Kaiser Chiefs
Encyclopedia
Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock
band from Leeds
who formed in 1996. They were named after the South African football club Kaizer Chiefs.
The group's debut album, Employment
, was released in 2005. It was primarily inspired by New Wave
and punk rock
music of the late 1970s and 1980s, and enjoyed international success with over three million copies sold. In 2005, the album was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize
. Kaiser Chiefs' second album, Yours Truly, Angry Mob (2007), yielded "Ruby
", a number one single in the United Kingdom. They released their third album, Off with Their Heads, in October 2008. After a three-year hiatus, they released The Future Is Medieval
in June 2011.
, Leeds. After leaving school, Rix and Baines left for university in 1996 whereas Hodgson remained in the Leeds area, meeting both Andrew White and Ricky Wilson. Hodgson, White and Wilson formed the band Runston Parva, its name a deliberate misspelling of a small East Yorkshire
hamlet called Ruston Parva
. After Runston Parva failed to secure a record deal, the group would re-form as Parva upon the return of Rix and Baines from university. Parva's career would go beyond the boundaries of Leeds, and the band was able to obtain both a record and publishing deal. However, after Beggars Banquet
closed the Mantra label, Parva were dropped and left desolate and without any direction after the release of an album (22
) and three singles ("Heavy", "Good Bad Right Wrong" and "Hessles").
According to manager James Sandom in an interview with HitQuarters
, as a dropped band they had become damaged goods, "No one would touch them because they had a history. A lot of people used their history against them." The band decided that they would aim for a longer term record deal and started afresh with new songs and a new name: Kaiser Chiefs. The new name was taken from South African football club Kaizer Chiefs.
Manager James Sandom was tipped off about the band by Drowned in Sound
founder Sean Adams for the Drowned in Sound label and persuaded him to go and see them live. Sandom said: "I went to see a couple of shows and you were just bombarded by a series of potential hit singles." Soon after Sandom became their manager, Kaiser Chiefs signed to B-Unique Records
. Atlantic Records
had also made an offer for the band.
at the beginning of the year. The band had been awarded the Philip Hall Radar at that year's NME awards ceremony Like Coldplay
and Franz Ferdinand
before them, their position as opening act proved an influential one, attracting a lot of positive media attention.
The group's debut album Employment
was released in March 2005, being primarily inspired by new wave
and punk rock
music of late 1970s. The album was well received by music critics, described as "thrilling from beginning to end" and "quintessentially British, without pretension and most importantly, a whole lot of fun". It reached number two on the UK albums chart
, and was certified five times platinum. In 2005, Employment was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize
, an annual music prize awarded for the best British or Irish album from the previous year. Bookmakers made it favourite to win the award, but they eventually lost out to Antony and the Johnsons
. In 2006, Employment
won the Ivor Novello award for 'Best Album'
The first single released from the album was "Oh My God
" in 2004, which reached number six on the UK singles chart when it was reissued in February 2005. In 2007, the song was covered
by Mark Ronson
and Lily Allen
for Ronson's album Version
. "I Predict a Riot
" soon followed as the album's second release. In 2007, the song was ranked number thirty-six on the NME
"Greatest Indie Anthems Ever" countdown. The top twenty singles "Everyday I Love You Less and Less
" and "Modern Way
" followed in late 2005. The band opened and performed several of their singles at the Philadelphia Live Eight
concert in 2005. The song "Saturday Night" was featured in a pre-release video for the Xbox 360
gaming console. It was posted on the official Xbox 360 page before its launch.
In August 2006, the band released a book entitled A Record Of Employment, which along with photos by Peter Hill, documented the band's rise from being unsigned to their triumph at the Brit Awards that year, where the band won awards for 'Best British Band','Best Rock Act' and 'Best New Artist'. Later a DVD entitled Enjoyment, which documented concerts from the first album era was released, this showed members of the band hypothetically interviewed when 'jaded rock stars'.
In 2006, the band received NME awards for 'Best Album' for Employment and 'Best Dressed' for Ricky Wilson.
, England
. The group took inspiration from Led Zeppelin
and American rock music, and recorded over twenty-two songs.
Yours Truly, Angry Mob reached number one on the UK albums chart and number forty-five on the Billboard
200 albums chart
. Unlike Employment, the album received mixed reviews from critics who found it to be both "an album full of jukebox hits" and "predictable."
