It’s difficult to know where to start with Los Campesinos. This is a band who, among other things, have been mentioned in NME as a band to watch in 2007, and have a list as long as your arm of various online reviews, all of which sing their praises as if they were Jesus Christ with a glockenspiel. In the local area they are seen as THE band, and a support slot is something to be mentioned on an aspiring bands CV. Their recent signing to Wichita records, home to Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, The Bronx, The Cribs and indie superstars Bloc Party after they have only played a handful of gigs is yet another testament to the expectations placed on Los Campesinos. Can they live up to all this hype? The answer is a resounding and happy yes, they can.
The feeling you get when you first hear a Los Campesinos song can only be described as eye-opening. Upon the start of 'Sweet Dreams Sweet Cheeks', we hear what seems to be a power drill providing solo, and it immediately breaks into some of the best lyrics you'll be hearing for a long time. The backing vocals ebb and flow over the main voice, and the lyrics 'It hits you hard like a blow to the head or a smash to the skull or a knee to your chest' don't sound at all violent and angry. I'm sure the indie scenesters will call this an interesting contrast between substance and style, I call it fucking fantastic.
'Death to Los Campesinos' is undoubtedly the most radio friendly song on the roster, and don't think this is a bad thing. The vocals jump back and forth between Aleks and Gareth, and this is REAL contrast. Aleks sounds like Jenny Lewis from Rilo Kiley, her voice soaring and smooth, while Gareth yelps and barks out his lyrics, sounding less like a singer and more like an excited puppy.
The bands first single, ‘We Throw Parties, You Throw Knives’ (not an anti-war song as some people have suggested, at risk of being punched in the face) is probably best described as ‘twee’. It bops back and forth like a far more upbeat Pixies song, so sweet that you can feel your teeth falling out just by listening. That is until you listen to the lyrics, which in typical LC style are far more sinister than the music they accompany. This song, while good, doesn’t show the bands full potential, and seems an odd choice for a first single. Even so, it’s better than most things you’ll hear this year.
We now lead onto 'You, Me, Dancing'. This song destroys any doubt you may still have that Los Campesinos are going to be huge. The intro builds from a simple guitar into a deafening crescendo, which literally makes you feel like you're going to explode. The bass drum kicks in, plays 8 times and then you hear the start of what is possibly the greatest guitar riff in an indie song of all time. This is the kind of riff which makes the hair stand up on your neck. The kind of song that makes you want to learn guitar. The whole song seems to build up to the chorus, which on paper looks simplistic, but in this song is perfect; "There’s you, there’s me, and there’s dancing!” This is the only song I know where you can hear an exclamation mark, and this is precisely the song that you can see them playing last. This is the song that people will go crazy for, this is the one which the indie kids will sing along to and rightfully so, as it is simply an indie masterpiece. It isn't even ruined by the Blur style voiceover, which is done so well that it only adds to the quality.
Los Campesinos are in the unique position of having only released 1 single via download, and only played a handful of gigs, but they already have a legion of slobbering fans who wait eagerly for the release of their album 'Hold on Now Youngster', and who know the words to all 6 songs which have been recorded at present. Simply, this is a band you simply cannot afford not to have in your life at the moment.