ROB ‘SPARKLY DEATHCAP’ CAMPESINOS! DISHES ON HEAT RASH, LETTERMAN, AND THE ART OF NOT SELLING OUT
Don’t let the name throw you: they are not a mariachi band, but rather a unique group of mild-mannered, moderately-tattooed, multi-instrumentalists, six years and four albums into a critically-acclaimed career that has produced some of the loudest, catchiest, jingliest indie pop in recent memory. The Cardiff-based septet recently took the stage – not once, but twice – this weekend, with openers Parenthetical Girls, at Lee’s Palace for a sweaty, ear-splitting showcase of new material, drawing heavily from their most recent LP, Hello Sadness.
Leading off with album opener “By Your Hand,” the crowd erupted into a frenzy of wails after what seemed like an eternity in the dark. Fueled by the wholehearted reception, front man Gareth Campesinos! (they all share the same “surname”), seemed taken aback, barking excitedly into the mic. As expected, the now-famous “You! Me! Dancing!” sent the room into hyper-drive, in a display that can only be described as fists with even more fists. Those opting not to partake in the sing-a-long, (or the accompanying calisthenics-like dance moves) merely bobbed their heads, knowingly. Wrapping up an invigorating set with “Hello Sadness” – and returning for encore “Sweet Dreams Sweet Cheeks”, the now overheated masses were sent spastically tumbling out into the frigid night air.
Prior to the evening’s raucous festivities, Rob “Sparky Deathcap” Campesinos!, talked to us about having the gnarliest nom de plume of all time (exclamation point included), as well as the future of one of pop’s most refreshing musical outfits.
Well first of all, “Los Campesinos!,” loosely translated in Spanish is “the peasants,” am I right?
Yeah, or “the countrymen.” It’s also the name of this obscure, Marxist revolutionary group from Venezuela [during The Peasant Uprising of 1846]. So we often find ourselves on the receiving end of Google Alerts, but under the wrong name. It doesn’t happen very often, but occasionally people, especially in the U.S., have tried to link our band with them, which tends to put some people off. (Laughs). I mean, we are fairly left wing.
And the band originally formed in Cardiff, but none of you are Welsh?
That’s right. The originals (Rob joined LC! in 2009). They were all in their first year [at Cardiff University]. Most of us still live in Cardiff, which is nice. We like that small environment.
You are a pretty multifaceted character. How many instruments do you play with LC!?
I play quite a lot of different instruments: keyboard, guitar, glockenspiel… on this tour, I’m playing mostly percussion and guitar with some vocal.
I watched you guys play [Late Show with David] Letterman this past Friday.
(Laughs) Oh, yeah?
Walk me through those final seconds after your set when Dave came over and called [lead singer] Gareth ‘condescending’.
(Laughs) He was really quite nice. I think Gareth had put some scarf or a t-shirt next to the drums. The Welton Rovers are the [football] team that he supports back in his hometown. So, Dave saw it and asked: ‘Is that football?’ And Gareth [in a cheeky nod to British – American translation] said ‘Soccer.’ But he was really cool. We didn’t actually meet him before the show, nor did we see him afterwards.
Really? I always envisioned this congenial backstage atmosphere, where the host would visit each dressing room with a basket of fruit. Or alternatively, these lush spaces with 300 thread count linens and fully stocked wet bars.
(Laughs) Oh no! I thought it would be more like that, too. Although there were framed photos of Dolly Parton everywhere! When we arrived, we found out that he would be filming two episodes back-to-back, so everything was quite hectic… quite strange. We had about one minute to get our gear onto the stage and then he says: ‘Ladies and gentlemen, Los Campesinos!’ It was a great experience, though. The people were really nice.
Tell me about how ‘You! Me! Dancing!’ ended up in those commercials for Budweiser.
It is, without a shadow of a doubt, our most instantly recognizable song and one that has the ultimate crossover appeal. This becomes evident whenever we play particularly obscure locations, and especially in European countries. For example, once during a festival set in Portugal, we weren’t really getting a great reception by the crowd, but as soon as we launched into “You! Me! Dancing!,” everybody went crazy. We found out later that “Y! M! D!” is featured in some chewing gum commercial over there. So in that sense, it’s really cool to have a signature song that everybody recognizes and goes wild for.
I remember reading an article from not too long ago with Gareth, who said that you haven’t seen a dime from Budweiser. Is that still the case?
Oh, definitely. I’m not even really sure what the financial arrangement will be when it happens. It’s a really interesting dynamic. I remember listening to this clip of Henry Rollins addressing the issue of bands selling out. He says something along the lines of ‘selling out is when you make the record you are told to and not the record you want to.’ We haven’t done anything like that. I do know that we still carry around a lot of debt. People aren’t stupid, you know? Most don’t really believe that these bands actually sign their lives away to “the man” for a quick buck. We don’t care. We all, in a childish sort of way, just love the idea that our song is in an advert. It’s cool.
Over the span of four albums, what would you say has changed the most, as a group?
I’ve only been in the band for the last two albums. I joined just as they were releasing Romance Is Boring, but even in that short span of time I think that we have begun to sit back and take notice of what it is we are actually doing, you know? Initially, I think there was the feeling that it might not last. Particularly in the U.K., there isn’t much longevity with bands, they get chewed up and spat out quite quickly, so I think there was definitely a feeling that we would just be doing it… really enjoying it while it lasts.
From a newcomer’s perspective, are you surprised that it has lasted?
Kind of. But we’ve got that kinship. I knew the guys before I joined. I have a solo, side-project [Sparky Deathcap] and I supported them on some earlier dates. But it is still surprising to be around. It’s a market that doesn’t really follow a conventional path. The music industry in Britain is so cutthroat, I think, because there are so few channels, so few chances for exposure. If you release a record, and it’s ripped apart by critics, and no one buys it, maybe you can survive one or the other, but either way it just makes it that much easier to quit.
Well you guys are certainly not short on critical appeal.
That’s nice of you to say. We’ve been really pleased with the response. It’s not something that we’d take for granted, either, because it’s always a risk. When you strive for excellence in any creative endeavor, you have to take risks. Musicians that don’t take risks are just… awful.
I know that you just released Hello Sadness last November, but is there anything new to expect from Los Campesinos! any time soon?
Well, we’ve got our fanzine Heat Rash which we all work on in our down time. It’s primarily about the making of the album, and it comes with a 7’’ single. It used to be available through subscription only, but now it can be bought from our website. The newest issue should be up in a while.
Finally, how excited are you to be back in Canada?
We love it. A few parts…or was it the whole thing? Anyway, I’d say the majority of the first record [Hold On Now, Youngster (2008)] was recorded in Canada… actually at David Newfeld’s [Broken Social Scene] house. He’s coming tonight! Our label, Arts & Crafts, is based here in Toronto, too. It’s just a great environment… a lot of great people. Owen Pallett showed up last night, which was really cool… it was the first time I’d met him. It’s always great to come back to Toronto.