"Ruby
", the album's lead single
, became Kaiser Chiefs' first UK number one single and received the 2007 'Q Award' for 'Best Video'. "Everything Is Average Nowadays
" was released as the album's second single, and reached #19 in the UK. The album's third single "The Angry Mob
", described by The Sun
as a "clever, accessible pop" song, peaked at number twenty-two in the UK. The fourth single, "Love's Not a Competition (But I'm Winning)
", was released on 12 November as a collector's edition 7" only single via their website.
In December 2007, Kaiser Chiefs played two sold out shows at Earl's Court in London to a capacity crowd of 30,000.
On 4 August 2008, the band confirmed the name of their third album as Off with Their Heads. It was released on 20 October 2008. The first single "Never Miss a Beat
" was released on 6 October 2008.
The band also released a DVD of their live performance at Elland Road from May 24 where they played to a sold out capacity crowd of 40,000 people. The DVD contains the full set from the home of Leeds United as well as Kaiser Chiefs performance for the 2007 BBC Electric Proms.
Kaiser Chiefs set out on a UK tour in October 2008 with Castle Donington band Late of the Pier
and The Hair. The tour started at Leeds Academy, a new venue where they were the first headlining band to play. Other dates included Manchester Academy, Southampton Guildhall, Reading Rivermead, Glasgow Barrowlands, Leicester De Montfort Hall and London Forum.
During October, they also appeared on MTV Day, in Greece, along with bands like the (Greek) C-Real, REM and the singer Gabriella Cilmi
.
Kaiser Chiefs headed out on a UK Arena tour between February and March 2009, kicking off in Nottingham and ending in London. The tour visited Sheffield, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Newcastle, Manchester, Liverpool, Cardiff and Dublin. This was the new album tour to promote Off with Their Heads. The band featured on several shows over Christmas 2008 including performing "Never Miss a Beat" with Girls Aloud
on their TV Special and playing the same song on the Christmas Day edition of Top of the Pops
.
On 16 July 2009, they played at Marés Vivas in Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal as headliners on that day. They, along with Republic of Loose
, opened for U2
in Croke Park
in Dublin on 25 July 2009. They then opened for Green Day
from 27 July to 7 August 2009, and performed at Reading and Leeds Festival 2009.
, Ethan Johns
and Owen Morris
, in addition to Nick Hodgson himself.
The band have been confirmed to play at Germany's Hurricane and Southside Festivals in June, Switzerland's Gurten Festival
, Pinkpop
in The Netherlands, Belgium's Rock Werchter
, Portuguese festival Optimus Alive! in July, V Festival
in August, Hard Rock Calling
in June, the Isle of Wight Festival
in June and at Terres Rouges Festival in Luxembourg in September. They recently confirmed they will be playing at Tennants Vital in Bangor, Ireland and in September they will play two sold out home town shows at Kirkstall Abbey
in Leeds. They will also be playing in October in Festa das Latas, Coimbra - Portugal.
Kaiser Chiefs have also established their own record label, entitled Chewing Gum Records. Their first signing was The Neat, a band from Kingston upon Hull
, who were featured on the BBC6 Music Playlist.
On 30 May 2011, Ricky Wilson appeared on BBC Radio 1
's Zane Lowe
show and announced a new song which was called "Little Shocks". It was played on the show and was streamed on the band's official website.
On 3 June 2011, Kaiser Chiefs launched their new album from their website. However, instead of simply allowing fans to download the pre-made album, the band instead employed a new policy of allowing fans to "create their own albums". Using this technique, fans are able to choose 10 out of 20 songs to create "their album" for £7.50; the band provides streams of roughly one minute to preview each track before selection. Furthermore, after the creation of some albums, by early customers, later customers could be able to select an already created album if they desired, with the original creator being reimbursed one pound for each copy of their album downloaded/sold.
Many celebrities including, Radio One DJ Chris Moyles
, The Guardian Newspaper
, and frontman Ricky Wilson, created their own version of the album, donating the £1 reimbursement for each copy sold to the Alzheimer's Society
.
On 27 June 2011, Kaiser Chiefs released an official tracklisting for the album, featuring 12 of the 20 available tracks and including a previously unheard track 'Kinda Girl You Are' which did not make the initial launch as it was not ready in time.
