TBC  Due: Feb/March 2008

Another one that fells like it’s taken an age to come out but hopefully it will be well worth the wait. Presumably, their current set will make up the bulk of the record which has to be a good sign. Songs like ‘Gimme Some More’, ‘I Was A Man’ and ‘Strike Me Down’ are all absolute stompers so it’s hard to see how this one can fail.

Wild Beasts – Title TBC  Due: Sometime 2008

Wild Beasts are a band that a lot of people are going to despise. Funny high-pitched vocals, bizarre lyrics and a general atmosphere of feyness abounds but I think they’re one of the most exciting new bands around. All three singles to date have been first class so I can’t wait to see what they do with a full-length.

Dexy’s Midnight Runners – Title TBC  Due: Hopefully 2008

Dexy’s are a long-time favourite of mine and ‘Searching For The Young Soul Rebels’ is one of my favourite albums ever. I saw a re-formed Dexy’s a few years ago and was sorely disappointed and this is a record I would have been worried about except that the new song Kevin Rowland has up on his Myspace page (‘It’s OK Johanna’) is fantastically deadly so perhaps all is not lost yet.

 Foals – Antidotes  Due: March 2008

This is a band that could still go either way for me. I have loved some of their tracks while others have left me cold. I’m glad to see that the tracklisting includes the track that got me excited about them in the first place – ‘The French Open’ and doesn’t include the underwhelming single, ‘Mathlethics’.

Vampire Weekend – Vampire Weekend  Due: Jan 2008

They certainly stick out like a sore thumb from everything else that’s going on at the moment with their Afro-Beatles sound. You’re going to hear about them constantly for the next few months and endless reviews mentioning Paul Simon’s Graceland album but if their debut is as good as ‘Mansard Roof’ and new single ‘A Punk’, then it could well be worth the hype.

The Smiths – Boxset  Due: Late 2008

Johnny Marr confirmed towards the end of the year that he and Morrissey are compiling a boxset supposedly due for relese in 2008. Marr hoped it would include unreleased versions of tracks including some of the never-officially released Troy Tate demos and alternate versions and unrelesaed session versions of tracks. It won’t feature any new tracks but it may also include a DVD of unreleased live footage of the band.

Messiah J & The Expert – Title TBC  Due: Summer 2008 

I have to declare an interest here as I’m involved with the band  (See here) but I have heard a lot of the album and I think it sounds very exciting.

Other bands/artists that will hopefully release new records this year include Boards of Canada, Stereolab, Joanna Newsom, Broadcast, Edan and Boom Bip (His ‘Sacchrilige’ EP of last year was the best thing he’s ever done but I’m less keen on Neon Neon, his recent collaboration with Gruff Rhys). There’s always a few surprises and I’m sure this time next year I’ll be praising albums from 2008 by artists I don’t even know exist yet. That’s the fun part.

So, Los Campesinos! finally get around to releasing one of the highlights from their demo which I’ve been playing on the show ever since Phantom got on the air. And there’s a very colourful video to go along with this truncated version of the song. Having just released a song called ‘The International Tweexcore Underground’, they now go and make one of the twee-est videos ever featuring rainbows, stuffed toys, star confetti, balloons, kittens and all manners of multi-coloured fluffiness. However, it’s much fun and the new version of the song is rather fantastic. Their debut album, Hold On Now Youngster, is out at the end of February and they play The Village, Dublin on February 11th next year too.

Cardiff’s tweecore popsters, Los Campesinos return to Dublin on Feb 11th to play The Village. This will tie in with the release of their debut LP, ‘Hold On Now, Youngster’, which is a fantastic album title. I’ve been playing their demos since Phantom went on the air a year ago but couldn’t make their recent Whelans date. There’s a taster of their live show above in the form of their bona-fide anthem, ‘You! Me! Dancing!’