Romance Is Boring

As a thesis statement for Los Campesinos!’s third album, “romance is boring” is, if not an outright lie, then at the very least a red herring. After all, lead singer and lyricist Gareth Campesinos! spends the album’s 45-plus minutes thoroughly debunking his own theory, and he does it with relish. However, that should’ve been obvious anyway. Gareth has never been one for brevity, and it’s a safe bet to say that he never will be.

Everyone has one of those friends. That guy who, after graduating from college, decides he is going to reinvent and/or “find” himself, then embarks on some kind of major soul-searching exodus (e.g. hiking the Appalachian Trail, backpacking through Europe, going to India, etc.). This guy then returns and is essentially the same as when he left. The only noticeable difference in his personality or general outlook on lif e, barring any major facial hair changes, is that he is now only interested in talking about just how different he is. He is not only incorrect, but incredibly annoying.