Silly Los Campesinos!, romance is anything but

One of the most anticipated releases of the year, Romance is Boring Los Campesinos! is streaming in its entirety on the band's MySpace page. (Wow, MySpace is actually good for something!) Listen HERE.

It's probably worth noting it features what is likely to be my most quoted lyric of of the year "I think we need more post-coital and less post-rock". Bloody brilliant, right? But here's the catch: I'm not telling you which song its from, so you'll just have to listen all the way through to find it.

The Sea is a Good Place to Think of the Future - Los Campesinos!

Shameless Plug Alert

Attention all New York-based Volume Knob readers. Looking for an awesome way to spend your Wednesday night? Come out to Housing Works, that wonderful bookstore that helps to prevent homelessness and AIDS for a night of stories, songs, heartache and hilarity - all a part of the Cassette From My Ex book launch party. What is CFME you ask? Well, it's this super new book featuring 60 essays from writers and artists such as Rick Moody and Rob Sheffield about mixtapes from past loves, including one by yours truly. Plus that girl from the Magnetic Fields will be there! Less excitedly so will I! Please come out and support this little blogger. The fun starts at 7 on October 28.

Cassette From My Ex Book Launch and Mixtape Variety Show
Celebrating the release of Cassette From My Ex: Stories and Soundtracks of Lost Loves, editor Jason Bitner presents along with contributors Claudia Gonson (The Magnetic Fields), Joe Levy (Maxim Magazine), and Michael Hearst (One Ring Zero). Our expert panel will shed light on the power of mixtapes and share their own tales of tapes given and received, crushes turned to heartaches. And special bonus! Illustrator Arthur Jones presents his hilarious loss-of-virginity tale as a Post-It Note Story.



It Started With a Mixx - Los Campesinos!

Los Campesinos! @ Webster Hall, NY 8/4/09

Anyone remotely on the fence about seeing Los Campesinos! live should go, just go. You will sing! You will dance! You will become an accelerated reader! You will get drenched in sweat (both your own and other peoples) as you learn that mosh pits and glockenspiel are not mutually exclusive!

And as if you needed further incentive to see the Welsh septet, you might even end up sneaking into a park and making out with a fellow concert-going stranger following the show in your state of post-concert euphoria (just ask my friend about that part, true story).

Another true story: we met a guy who made it to the band's semi-secret show at Union Hall the day before. He ran into band member Tom Campesinos! in the bathroom, said hi and struck up a conversation. Tom also checked one of the stalls to see if it was occupied for him. That totally beats the time I ran into Sarah Vowell in the bathroom and was all gawky and awkward (gawkward?). Anyways, what a guy! What a band!

Also this is your last chance to catch Aleks (the female vocalist/keyboard player) on tour with the band, as she's leaving to back to school.

And hey they played a new song!

Plus a classic:
Ways to Make it Through the Wall - Los Campesinos!

Plus an INSANE mash-up, courtesy The Hood Internet:
The Year This Club Broke (My Heart) - Usher (ft. Young Jeezy) vs. Los Campesinos

Let the exclamation points abound!!!!

We're seeing Los Campesinos! tomorrow. We don't think you need reminding as to how awesome they are, but in case you do....


You! Me! Dancing! - Los Campesinos!

Top Albums of 2008, #15-26

Apologies this is coming in so late. Blame the weather.

Last year sucked. Thankfully, the music didn't. Our picks were all over the map for the most part, but are winners are clear. Here's what we liked, graded with a weighted system of points. We're breaking our picks into two posts. This post is the second half of our list. the top half will be posted later.

Album names are buy links. Please support the artists you like by purchasing their music. We do!

Silver Jews - Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea
By the most casual and freewheeling of the all the Jews’ albums, Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea still retains David Berman’s trademark caustic witticisms. He’s just a little more relaxed this time around.
Suffering Jukebox.mp3

Coldplay - Viva La Vida
"This is just simply amazing pop, everything you ever loved about Coldplay, but with the trademark Brian Eno twist. There are dancing strings, powerful vocals and a piano line that keeps building and building." - Cameron Adams
Strawberry Swing.m4a

Rook – Shearwater
A gothic yet baroque tapestry woven together with an eclectic array of horns, woodwinds, and dulcimer, not to mention Jonathon Meiburg’s sexy vocal prowess.

