9: Los Campesinos! - We Throw Parties, You Throw Knives

It was the pace with which I fell in love which startled me the most. I'd never heard of Los Campesinos! before the final week of May 2007, let alone heard any of their songs. Within a month, I'd seen them play two live shows - one at the Scala in London, and the other in a torrential downpour at Glastonbury. They were on the brand new Park Stage at the Somerset festival, and it was a testament to my burgeoning admiration for them that I was willing to drag myself out of my sleeping bag at Way-Too-Early o'clock to stand in a thunderstorm and watch their set.

'You! Me! Dancing' came first... on the radio initially, and then in a club on a balmy late-May evening. That was like the first date, whereas 'We Throw Parties, You Throw Knives' felt more like the engagement. As soon as I heard it, I knew we were meant to be together. I mean, what's not to like about Gareth's opening line? "When you play 'Pass the Parcel' with human body parts, somebody might get head but someone will get hurt". It was love at first... listen.

And then Alexsandra's sweet sweet chorus, playful and charming and witty and everything I was looking for from an indie band. As an introduction to the prolific* seven-piece (often referred to as Welsh, even though none of the band actually hails from the country where they met at university), 'We Throw Parties...' was perfect. It even goes to the trouble of describing their fancy dress outfits of choice - "Team Campesinos trick-or-treating on the driveway in the middle of August, one of us dressed as a zombie, one of us dressed as a pirate, one of us dressed as a ninja, four of us dressed as schoolgirls". LC are fun, both on record and in the live setting, and music is meant to be enjoyed.

*Third album, 'Romance Is Boring' is released next week, less than 2 years after their debut.