Just a quick glance at the artwork is enough to suggest that ‘West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum’, the third offering from Kasabian, is not going to be an album that pulls any punches, and so it proves.
Kasabian have never been a band intent on lurking in the shadows. From the flag waving campaigns of their early gigs, to the bombastic promotional video for ‘Empire’, (who’s main message seemed to be going to war armed only with guitars is bound to end in tears), Kasabian have always been a hugely ambitious band, so it’s not a surprise to see them, five years on from their debut, delivering an album striving for attention and further notoriety.
Recent single ‘Fire‘, complete with another ambitious video, this time with bullet-spewing guitars (ah, we could’ve done with that kind of thinking on ‘Empire‘), improves with every listen, while album opener ‘Underdog’ is the perfect introduction to the record, a memorable, bass-heavy groove. ‘Fast Fuse’ is not only an album highlight, but one of the highlights of their career to date. ‘Vlad The Impaler’, with it’s “Get loose/get loose” chant, seems set to rival ‘Club Foot’ as their biggest live rabble-rouser.
When the album veers into more classic rock, on tracks such as ‘Ladies and Gentleman (Roll The Dice)’ and ‘Happiness’, quality is maintained and ‘Thick as Thieves’ with it’s nod to mid-60s era Beatles and Pink Floyd adds another layer to an album bursting with ideas. The production, itself an album highlight, does well to keep an album full of variation feeling cohesive, thanks to the undoubted talents of Dan The Automator.
However, the album is not without it’s faults. Some tracks, such as ‘Take Aim’ and ‘West Ryder/Silver Bullet’ don’t feel fully realised, while ‘Swarfiga’ is an indulgence too far.
It remains to be seen whether this release will deliver the stadium-sized gigs they seem so ready for, what is sure is that while other more lauded contemporaries have been happy to tread water, Kasabian have remained true to their early ambitions and in doing so have produced one of the year’s essential rock records.
(Dave Smith)