Rooks.mp3

Dr. Dog – Fate
"Strict modernists may chafe at the band's unapologetically backward-glancing aesthetic, but the rest should happily succumb to the shaggy charm of Fate's easy-like-Sunday-morning ramblings." - Leah Grenblatt
The Rabbit, The Bat, and The Reindeer.mp3

Flight of the Conchords (s/t)
Leggy Blonde.m4a

Human Highway - Moody Motorcycle
"Opening with a swatch of lo-fi backwoods guitar, the duo merely jests with the antiquated before smoothing everything over with a sheen of crisp production. A spring in its step, “The Sound” bops along, oblivious to the lack of substance in its lyric." - Josh Constine
The Sound.mp3

Death Cab for Cutie- Narrow Stairs
"While Narrow Stairs may scale down the melody-assaults of previous efforts, with their fresh groove and whiff of rebellion, Death Cab announce themselves as genuine rock stars." -The Guardian (UK)
Your New Twin-Sized Bed.m4a

Los Campesinos! -Hold on Now, Youngster...
A cheeky British romp that’s equal parts snark and sincerity, it’s a whirlwind of rocking, glockenspiel, pun-laden fun.
You! Me! Dancing!.mp3

Conor Oberst (s/t)
"It's no surprise that Oberst is able to pull off this style exceptionally well, but what impresses most about the record is how its relaxed vibe--the album was recorded with the specially assembled Mystic Valley Band in just two months at a private house in Mexico--carries over into Oberst's songwriting." --Jonathan Keefe
Cape Canaveral.mp3

Jukebox the Ghost - Let Live & Let Ghosts

"Sounds like a sort of amped-up Ben Folds record, with bouncier piano and more liberal doses of electric jubilation. Serving as an excellent introduction to an incredibly fun new group, this debut rekindles the joy of sing-along pop without sounding dorky or forced." - Jordan Richardson
Under My Skin.m4a

Department of Eagles - In Ear Park
I didn’t even know Dan Rossen was in another band besides Grizzly Bear. But apparently he is and apparently his side project is nearly as good. In Ear Park abounds with enough eerie harmonies and codeine-coated melodies to keep you satisfied well until the follow-up to Yellow House is released.
No One Does It Like You.mp3

The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
"Stay Positive is a true testament that good music will always prevail. One can only hope that a band like this will continue to make music for years and years to come because we desperately need it." - Adequacy
Sequestered In Memphis.mp3

Julie's Top Songs of 2008 (part the first)

1. My Year in Lists - Los Campesinos!

I listened to this song for about four months solid this year. I retitled my personal blog after it. I watched the video nearly obsessively. This was undoubtedly the song of the year for me. The hook, the twee, the nostalgia, it was unstoppable. Thanks, Danny.

2. Murder in the City - The Avett Brothers

I have been extremely remiss in not writing about the Avett Brothers show we saw earlier this year in Gainesville, Florida.



Thanks to a tip from my old pal Curtis, I had already started listening to Emotionalism pretty obsessively as early as February of this year, but their studio work left me completely unprepared for the live show. Raucous bluegrass hoedown, indeed. Although this year's release, The Second Gleam, left me a little bit cold, this particular track is just so sweet and family-oriented, it melts me every time.



3. Fools - The Dodo's



This is another twitchy genre mash-up that I found completely impossible not to listen to over and over again earlier this year. They may be sweaty, but they sure can put together four-plus minutes of music.

4. Bleeding All Over You - Martha Wainwright

The song doesn't start until about three and a half minutes into the clip, but it's worth it. Something about her music is so classic and timeless, a little Rickie Lee, a little Neko Case, a little twang, and a lot of bitter cynical melancholy. And we all need that sometimes, right?



