The Kaiser Chiefs (named after a South-African football club) is a young English group from Leeds. They ride along on the retro-80’s-wave bandwagon, but manage to give their own twist to the current musical fashion. This time no influences from The Cure, The Smiths, New Order or Duran Duran; the group produces an infectious melting pot of Madness, The Clash, David Bowie, The Jam and even a royal dose of Blur – and everything played just a bit sharper and more direct.

Energetic and catchy rock songs (like ‘Everyday I Love You Less And Less’) are alternated on their debut ‘Employment’ with more restrained songs. It’s that variation which makes this a very strong album. The lyrics of singer Ricky Wilson treat subjects from daily life: ‘I Predict A Riot’ deals for instance with ending up at a medical post after a rough night out. So don’t expect very philosophical themes: the Kaiser Chiefs are having fun, which is clearly to be heard. On their website you can listen to some samples and watch the clip of ‘O My God’.

Author: Araglin. Published on: Thursday, July 28th, 2005.
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