Track Listing

1. Death to Los Campesinos!
2. Broken Heartbeats Sound Like Breakbeats
3. Don't Tell Me to Do the Math(s)
4. Drop It Doe Eyes
5. My Year in Lists
6. Knee Deep at ATP
7. This Is How You Spell "Hahaha, We Destroyed the Hopes and Dreams of a G
8. We Are All Accelerated Readers
9. You! Me! Dancing!
10. ...And We Exhale and Roll Our Eyes in Unison
11. Sweet Dreams, Sweet Cheeks

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #21347 in Music
• Released on: 2008-04-01
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .17 pounds

Album Description
2008 debut album from the Cardiff-based seven-piece. Recorded in Canada and produced by David Newfeld (Broken Social Scene) the album is a frenetic mix of Indie Pop inspired by the likes of Architecture In Helsinki, Pavement and Bis. It's been a hugely eventful year for the band: a right-of-passage, roller coaster, massively exciting kind of year, that's seen them make an impressive dent globally, experience an avalanche of 'firsts', and subsequently proved their mettle as a Pop collective of huge potential...and all before they've even released their debut album! 11 tracks. Wichita.

Amazon.com
Resurface from your piles of self-loathing indie rock to seek out a more joyful alternative. With a glockenspiel, violin, hand claps, boy-girl harmonies, and an exclamation point to top it off, Los Campesinos! fit that bill and sound effortless in creating this highly addictive, hook-ridden debut. Not since Seattle's own United State of Electronica created a dance revolution years ago has music sounded so authentically euphoric. Of course, with lyrics like "The opposite of true love is as follows: Reality!" the deprecation still remains--but this time with a danceable beat! --Amanda MacKinnon

Customer Reviews

Power to Los Campesinos
Los Campesinos! debut is a spectacular collection that comes bursting full throttle with noisy, danceable punk rock rhythms and clever quotable lyrics. The point seems less to produce something slick or highly sophisticated, but rather a raw visceral music. Guitars, violin, glockenspiel, shouted lyrics, wild tempo changes- sure it all can be a little over the top and even strident at times, but for me it is great fun, and something I've listened to over and over in the past month (since downloading elsewhere). "You!Me!Dancing!" is an infectious dance number that starts with a slow build-up for the first two minutes before exploding into the foot stomping melody. Another personal favorite is "Knee Deep At ATP", a well-written song about being the B-side in a relationship. Other highlights include "Death to Los Campesinos", "Don't Tell Me To Do The Math(s)", and "This Is How You Spell HAHAHA, etc.". Definitely good for a laugh, to pick up your mood, or just to hear some loud, wild music.

Upbeat, dual-vocals, fun lyrics
I'll keep this short and sweet -- HOLD ON NOW, YOUNGSTER has some great hooks and the vocals are fast and furious. The two singers make each song unique. Great little bursts of singing (see "This is how you spell..." for an example).

I've been enjoying this on my long car rides up the NJ Turnpike and it keeps that drab landscape interesting. Favorite tracks: 2, 3, 5, 9.

Stellar debut reworks the very best elements of a dozen different influences
Ordinarily, anything as catchy as "Hold on Now, Youngster" should wear out its welcome after listening to it a dozen times in a week, but under Los Campesinos!' fuzzy hooks (which are found in abundance) there are clever turns of phrase, poignanly descriptive lyrics and an infectious amount of enthusiasm to uncover with repeat listens.

The band's packed lineup and group chants suggest Architecture in Helsinki's "In Case We Die", but the hyper-specificity and near pathological levels of energy are what's so fun about poring through Art Brut lyrics. Single "You! Me! Dancing!" has the album's biggest guitar hook (and a closing section that hilariously references Rousseau) but even better is "This is how you spell 'HAHAHA, we've destroyed the hopes and dreams of a generation of faux-romantics.'" It's one of 2008's very best songs on an album that seems likely to weigh in as one of the year's best records.