As Kaiser Chiefs
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band from Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
who formed in 1996. They were named after the South African football club Kaizer Chiefs.
The group's debut album, Employment
Employment (album)
Employment is the debut album by English indie rock band Kaiser Chiefs, released in March 2005 on B-Unique Records. Employment takes its inspirations from the Britpop and New Wave movements, 70s'-era punk rock and Beach Boys-esque West Coast music...
, was released in 2005. It was primarily inspired by New Wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
and punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
music of the late 1970s and 1980s, and enjoyed international success with over three million copies sold. In 2005, the album was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize
Mercury Prize
The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize and currently known as the Barclaycard Mercury Prize for sponsorship reasons, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album from the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was established by the British Phonographic Industry and British...
. Kaiser Chiefs' second album, Yours Truly, Angry Mob (2007), yielded "Ruby
Ruby (song)
"Ruby" is a song by English rock band Kaiser Chiefs and is the lead track on their second album, Yours Truly, Angry Mob. It was released as the lead single from that album in the United Kingdom as a download on February 5, 2007 and as a limited edition 7 in and CD single on February 19 that year...
", a number one single in the United Kingdom. They released their third album, Off with Their Heads, in October 2008. After a three-year hiatus, they released The Future Is Medieval
The Future Is Medieval
The Future Is Medieval is the fourth studio album by English rock band Kaiser Chiefs, originally released through their website on 3 June 2011, a physical release was released on 27 June 2011.-Album information:...
in June 2011.
Formation and early years (1996–2003)
When they were around eleven years old, Nick Hodgson, Nick Baines and Simon Rix met in the same class at St. Mary's School, MenstonSt. Mary's School, Menston
St. Mary's School on Bradford Road in Menston, West Yorkshire, England is a Roman Catholic school for young people of secondary school age, which serves the parishes of Addingham, Burley in Wharfedale, Horsforth, Ilkley, Otley, Pudsey and Yeadon....
, Leeds. After leaving school, Rix and Baines left for university in 1996 whereas Hodgson remained in the Leeds area, meeting both Andrew White and Ricky Wilson. Hodgson, White and Wilson formed the band Runston Parva, its name a deliberate misspelling of a small East Yorkshire
East Yorkshire
East Yorkshire could be:*East Yorkshire Motor Services*An alternative name for the East Riding of Yorkshire*East Yorkshire , a former district of Humberside*East Yorkshire...
hamlet called Ruston Parva
Ruston Parva
Ruston Parva is a hamlet in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately south west of Bridlington and lies just north of the A614 road.It forms part of the civil parish of Harpham....
. After Runston Parva failed to secure a record deal, the group would re-form as Parva upon the return of Rix and Baines from university. Parva's career would go beyond the boundaries of Leeds, and the band was able to obtain both a record and publishing deal. However, after Beggars Banquet
Beggars Banquet Records
Beggars Banquet is an English independent record label that began as a chain of record shops owned by Martin Mills and Nick Austin, and is part of the Beggars Group of labels...
closed the Mantra label, Parva were dropped and left desolate and without any direction after the release of an album (22
22 (album)
22 was an album by Leeds band Parva . It was released on the Mantra Recordings label, which was folded by its owner Beggars Banquet soon after...
) and three singles ("Heavy", "Good Bad Right Wrong" and "Hessles").
According to manager James Sandom in an interview with HitQuarters
HitQuarters
HitQuarters is an international music industry publication and contact database founded in 1999. It is noted for in-depth interviews with industry figures, with past subjects including Simon Cowell, Martin Kierszenbaum, Jason Flom, Diane Warren, Peter Edge, Ron Fair and RedOne, as well as its A&R...
, as a dropped band they had become damaged goods, "No one would touch them because they had a history. A lot of people used their history against them." The band decided that they would aim for a longer term record deal and started afresh with new songs and a new name: Kaiser Chiefs. The new name was taken from South African football club Kaizer Chiefs.
Manager James Sandom was tipped off about the band by Drowned in Sound
Drowned in Sound
DrownedinSound.com or DiS is a UK based music webzine financed by artist management company Silentway . The site is an editorially independent music website.-History:...
founder Sean Adams for the Drowned in Sound label and persuaded him to go and see them live. Sandom said: "I went to see a couple of shows and you were just bombarded by a series of potential hit singles." Soon after Sandom became their manager, Kaiser Chiefs signed to B-Unique Records
B-Unique Records
B-Unique Records is a London-based record label, founded in 2001 by Mark Lewis and Martin Toher.B-Unique has been a division of Atlantic Records UK since February 2008...
. Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
had also made an offer for the band.
Employment (2004–2006)
One of the major factors in the band's breakthrough in 2005 was their involvement in the NME Awards TourNME Tours
The NME Tours consist of a variety of tours organised by British music industry publication NME. Throughout the year, NME sponsors numerous tours of the United Kingdom by various up-and-coming and established bands in a variety of formats...
at the beginning of the year. The band had been awarded the Philip Hall Radar at that year's NME awards ceremony Like Coldplay
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...
and Franz Ferdinand
Franz Ferdinand (band)
Franz Ferdinand are a Scottish post-punk revival band formed in Glasgow in 2002. The band is composed of Alex Kapranos , Bob Hardy , Nick McCarthy , and Paul Thomson .The band first experienced chart success when their second single, "Take Me Out", reached #3 in...
before them, their position as opening act proved an influential one, attracting a lot of positive media attention.
Employment (album)
Employment is the debut album by English indie rock band Kaiser Chiefs, released in March 2005 on B-Unique Records. Employment takes its inspirations from the Britpop and New Wave movements, 70s'-era punk rock and Beach Boys-esque West Coast music...
was released in March 2005, being primarily inspired by new wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
and punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
music of late 1970s. The album was well received by music critics, described as "thrilling from beginning to end" and "quintessentially British, without pretension and most importantly, a whole lot of fun". It reached number two on the UK albums chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
, and was certified five times platinum. In 2005, Employment was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize
Mercury Prize
The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize and currently known as the Barclaycard Mercury Prize for sponsorship reasons, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album from the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was established by the British Phonographic Industry and British...
, an annual music prize awarded for the best British or Irish album from the previous year. Bookmakers made it favourite to win the award, but they eventually lost out to Antony and the Johnsons
Antony and the Johnsons
Antony and the Johnsons is a music group presenting the work of Antony Hegarty and his collaborators.-Career:British experimental musician David Tibet of Current 93 heard a demo and offered to release Antony's music through his Durtro label. The debut album, Antony and the Johnsons, was released...
. In 2006, Employment
Employment (album)
Employment is the debut album by English indie rock band Kaiser Chiefs, released in March 2005 on B-Unique Records. Employment takes its inspirations from the Britpop and New Wave movements, 70s'-era punk rock and Beach Boys-esque West Coast music...
won the Ivor Novello award for 'Best Album'
The first single released from the album was "Oh My God
Oh My God (Kaiser Chiefs song)
"Oh My God" is a song by Kaiser Chiefs, initially released as their debut single by the Drowned In Sound label on May 17, 2004. It only hit #66 in the UK charts. "Oh My God" was re-released on February 21, 2005, just two weeks before the release of their debut album Employment...
" in 2004, which reached number six on the UK singles chart when it was reissued in February 2005. In 2007, the song was covered
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
by Mark Ronson
Mark Ronson
Mark Daniel Ronson is an English DJ, guitarist, music producer, artist and co-founder of Allido Records. He currently works with his band under the music alias of Mark Ronson & The Business Intl....
and Lily Allen
Lily Allen
Lily Rose Beatrice Cooper , better known as Lily Allen, is an English recording artist and fashion designer. She is the daughter of actor and musician Keith Allen and film producer Alison Owen. In her teenage years, her musical tastes evolved from glam rock to alternative...
for Ronson's album Version
Version (album)
-iTunes digital edition:-Japanese CD edition:-Chart performance:-Release history:-External links:* at MetaCritic...
. "I Predict a Riot
I Predict a Riot
"I Predict a Riot" is a song by Kaiser Chiefs, appearing on their debut album Employment. It was originally released as their second single on 1 November 2004, and was the band's first release on the B-Unique label. It entered at #22 on the UK Singles Chart, a move which started the band's rise to...
" soon followed as the album's second release. In 2007, the song was ranked number thirty-six on the NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
"Greatest Indie Anthems Ever" countdown. The top twenty singles "Everyday I Love You Less and Less
Everyday I Love You Less and Less
"Everyday I Love You Less and Less" is the opening track on Leeds' indie band Kaiser Chiefs' first album, Employment. It was released on the B-Unique label as their third single on 16 May 2005, peaking at #10, their second Top Ten single of the year...
