As evidenced by both their music and exclamatory band name, the seven members of Cardiff, Wales’ Los Campesinos! are excitable boys and girls. The group’s third album, Romance Is Boring (Arts & Crafts), is an energetic, all-hands-on-deck dash through the pantheon of sharp indie pop and sloppy post-punk, gathering steam from Bright Eyes’ sense of emotional catharsis and Art Brut’s wry take on modern love. Try to gather all the influences brought to bear on Romance Is Boring by LC!’s seven-member army, however, and we’d be here all day. MAGNET spoke to songwriter Tom Campesinos! and guitarist Neil Campesinos!—all members (Tom, Neil, Ellen, Gareth, Harriet, Ollie and Kim) have taken the band’s surname—about the new album. Los Campesinos! will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our Q&A with them.
Harriet: A book lover’s paradise. Hay-on-Wye might be a bustling tourist trap with fancy clothes shops at every corner and a fair sprinkling of genteel cafes—and this may or may not be your idea of a good time—but to me, Hay-on-Wye is one of the only places that seems magical in that old childhood way. At New Year last year, we found ourselves drinking prosecco at 2 a.m. in a beautiful Georgian house, which belonged to an artistic taxidermy enthusiast. She had converted her home into a temporary bar for this special evening, and everywhere, deer’s antlers were festooned with fairylights and fresh flowers. It had its very own 15-foot Wicker Man garden, and yes, it would have been scary if everybody and everything there wasn’t so completely lovely. Video after the jump.
