Los Campesinos

We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed

[3/5]

When Los Campesinos! are on, they are one of the most exciting indie-pop bands in the world. Their clever songs are reminiscent of the Rentals and Pavement but replace the ambivalent attitude with youthful exuberance, complete with multiple keyboards, glockenspiels and violins. Unfortunately, We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed contains LC!’s first missteps. Coming only eight months since their near-perfect debut, Hold On Now, Youngster, the new Beautiful feels rushed. “Heart Swells/Pacific Daylight Time” feels like snippets of two very interesting songs that the band didn’t have the time to explore fully. When they focus (as on “Ways To Make It Through The Wall” and the title track), the songs explode with more energy than the whole underground combined. This makes it very hard not to love Los Campesinos!, and makes it easier to forgive the fact that this record could have been better served as an EP. (ARTS&CRAFTS) Luke Jaxon