You! Me! Dancing!

So Los Campesinos! appear to have done a Hear'Say (I never thought I'd say that!) and announced that their second album ('We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed') will follow their first by a mere matter of months. It's come as a bit of a surprise to me that they've got a new record ready so fast, but it's welcome news. (Especially given that my copy of their debut 'Hold on Now, Youngster' is going to wear out before too long.)

I was super-excited about this but also a touch nervous. How the fuck could they better the first one? Of all the albums I've bought in the last year, I come back to HON,Y far more than any other. I've always been a sucker for well-executed pop music, but when the lyrics are as sharp as this, then I'm clearly going to be totally snared. I mean, come on, how can anyone top,

'I'm not Bonnie Tyler, I'm not Toni Braxton, and this song is not gonna save your relationship. Oh no...Shit!'

I love that they pay little heed to the frankly trivial matter of making words fit within the boundaries of the music (thanks, Mr Malkmus!) On top of that, their titles are catchier than some bands' songs (thanks, Mr Morrissey!). Case in point: 'This is How You Spell, Hahaha, We Destroyed the Hopes and Dreams of a Generation of Faux-Romantics'.

There've been one or two grumblings in the past about the vocals (Gareth's voice might grate on a less friendly ear than mine, and Aleksandra's voice, while pretty, isn't strong). The lo-fi production has been accused of making the guitars sound a little anaemic, but these are positives to me. It's a messy record, which you might expect from a band who namecheck Pavement, but it suits. I love the Blood Red Shoes album, but that's perhaps a bit more polished than it should be, and it suffers slightly for it. Hold On Now, Youngster is nice reminder that brilliant pop can still sound slack.

It's difficult to know whether we'll be looking back on this in years to come as their best piece of work, or whether Los Campesinos! can go on to bigger and better things, but I'm pretty hopeful for the new one.

I've listened to it twice now, and the early signs are that they haven't simply taken the easy way out by trying to rehash their first album. Going back to Gareth's voice, it sounds a bit less snotty, and there's one or two welcome bits of experimentation on the album (see 'Heartswells / Pacific Daylight Time', which reminds me a bit of Broken Social Scene).

The positive elements of the first record are, thankfully, all still there. Given the short space of time since HON,Y, it's not surprising, but it still sounds reassuringly like Los Campesinos! particularly with the lovely use of violins.

The lyrics are still their major strength, and I think my favourite so far comes from 'It's Never That Easy, Though, is it? (Song For the Other Kurt)',

'I walked into the room to see my ex-girlfriend - who by the way I'm still in love with - sucking the face of some pretty boy, with my favourite band's most popular song in the background. Is it wrong that I can't decide which bothers me most?'

Ultimately, I think the main reason I love Los Campesinos! as much as I do is that they are a band who are obsessed with bands. The indie snob in me likes nothing better than to play spot-the-reference. Mix that with the headrush of guitars and it's a total winner.

Anyway, here's a sample of LC! old and new:

Sweet Dreams Sweet Cheeks (From 'Hold On Now, Youngster')

Miserabilia (Opening track to 'We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed')