We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed

We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed
Studio album by Los Campesinos!
Released 27 October 2008 (UK)
25 November 2008 (US, CAN)
Recorded June 12–23, 2008
Avast Recording Co, Seattle, WA
Electrokitty, Seattle, WA
Stars and Sons, Toronto, ON
Genre Indie rock, indie pop, noise pop
Length 32:10
Label Wichita, Arts & Crafts
Producer John Goodmanson
Los Campesinos! chronology

Hold on Now, Youngster...
(2008)
We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed
(2008)
Romance Is Boring
(2010)
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic link
A.V. Club A link
Drowned in Sound 7/10 link
Entertainment Weekly A link
NME link
Pitchfork Media 8.3/10 link
Robert Christgau B+ link
Rolling Stone link
Spin link
Tiny Mix Tapes link

We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed is the second full-length record from Cardiff-based seven-piece Los Campesinos!. It was released in the UK on 27 October 2008 on Wichita Recordings. The band does not consider We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed to be their second album, instead considering it a mini-album or an "EEP" (Extended EP).[1] It came only thirty-three weeks after debut album Hold on Now, Youngster... and contains ten completely new tracks, none of which were released as singles.[2][3] The album was recorded over an eleven-day recording session with John Goodmanson in his Seattle studio during June 2008.[4][5]

The song "Miserabilia" was named the 94th best song of 2008 by Rolling Stone.[6]

Packaging

The CD version was released with an accompanying DVD featuring a short documentary of the band during their 2008 tour. The CD release also contains a 32-page booklet which, in addition to liner notes and lyrics, also includes drawings and poems from Jason Lytle of Grandaddy, Jamie Stewart of Xiu Xiu, Zac Pennington of Parenthetical Girls, Brent Knopf of Menomena and Ramona Falls, and Paul Heaton of The Housemartins and The Beautiful South, among others.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Gareth and Tom Campesinos!, except where noted. 

No. Title Length
1. "Ways to Make It Through the Wall"   4:12
2. "Miserabilia"   3:15
3. "We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed"   3:54
4. "Between an Erupting Earth and an Exploding Sky"   1:16
5. "You'll Need Those Fingers for Crossing"   5:09
6. "It's Never That Easy Though, Is It? (Song for the Other Kurt)"   2:21
7. "The End of the Asterisk"   1:52
8. "Documented Minor Emotional Breakdown #1"   4:27
9. "Heart Swells/Pacific Daylight Time" (Tom, Neil, and Gareth Campesinos!, Zac Pennington) 2:37
10. "All Your Kayfabe Friends"   3:15

Release history

Date Country Label (Cat#)
October 27, 2008 United Kingdom Wichita Recordings (WEBB187)
November 25, 2008 United States/Canada Arts & Crafts (A&C037)

Reception

Initial critical response was very positive. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album was met with universal acclaim receiving an average score of 82, based on 22 reviews. [7]

Charts

Charts (2008) Peak
position
US Top Heatseekers 43[8]

Personnel

References