" and "Modern Way
Modern Way
"Modern Way" is the fourth and final single to be released by Kaiser Chiefs from their debut album Employment on November 7, 2005. It entered the UK Singles Chart at #11. Its lyrics refer to loneliness and regret....
" followed in late 2005. The band opened and performed several of their singles at the Philadelphia Live Eight
Live 8 concert, Philadelphia
On 2 July 2005, a Live 8 concert was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, with a densely packed audience stretched out for one mile along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway...
concert in 2005. The song "Saturday Night" was featured in a pre-release video for the Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
gaming console. It was posted on the official Xbox 360 page before its launch.
In August 2006, the band released a book entitled A Record Of Employment, which along with photos by Peter Hill, documented the band's rise from being unsigned to their triumph at the Brit Awards that year, where the band won awards for 'Best British Band','Best Rock Act' and 'Best New Artist'. Later a DVD entitled Enjoyment, which documented concerts from the first album era was released, this showed members of the band hypothetically interviewed when 'jaded rock stars'.
In 2006, the band received NME awards for 'Best Album' for Employment and 'Best Dressed' for Ricky Wilson.
Yours Truly, Angry Mob (2007)
Kaiser Chiefs' second album Yours Truly, Angry Mob was released in February 2007. The group recorded the album throughout the September and October 2006 at Hook End Studio in OxfordshireOxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The group took inspiration from Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
and American rock music, and recorded over twenty-two songs.
Yours Truly, Angry Mob reached number one on the UK albums chart and number forty-five on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
200 albums chart
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
. Unlike Employment, the album received mixed reviews from critics who found it to be both "an album full of jukebox hits" and "predictable."
"Ruby
Ruby (song)
"Ruby" is a song by English rock band Kaiser Chiefs and is the lead track on their second album, Yours Truly, Angry Mob. It was released as the lead single from that album in the United Kingdom as a download on February 5, 2007 and as a limited edition 7 in and CD single on February 19 that year...
", the album's lead single
Lead single
A lead single is usually the first single released by a musician or a band before the release of its home album.During the era of the grammophone record, all music arrived in the marketplace as what is now termed a single, one potential hit song backed by an additional song of generally less...
, became Kaiser Chiefs' first UK number one single and received the 2007 'Q Award' for 'Best Video'. "Everything Is Average Nowadays
Everything Is Average Nowadays
"Everything Is Average Nowadays" is a song by English rock band Kaiser Chiefs and is the ninth track on their second album, Yours Truly, Angry Mob. The song was released as the second single from that album in the United Kingdom on 21 May 2007...
" was released as the album's second single, and reached #19 in the UK. The album's third single "The Angry Mob
The Angry Mob
- 7" vinyl picture disc, single sided, limited edition :- 7" vinyl, special limited edition :- Chart performance :-External links:* - at Kaiser Chiefs official website.*...
", described by The Sun
The Sun (newspaper)
The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
as a "clever, accessible pop" song, peaked at number twenty-two in the UK. The fourth single, "Love's Not a Competition (But I'm Winning)
Love's Not a Competition (But I'm Winning)
"Love's Not a Competition " is a song by English band Kaiser Chiefs, featured on the band's second studio album, Yours Truly, Angry Mob...
", was released on 12 November as a collector's edition 7" only single via their website.
In December 2007, Kaiser Chiefs played two sold out shows at Earl's Court in London to a capacity crowd of 30,000.
Off with Their Heads (2008–2009)
Never Miss a Beat
"Never Miss a Beat" is a song by the British indie rock band Kaiser Chiefs that was released as the lead single from the band's third album Off with Their Heads on 6 October 2008. The song was produced by Mark Ronson and features backing vocals from Lily Allen and members of the rock group New...
" was released on 6 October 2008.
The band also released a DVD of their live performance at Elland Road from May 24 where they played to a sold out capacity crowd of 40,000 people. The DVD contains the full set from the home of Leeds United as well as Kaiser Chiefs performance for the 2007 BBC Electric Proms.
