The Kaiser Chiefs first came to my attention some years ago when I saw their video for "Ruby", the lead single from their CD, Yours Truly, Angry Mob (Universal/Motown, 2007), on VH1. The video was delightfully clever and the song was one of the rare few that I loved on the very first hearing. I'd felt the same affinity for the Killers' first single, "Somebody Told Me", and I waited for the Kaiser Chiefs to blow up in a similar way.
I'm still waiting.
"Ruby" and the album it came from both went to 1 in the U.K. but caused barely a ripple stateside; Yours Truly, Angry Mob peaked at 45 on the Billboard Hot 200 Albums chart. So here I am, trying to start a rekindling of interest in the band with my itty bitty review. Who knows, it might start a whole grass-roots thing.
Since the band hasn't gotten the exposure they deserve, it's likely you haven't heard any of their stuff. Obviously, the internet can clear that problem up; I'm sure the clever video for "Ruby" is on YouTube, and you should be able to add this CD to your playlist on websites like Jango.com, Pandora, and YahooMusic.com, which is what I did to get more of a taste while I contemplated buying the CD (quite happy I did, thanks). Before you do any of that, though, you might just finish reading this review, so I'll try to do what a large number of music reviews fail to do: use the written word to effectively convey what the music sounds like.
Okay, first I'd categorize the style as British Alternative Rock. That tells you it's like Alt-Rock but the guys sing with an accent and use cool limey terms like "rubbish". The music ranges from the sheer exuberance of "Ruby" to the more contemplative "Love's Not a Competition (But I'm Winning)", and dips into a raucous, working-class sensibility on "Highroyds" and the title track. Besides the insanely catchy music (try listening to "Ruby" even once without singing along, possibly at the top of your lungs, to the anthemic and quickly-learned chorus), the lyrics are quite clever, as well. Here's a little social commentary on the crowd mentality from "Yours Truly, Angry Mob":
We are the angry mob
We read the papers every day
We like who we like, we hate who we hate
But we're also easily swayed
Okay, now back to the sound: Remember the music of the 80s that was not either Prince, the Dead Kennedys or composed almost entirely of synthesizer tracks? I'll give you a clue: The Alarm, The Church, Big Country. It was still rock music, with loud, happy guitars and singable, if not danceable, melodies. This is like that. As a matter of fact, the 'outer space' vibe underlying "Love's Not a Competition" owes much to the Church's "Under the Milky Way".
Those of you who are a bit young to have the 80s as a cultural touchstone can use as a comparison modern bands like The Bravery and, yes, the Killers, or possibly Maroon 5 in their less poppy moments. If you like any of these bands, you'll like The Kaiser Chiefs. So, don't let the UK keep this band all to themselves; Yours Truly, Angry Mob might become one of your favorite CDs. Now, don't you feel smart and European?
Image from Wikimedia Commons
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Kaiser_Chiefs#/media/File:Kaiser_Chiefs.jpg
No comments:
Post a Comment