SuppliedLos Campesinos!
Sick Scenes
Wichita Recordings
https://www.loscampesinos.com/
Although Los Campesinos! latest album, Sick Scenes doesn’t sound exactly like the band I fell in love with, it shows they can take a detour without hitting a dead end.
Sick Scenes is the sixth full length album released by the group out of Wales, and their first full length since 2013’s No Blues. While the new record provides some of the same upbeat and lively music typically associated with the six-piece indie pop band, it’s often more grounded, and sometimes even more somber, than any other of their efforts.
My introduction to Los Campesinos! was on their album, Hold on Now, Youngster. It was a record compiled of joyous, fast-paced songs that established them firmly as high energy stars in the indie pop genre. Looking back on that record, very few tracks on Sick Scenes could fit into that debut sound. The band takes a slower approach with “Got Stendahl’s” and “The Fall of Home,” straying from the full out, high octane bubbliness they’re known for. While a lesser band would’ve made these songs feel out of place and character, Los Campesinos! injects enough high tempo moments — using beloved indie instruments like a keyboard and glockenspiel — in the right places to ensure they still capture the essence of a Los Campensinos! song. When these songs began I was bracing for everything to go off the road, but instead they became some of my favourite songs that have produced.
Despite the new direction on some songs, the album doesn’t completely forget its roots — there were still many points I found myself jamming out to way too hard on the bus. Album opener “Renato Dall’Alra (2008),” for example, put a smile on my face instantly; even though I knew I had to review the whole thing, this song instantly inspired me to listen through because I wanted to not because I had to. It seems that when you take a detour, a familiar sight you’d usually take for granted becomes that much more special.
Aside from the new feel of the music, I found myself surprised at how introspective Los Campesinos!’s lyrics have become. From lines like “Depression is a young man’s game,” to “Don’t be surprised if it’s leaving you” (in reference to a home town), the lyrics can pack an unexpected punch. I came here to have fun Los Campesinos!, not to feel things. Even though on earlier albums the lyrics still held depth, they were at least accompanied by feel good instrumentals — you could almost always push the dark critical thoughts out as you jammed out. But with Sick Scenes’ change of pace, and even more inward-looking lyrics, I found myself welcoming in the existential dread, not pushing it away. This layer of added depth had me (and my new friend, the aforementioned dread), listening closer during each play through.
In some ways, Sick Scenes continues what Los Campesinos! has always done best. But instead of treading down the same path completely, they chose to do things slightly different, and in this special case, different makes for a worthy addition to their discography.
