It seems like it happens every year. Some hot new band is declared the "next big thing" in England and immediately the band receives a US record deal. Think of if over the years: Oasis, Supergrass, Starsailor, Blur, Radiohead, Doves, Travis, Gomez, Franz Ferdinand, Coldplay, Keane (Just to name a few). Sure, not all of these bands became the cat's meow here in the states but they all had their time in the sun. Up next is an interesting set of lads from Leeds. The Kaiser Chiefs. Musically they're not that much different than Franz Ferdinand and I suspect they'll have the kind of impact on American radio that FF had in '04: IE a big impact.
And for some reason, while I enjoyed Franz Ferdinand's CD, it wasn't as great as I expected it to be. "Employment" by the Kaiser Chiefs is much different in that regard. Comprised of vocalist Ricky Wilson, guitarist Andrew White, bassist Simon Rix, keyboardist Nick Baines, and drummer Nick Hodgson, The 'Chiefs' sound reminds me of those great 80s new wave records my sister used to play: some Tears For Fears here someXTC there mixed in with some Depeche Mode for good measure. While artists like the Killers, The Futureheads and Interpol have a similar sound the Kaiser Chiefs have the best of all of these bands mixed into an infectious upbeat persona (like the infectious and "originally titled" "Na Na Na Na Naa") that can also can slow it down for the occasional moment (like "You Can Have It All").
Leading off the record is the humorous "Everyday I Love You Less And Less which features vignettes like everyday I love you less and less, it's clear to see that you've become obsessed, I've got to get this message to the press, that everyday I love you less and less. While it seems like the Chiefs rhyme for the same of rhyming, they really do have something going here. They create songs with "juvenile" humor that begs us not to slap them for it but to thank them. First single "I Predict A Riot" is so frickin' catchy that one can't help but thank these boys for coming onto the scene. Their stated goal?: To create a "classic" record. Originally the bands first (self) release in the UK, "Oh My God" uses the classic new-wave synth and guitar sounds wrapped up in a melody that never quits. "oh my god I can't believe I've never been this far away from home" is the chorus and it breaks up the pretty rhythmic verses. I have a feeling this one'll be a big hit here in the states too. Born To Be A Dancer starts off like it's a sister track to "She's Like The Wind" but thankfully takes a turn towards Tears For Fears with a killer mixture of melody and lyric. "Time Honoured Tradition" is a humorous song written about food? Yeah, it's written about food and all the other goodies of life and how no matter what you do to your body, the time honored tradition is dying. "Team Mate" is an interesting study of relationships and how we give up friendships for the "love of or life;" thus becoming "team mates."
Almost as interesting as the songs is the artistic album artwork and liner notes. The lyrics are there for good measure as are humorous nuggets of info about the band. "Employment" is the first band from this group of upstarts yet it sounds like the work of longtime pros. While it'll remain to be seen if the Kaiser Chiefs can be on par with their fellow "hype groups" from the UK, I have the feeling they'll be sticking around for a while. This is one crazy good album.