Kaiser Chiefs set out on a UK tour in October 2008 with Castle Donington band Late of the Pier
Late of the Pier
Late of the Pier are a four-piece dance-punk band from Castle Donington, England, currently signed to Phantasy. Their debut album Fantasy Black Channel was released on 11 August 2008 by Parlophone produced by Erol Alkan.- History :...
and The Hair. The tour started at Leeds Academy, a new venue where they were the first headlining band to play. Other dates included Manchester Academy, Southampton Guildhall, Reading Rivermead, Glasgow Barrowlands, Leicester De Montfort Hall and London Forum.
During October, they also appeared on MTV Day, in Greece, along with bands like the (Greek) C-Real, REM and the singer Gabriella Cilmi
Gabriella Cilmi
Gabriella Lucia Cilmi is an Australian singer-songwriter. In 2008, Cilmi was awarded six ARIA awards including Single of the Year and Best Female Artist....
.
Kaiser Chiefs headed out on a UK Arena tour between February and March 2009, kicking off in Nottingham and ending in London. The tour visited Sheffield, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Newcastle, Manchester, Liverpool, Cardiff and Dublin. This was the new album tour to promote Off with Their Heads. The band featured on several shows over Christmas 2008 including performing "Never Miss a Beat" with Girls Aloud
Girls Aloud
Girls Aloud are a British and Irish pop girl group based in London. They were created through the ITV1 talent show Popstars The Rivals in 2002. The group consists of Cheryl Cole , Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. They are signed to Fascination Records, a Polydor...
on their TV Special and playing the same song on the Christmas Day edition of Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops, also known as TOTP, is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly from 1 January 1964 to 30 July 2006. After 25 December 2006 it became a radio program, now hosted by Tony Blackburn...
.
On 16 July 2009, they played at Marés Vivas in Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal as headliners on that day. They, along with Republic of Loose
Republic of Loose
Republic of Loose are an Irish funk rock band from Dublin. Formed in 2001, the band currently consists of lead vocalist Mick Pyro, bass guitarist and vocalist Benjamin Loose, keyboardist Darragh, guitarists and vocalists Dave Pyro and Darach O' Laoire and drummers and percussionists Andre Lopes...
, opened for U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
in Croke Park
Croke Park
Croke Park in Dublin is the principal stadium and headquarters of the Gaelic Athletic Association , Ireland's biggest sporting organisation...
in Dublin on 25 July 2009. They then opened for Green Day
Green Day
Green Day is an American punk rock band formed in 1987. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, and drummer Tre Cool...
from 27 July to 7 August 2009, and performed at Reading and Leeds Festival 2009.
The Future Is Medieval (2010-)
Following a long hiatus (since 2008), Kaiser Chiefs announced that they expect to release their fourth studio album in mid-2011. The album was recorded over a period of eighteen months at various locations including drummer Nick Hodgson's self-built east-London studio. The album's producers included Tony ViscontiTony Visconti
Anthony Edward Visconti is an American record producer and sometimes a musician or singer.Since the late 1960s, he has worked with an array of performers; his lengthiest involvement with any artist is with David Bowie: intermittently from Bowie's 1969 album Space Oddity to 2003's Reality, Visconti...
, Ethan Johns
Ethan Johns
Ethan Johns is a record producer, engineer, mixer, musician, and songwriter who has worked with such artists such as Ryan Adams, Kings of Leon, Ray LaMontagne, Kevin Prosch, Rufus Wainwright, Howard Eliott Payne, Emmylou Harris, Crowded House, Laura Marling, Luthea Salom, and Crosby, Stills and...
and Owen Morris
Owen Morris
Owen Morris is a music producer who has worked with rock bands such as Oasis, The Fratellis, The View and The Verve.He started working in the music industry as a sound engineer at Spaceward Studio in Cambridge when he was 16. He continued as an engineer until 1994 when he started producing some...
, in addition to Nick Hodgson himself.
The band have been confirmed to play at Germany's Hurricane and Southside Festivals in June, Switzerland's Gurten Festival
Gurtenfestival
The Gurtenfestival is a music festival in Switzerland. It is held annually in middle of July on top of Bern's local mountain, the Gurten.-1991:Nazareth, Donovan, Ralph McTell, Flying Pickets, Konstantin Wecker-1992:...
, Pinkpop
Pinkpop
Pinkpop Festival, or Pinkpop for short, is an annual festival held at Landgraaf, Netherlands. It is held annually on the Pentecost weekend...
in The Netherlands, Belgium's Rock Werchter
Rock Werchter
Rock Werchter is a Belgian annual music festival held in the village of Werchter, near Leuven, since 1974. It is one of the five biggest annual rock music festivals in Europe...
