Eight albums later Kaiser Chiefs take it easy with chic style
“We decided to make the easiest album we’ve ever made. ... after eight albums it should be easy. You shouldn’t have to struggle to make something good” - Ricky Wilson
Eight albums in two decades. Not a bad average for an act with a 20-year career, but not exactly prolific either.
This of course may be partly down to the band’s extracurricular activities. “When we started, barely a week went by without a TV or radio opportunity,” Ricky Wilson explains. “We were on TV every Saturday morning!” It’s – particularly the busy frontman whose stints as judge on The Voice and as a radio DJ have kept the band as visible as possible. Equally, the years have given the five-piece Kaisers a togetherness that has survived all sorts of ups and downs. As Wilson puts it: “The most rock ’n’ roll thing we’ve ever done is to stay together. I wouldn’t rather be in any other band.”
This is the backdrop for Kaiser Chiefs’ Easy Eighth Album – so titled because it was a joy to make.
“I’ve always been fascinated by bands who were allowed to get to their eighth album and then really hit their stride, like Pink Floyd or REM. We decided to make the easiest album we’ve ever made .... after eight albums it should be easy. You shouldn’t have to struggle to make something good.”
Created with the help of former Rudimental vocalist/ musician Amir Amor and Chic legend Nile Rodgers, the album draws from a mix of their classic indie/rock staples and the Eighties pop they grew up with.
Opener Feeling Alright sets the tone in huge, swaggering funky style. The band’s basic process – jamming together until landing on something “that makes you smile” – has been unchanged since the beginning, and this epic dance track is a fine example.
“Nile asked ‘Have you got anything?’” the singer explains. “I panicked and played him the jam, he said ‘It’s great.’ I came up with some lyrics in 18 hours and two days later we had the finished track.”
Appropriately, the band’s many years together play a big part in the album’s finale, The Lads, an epic anthem about male friendship in childhood and within the band. We’ve been together a long time and we’ve been through a lot of stuff,” Wilson concludes. “People see the ups – the ups are great. The downs… you go through those together, not in public.
“I always think you should finish a record with a song that you wouldn’t be frightened of being the last song on your last ever record.” He pauses, before adding, “not that is going to be our last record!” Perish the thought. Roll on the even easier ninth.