Los Campesinos!
TEXT: Raymond Chalmé  |||  PHOTO: Jon Bergman

"Los Campesinos" means “the peasants” in Spanish. For the Welsh indie-pop septet that is treated as royalty in the eyes of the critics, the name for this band is especially ironic. Their sound is ultra-layered, often resulting in the chime of a glockenspiel dueling with sweet violin, gurgling synth tangling around a bouncy guitar riff, and morosely scatterbrained lyrics with just enough sarcasm and malice to keep everything all smiles. The band members have all taken Campesinos! as their surnames to promote the closeness of the band; Gareth (Vocals/Glockenspiel), Tom (Guitar), Neil (Guitar), Ollie (Drums), Ellen (Bass), Harriet (Violin) and Kim (Vocals/Keys) are frequently starring in self-made road documentaries and hawking their own favorite bands.

It must be odd when a group who openly worships countless other recording artists suddenly gains the status of a group to be worshipped. For Los Campesinos!, the transition was an easy one. Their first release, an EP titled Sticking Fingers Into Sockets, sounds so effortlessly awesome that it seems like the band have been doing it for years. Now, on the peak of their third and most mature album, Romance Is Boring (left), they have lost an original member (Aleks has left the band to resume her studies) but show no signs of giving up.

Their live shows are intense, to say the least. Half the band hops into the crowd during the encore to get a bit closer to the people who support them. There’s a lot to be said for a guitarist who continues playing while floating around on the hands of his fans. Whether you’re a casual fan or a diehard, you should not pass up an opportunity to see them perform in the live setting. I missed my cousin’s wedding to attend their show in August 2009 in NYC, and it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.


LINKS:
LC Official Website
LC on Twitter
LC on Myspace


Preview & purchase LC albums from eMusic (subscribe and get 25 FREE downloads)


U.S. & CANADA TOUR:
April 27 Washington, DC • 9:30 Club
April 28 Covington KY • Mad Hatter Club
April 29 Madison, WI • Majestic Theatre
April 30 Chicago, IL • Cabaret Metro
May 01 Minneapolis, MN • First Avenue
May 04 Seattle, WA • Showbox Theatre
May 05 Portland, OR • Hawthorne Theatre
May 07 San Francisco, CA • The Regency Ballroom
May 08 Los Angeles, CA • El Rey Theatre
May 10 Pomona, CA • The Glass House
May 11 San Diego, CA • San Diego Women’s Club


VIDEOS FROM ROMANCE IS BORING:

Los Campesinos "Romance Is Boring" from Alanedit on Vimeo.