Photo By Grave deVilleWhen I heard their ‘Sticking Fingers Into Sockets EP’ last year I was under the impression that Los Campesinos! were a band of ritalin junkies trying to eat their body weight in red vines or Mars bars, so I expected a translation to a proper LP to be difficult considering the sugary rush of their music. Still, from ‘Hold On Now, Youngster’ it seems like they’ve made a pretty seamless transition without compromising on any of their earlier strengths. With the chaotic collision of the lead guitars, keyboards and violin, Los Campesinos! continue to churn out catchy indie pop masterpieces in rapid succession and have even tightened up the slightly weak vocals from the EP to take advantage of the combination of sweet girl group vocals with Gareth Campesinos!’s cocky indie rock vocals weaving together into some amazing harmonies.
Still there are some slightly clumsy moments like ‘…And We Exhale…’ which in some ways crosses the line from hyperactive brilliance to sloppy with its spastic makeshift orchestra at the beginning. Overall though, the lyrics are as brilliant as ever on every track, and along with the killer pop hooks and punk rock attitude ‘Hold On Now, Youngster’ bursts with the irresistible quirkiness and charm that’ll get you dancing straight away and stick in your head for the next month.
Ollie Khakwani
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