Photography by Jon Bergman

Los Campesinos! are fighting a war. And given that the Spanish word los campesinos translates loosely to “the peasants”, images of Franco and the Spanish Civil War can’t be far behind. But while this Welsh outfit is indeed in the midst of a revolution, the war is being waged between digital technologies and archaic modes of production. This is not to say Los Campesinos are Marxists, or even Luddites, but they do aspire to preserve something more precious: the materiality of musical culture.
     In just the last year, their song “You! Me! Dancing!” quickly turned from breakout single to an imperative mandate at hipster dance parties in lofts across the globe. Yet, less than eight months after releasing their debut Hold on Now, Youngster…, the band has already put out an ambitious second full-length, We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed, whose parameters extend far beyond mere music. Only 5,000 hard copies will be released, and there will be no singles. But the limited-edition boxes come with a DVD documentary and a fanzine featuring contributions from Xiu Xiu, Grandaddy, and Menomena.
     “With MP3s now so easy to obtain, there has to be an incentive to want the physical product,” laments frontman Gareth (who refuses to share his actual surname). “As a fan, that should be part of the excitement, and something that’s now missing with a lot of music.

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