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Los Campesinos! Got Your Back: Hill Walking

LosCamplogoAs 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.

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Ollie: I’ve always liked the outdoors. Growing up in the country means that I went on a lot of walks. I enjoy getting out into the countryside, climbing some hills and just admiring the view. Though Britain is a small country, you can be on your own within 30 minutes of leaving a big city. You can spend a whole day walking and not see anyone. My girlfriend lives in Scotland, so I’m getting to see even more parts of the country. Recently we went to Kinlochleven and went ice climbing. We drove up through Glen Coe, which was covered in snow. It was so beautiful. With the band, I’ve visited more exotic places, but there is nothing quite like the countryside of the U.K. Video after the jump.