Bloc Party frontman Kele Okereke has admitted to being ‘envious’ of the Kaiser Chiefs when the two bands were at the forefront of a resurgence in commercial success for British guitar acts back in 2005.
Okereke has been reminiscing about the respective bands’ fortunes back then in a blog on The Guardian, which has been inspired by a song from Destiny’s Child‘s Kelly Rowland in which she apparently reflects on the global superstardom of her one time bandmate Beyonce.
“I remember in 2004 when my band Bloc Party were preparing to put out our first record, ‘Silent Alarm’, we were touring, meeting lots of bands who were slated to release albums in 2005,” he writes.
“I remember really getting on with the Kaiser Chiefs, they were funny and charming. They reminded me of a ‘Parklife’-era Blur meets Super Furry Animals and, although the music wasn’t my thing, we became friends.”
“They ascended into pop superstardom with their million-selling ‘Employment album’ and a volley of truly remarkable singles. While we couldn’t get a single on the radio, these guys seemed to be all over it. I couldn’t help but feel envious but I let those feelings motivate me.”