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.
Tom: Pro Evolution Soccer just takes up too much of my time for me not to mention it. I know the FIFA vs. Pro Evo debate rages on (well, in some circles), but there’s not really space here to convince you all why FIFA‘s poo. Anyway, I digress … This particular mode in the game (I think it’s called “Be A Pro” in FIFA) is the ultimate in egotistic escapism. You pick a position, then craft a little pixelated 17-year-old version of yourself (obviously, he somehow ends up being a chiseled-jawed hunk) and control this one individual through his career to retirement. It’s way harder than the standard mode and places emphasis on things like timing runs and relying on your CGI teammates to pick you out. You start off like a gammy-legged Jason Lee, but because it’s so tough, every goal and every near miss is so much more exciting. Besides, you soon improve, and before long, you’re getting to frolic in the Barcelona changing rooms playing “hide the soap” with a CGI Zlatan Ibrahimović. By the way, I am aware that phrases like “relying on your CGI teammates” would suggest I lead a rather lonely existence, but … actually, I have no defense. I do have a girlfriend, though. Honest. Not a CGI one, either. Video after the jump.