5. Here's the Thing - Girl Talk

In the interest of ending this on an upbeat note (with a positive jam), and because it is so damned well-deserved, a little slice of genius from the brilliant minds at the Case Western Reserve University bioengineering department:

Top 26 Songs of 2008 (Jess Edition, Part 2)

Read Part 1 here

13. In the New Year – The Walkmen
Hamilton's snarl is so damn sexy and menacing. The way he sings “I know it’s true –it’s gonna be a good year” is like a threat. Year, you better be good or I’ll choke you with my bare hands. Meanwhile the shambolic guitars teeter as if on the brink of cautious optimism.

12. Sleepyhead – Passion Pit
Incredibly disorienting on the first listen, but upon closer examination this total mindfuck of electro-pop reveals layers upon layers of hooks. In my utopian world, this is what the future sounds like, or at least it should.

11. Lovecraft in Brooklyn – the Mountain Goats
John Darnielle finally gets his metal on--albeit in a highly literary, detailed narrative of paranoia in the city. Novelistic imagery of switchblades and brains in mason jars abound to genuinely frightening affect. The nearly meta-lyrics ring true: like John, we too are “like genuinely afraid.”

10. 5 Years Time – Noah and the Whale
The whistling intro, the clap-along melody, the Wes Anderson homage video – no doubt about it, this song is what it says: Love, Love Love.

9. Oh My God – Ida Maria
The Norwegian fireball defies you to “find a cure for her life” with raging grrrl power riffs and a smidge of vulnerability. Let us know if you.

8. Little Bit – Lykke Li
Sometimes the most minimal arrangements are the most effective. The sparse cyclical percussion, the whimpering puppy dog vocals that only a Swede can utter, plus those gutsy lyrics about “keeping your legs apart to forget about your tainted heart” all synergistically culminate in an anthemic confessional for the ages.

7. My Year in Lists – Los Campesinos!
Britain's cheekiest youngsters possess the wit or Art Brut and the twee-ness of Architecture in Helsinki and in under two minutes create one of the catchiest, cleverist melodies of the year.

6. Lights and Music – Cut Copy
This song is like a prism that shines rainbows on the dancefloor. It’s a technicolor wonderland of dance-y 80's goodness. How did New Order not record this song?

5. Light of Love – Music Go Music
Abba is reincarnated as a Californian indie-pop band, and sound a whole lot better this time around. The sugary chorus soars with this weird thing called optimism.

4. L.E.S. Artistes – Santogold
Pure empowerment from an electro-new-wave-hip-hop goddess. It’s the very definition of fierce.

3. Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? – She & Him
Old-timey adorableness with a contemporary snap. Makes me wanna hike up my skirt and bat my eyelashes, though somehow I doubt I could beat Zooey in the coy, come-hither department

2. Blind – Hercules & Love Affair ft. Antony Hegarty
Very few songs move me. Even fewer songs get me to move. It is an extremely rare thing when a song accomplishes both. Antony’s operatic vocals humanize the icy synths and bleating horns into six full minutes of pulsating pathos.

1. Lost Coatlines – Okkervil River
This is everything I believed this band could be. With a delicious “Lust for Life” baseline, a lingering coda of “la, la, las”, not one, but two of the sexiest male voices in existence, this is a smart, sad wallop of a song. It won over my heart, my mind and my toe-tapping feet and is best heard in darkness alone.

Best "!" Songs of the Year!

Ok, so allow me a little bit of shameless self-promotion here. I've got an itty-bitty article in the this month's Paste magazine (it's on page 37 in the December/January issue with She & Him on the cover for those you keeping score). Anyways I basically noticed that an awful lot of songs this year featured exclamation points! So I wrote about them! And here they!

“You! Me! Dancing!” – Los Campesinos!
With its coy boy-girl vocals and meandering instrumental intro, this twee tune by Britain’s cheekiest youngsters possesses all the awkward charm of a middle school dance, but with a lot more glockenspiel.
Why the !: The dancing continues for nearly seven minutes!

“Lost!” – Coldplay
It’s an anthem with pounding percussion, droning organs and relentless riffs—the sound of four blokes striving to be the biggest band in the world.
Why the !: Brian Eno’s immaculate production!

“Be Mine!” - Robyn
The Swedish pop tart blows an electro-pop kiss-off that’s both sassy and sad.
Why the !: You’ll never be Robyn’s lover. Really, you never will!

“Souled Out!!!” – Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band
Omaha’s favorite son yelps pun-laden social commentary.
Why the !: Bye bye to the Bright Eyes moniker!

“Dig, Lazurus, Dig!!!” – Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
A twisted 21st-century reinterpretation of the biblical story of Lazurus, sung with a snarl and a swagger.
Why the !: He's still the ultimate bad-ass!

Best albums for first half of 2008

In no particular order, a brief rundown at what's pulled at our heartstrings so far this year. Please click on the artist's name to buy these albums. We repeat: Buy! Buy! Buy!

the Mountain Goats - Heretic Pride: Superchunk's Jon Wurster is a welcome addition to the band.
San Bernadino.mp3


Frightened Rabbit - The Midnight Organ Fight: Driving, earnest songs that belie the band's meek moniker.
Keep Yourself Warm.mp3


Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago: These delicate little songs have gently led me through many dark places this year.
Skinny Love.mp3


Islands - Arm's Way: Epic from start to finish. The strings are incredible!
Creeper.mp3


The Raconteurs - Consolers of the Lonely: An extremely cohesive album. A sweltering album that, in my opinion, surpasses the bands debut.
Salute Your Solution.mp3


Death Cab For Cutie - Narrow Stairs: A shift in sound for the band. I've heard a lot of bad things about this album, but I'm really enjoying it.
I Will Posses Your Heart.m4a


Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours: Dance, Dance, Dance like you're at an 80's prom, except with way hipper music!
Unforgettable Season.mp3


Silver Jews - Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea: David Berman's wit and rasp at its best.
Candy Jail.m4a


She & Him - Volume 1: The pinnacle of adorableness, plus M. Ward's immaculate, sepia-tinged production.
Black Hole.m4a


Los Campesinos! - Hold On Now, Youngster...: Britain's cheekiest youngsters rock...with glockenspiel of course.
This Is How You Spell, "HAHAHA, We Destroyed the Hopes and Dreams of a Generation of Faux-Romantics".m4a


Vampire Weekend: Unironic pure joy, with a summertime-lounge-y feel.
Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa.mp3


Flight of the Conchords: Silliness without sappiness, spanning different genres.
Mutha'uckas.m4a


Sigur Rós - Með Suð í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust: Faux-languaged Icelandic group pulls together a sharp, fun, poppy record.
Inní Mér Syngur Vitleysingur.mp3

Best. Song. Title. Ever.

I think Los Campesinos! just put Sufjan's entire "Illinois" track lisiting to shame with this awesomely ridiculous song title:

Los Campesinos! - This is How You Spell "HAHAHA, We Destroyed the Dreams of a Generation of Faux-Romantics".m4a

P.S. - Los Campesinos! debut full length album "Hold On Now Youngster..." was finally released in the US this week. Can I just remind you how much I really, really love this band?

"It's you! It's me! It's dancing!"

So last Friday I was feeling like crap. So I did what I normally do when I feel like crap -buy a random album by a band I know little about in hopes that they will lift my spirits just a tad. It turned out Los Campesinos! debut EP Sticking Fingers Into Sockets was more than up for the job. From the very first track "We Throw Parties, You Throw Knives" I knew these guys were something special.

The British seven-piece led by Gareth Campesinos! makes it ok for you to like bands with gratuitous exclamation points in their name again. Seriously, with track titles like "Don't Tell Me to Do the Math(s)" and "You! Me! Dancing!" these guys have a thing for excessive punctuation. They also have a thing for glockenspiel and uber-clever lyrics. I hate making up weird genre-hybrid terms, but for the sake of describing them I'm gonna go with the somewhat cringeworthy modifer "twee-punk". They sound something like a more frenzied Architecture in Helsinki crossed with a less-abrasive version of Art Brut, with a dash of the Unicorns thrown in for good measure.

While the entire output of their career only spans 16 minutes, it might just be the most joyous 16 minutes I've heard all year. Listen for yourself.

Don't Tell Me to Do the Math(s) - Los Campesinos!
You! Me! Dancing! - Los Campesino!

And here they are leading the International Tweexcore Underground (their words, not mine):