Los Campesinos! refuse to do their math homework. Instead they make hyperactive indie-pop songs about awkward dancing and even more awkward romances.
When I first listened to Hold on Now, Youngster, I assumed the average age of the seven-member band was 16. Their music is incredibly energetic, sometimes silly and very young and loud. In fact, these indie darlings formed at Cardiff University in Wales two years ago and have since risen to fame after touring with Canadian band Broken Social Scene. They have even had the honor of Pitchfork Media labeling them as one of their favorite new bands.
Los Campesinos!' songs revolve around the yelps and harmonies of a boy-girl duo, Gareth and Aleksandra Campesinos! (They each take Campesinos! as their surname, in true Ramones style.) Most of the singing is done by Gareth Campesinos!, who could never be described as a good singer, but his snarly yet charming voice is perfect for their bouncy songs. Los Campesinos! fully embrace their tween-ness. They are often compared to a sped-up and slightly deranged Belle & Sebastian or Architecture in Helsinki, and the sounds of glockenspiels and handclaps can frequently be heard on many of their songs.
The lyrics in Hold on Now, Youngster reference anything from LiveJournal to The Breakfast Club. The song titles are ridiculous, such as "This is How You Spell, 'HAHAHA, We Destroyed the Hopes and Dreams of a Generation of Faux-Romantics,'" or "...And We Exhale and Roll our Eyes in Unison." My favorite lyric has to be in the song "Knee Deep at ATP," which is about a boy who knows his girlfriend has been unfaithful. "And when our eyes meet all that I can read is, 'You're the B-side.'" Their lyrics could give the impression they are ridiculous hipsters, but in actuality they are very tongue-in-cheek. Gareth Campesinos! even sings "And it's sad that you think that we're all just scenesters." Los Campesinos! both speak for the MySpace generation and poke fun of it at the same time.
The joy of Los Campesinos! is that they are never serious -- instead they make insanely catchy songs. "You! Me! Dancing!", which they originally released on their 2007 EP, Sticking Fingers into Sockets, will make you want to dance with joy and flail your arms. This is very fitting since the chorus includes the line, "If there's one thing that I could never confess, it's that I can't dance a single step." I guarantee that the shouty lyrics of "Death to Los Campesinos!" will stay with you for ages.
The only thing about the album I would criticize is that it sometimes feels like a collection of 12 singles, for there is little holding the album together. Each song is loud and full of adrenaline, and there is little change in tempo and tone in the album. At least one break would allow the listeners to properly appreciate the album and feel less overwhelmed at the end. Otherwise, this is a fun debut that is guaranteed to make you dance like a crazy person, just like I did when listening.
As Gareth Campesinos! correctly says at the end of "You! Me! We're dancing!", "We're undeveloped, we're ignorant, we're stupid, but we're happy." Their music will not change your life, but it will make you happy. 3
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