Los Campesinos! - We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed (Album)

Wichita Recordings

Having released debut album 'Hold On Now Youngster...' merely 8 months ago this is an unexpected release, though as the band themselves have put it this is no second album not to them anyway but we must all treat it as such because though there is the same spiky way with a tune underneath is a dark undercurrent. Now was this always going to be the case or has the last 8 months had a profound effect on this young bunch from Cardiff.

To emphasise my point there is a group singalong in the title track that recalls the Arcade Fire though seemingly uplifting the lyric goes 'we kid ourselves there's future in the fucking, but there is no fucking future' now this from a band that is still predominantly in the twilight of their teenage years where they still have plenty of a future. Gone are the songs about dancing and the joys of sexual awakenings with the replacement being songs of relationship struggles, teenage jealousy, and generally a feeling that whatever lyricist and chief vocalist Gareth Campesinos! has gone through lately it's been painful and all the joyful tunes and xylophone plinking can't hide it.

Which provides a striking contrast for this album as the music is great it's full of great little moments of hope and smiles and Aleks Campesinos! is the friendly female whispering in your ear that everything will be ok after Gareth has blurted out 'I think it's fair to say that i chose hopelessness' it's like a see-saw of emotions that can't quite manage to tip fully onto either end. But it's all something that we can identify with who won't recognise 'i'm calling you again on your telephone, but all i get is another stupid ringtone' as something that has occured at some-poiint in their lives.

It's not all doom and gloom though with heartfelt slow pluck of 'Heart Swells/Pacific Daylight Time' gently breezing in to calm down the frantic that accompanies most of Los Campesinos! music, it's a rare moment from both their albums where they have slowed down to a crawl to take things in a little more instead of the blur of 100 mile-an-hour music.

'We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed' is an improvement on their previous effort and at this pace who knows what we will get in another 8 months time from Los Campesions! can they keep it up and if so will we be prepared for it? Well i for one look forward to whatever is going to be thrown at me by this band because so far it's all been a joy to behold and i just can't get enough xylophone in my life!