, Portuguese festival Optimus Alive! in July, V Festival
V Festival
The V Festival is an annual music festival held in England during the penultimate weekend in August. The event is held at two parks simultaneously which share the same bill; artists perform at one location on Saturday and then swap on Sunday. The sites are located at Hylands Park in Chelmsford and...
in August, Hard Rock Calling
Hard Rock Calling
Hard Rock Calling is an annual music festival held in Hyde Park, London, which first took place on Saturday July 1 and Sunday July 2, 2006. The music played is primarily rock music, and various performers, including Bon Jovi, The Who, Aerosmith, Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen have played at the...
in June, the Isle of Wight Festival
Isle of Wight Festival
The Isle of Wight Festival is a music festival which takes place every year on the Isle of Wight in England. It was originally held from 1968 to 1970. These original events were promoted and organised by the Foulk brothers under the banner of their company Fiery Creations Limited...
in June and at Terres Rouges Festival in Luxembourg in September. They recently confirmed they will be playing at Tennants Vital in Bangor, Ireland and in September they will play two sold out home town shows at Kirkstall Abbey
Kirkstall Abbey
Kirkstall Abbey is a ruined Cistercian monastery in Kirkstall north-west of Leeds city centre in West Yorkshire. It is set in a public park on the north bank of the River Aire. It was founded c.1152. It was disestablished during the Dissolution of the Monasteries under the auspices of Henry...
in Leeds. They will also be playing in October in Festa das Latas, Coimbra - Portugal.
Kaiser Chiefs have also established their own record label, entitled Chewing Gum Records. Their first signing was The Neat, a band from Kingston upon Hull
Kingston upon Hull
Kingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of...
, who were featured on the BBC6 Music Playlist.
On 30 May 2011, Ricky Wilson appeared on BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
's Zane Lowe
Zane Lowe
Zane Lowe also known as 'Zipper', is a radio DJ and television presenter. He was born in New Zealand and grew up in Auckland, where he was a presenter on the local music station Max TV, before moving to England...
show and announced a new song which was called "Little Shocks". It was played on the show and was streamed on the band's official website.
On 3 June 2011, Kaiser Chiefs launched their new album from their website. However, instead of simply allowing fans to download the pre-made album, the band instead employed a new policy of allowing fans to "create their own albums". Using this technique, fans are able to choose 10 out of 20 songs to create "their album" for £7.50; the band provides streams of roughly one minute to preview each track before selection. Furthermore, after the creation of some albums, by early customers, later customers could be able to select an already created album if they desired, with the original creator being reimbursed one pound for each copy of their album downloaded/sold.
Many celebrities including, Radio One DJ Chris Moyles
Chris Moyles
Christopher David Moyles is an English radio and television presenter and author, who currently presents The Chris Moyles Show on BBC Radio 1 and Chris Moyles' Quiz Night on Channel 4....
, The Guardian Newspaper
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, and frontman Ricky Wilson, created their own version of the album, donating the £1 reimbursement for each copy sold to the Alzheimer's Society
Alzheimer's Society
Alzheimer’s Society is a United Kingdom care and research charity for people with dementia and their carers.It is a membership organisation, which works to improve the quality of life of people affected by dementia in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
.
On 27 June 2011, Kaiser Chiefs released an official tracklisting for the album, featuring 12 of the 20 available tracks and including a previously unheard track 'Kinda Girl You Are' which did not make the initial launch as it was not ready in time.
Members
- Ricky WilsonRicky Wilson (British musician)Ricky Wilson is the lead singer of English band Kaiser Chiefs. Wilson has also been on the panel of the BBC Television comedy series Shooting Stars in 2009, Never Mind the Buzzcocks in 2005, and was a guest host on the show in 2006.-Character and Style:Wilson is well known for wearing stripy...
– lead vocals, percussion - Nick HodgsonNick HodgsonNicholas James David Hodgson is the drummer, backing vocalist and principal song-writer of English indie band Kaiser Chiefs....
– drums, backing vocals, lead vocals (on Boxing Champ, Remember You're A Girl, Man On Mars and If You Will Have Me) - Andrew "Whitey" WhiteAndrew White (musician)Andrew "Whitey" White is the lead and rhythm guitarist of the English alternative rock band Kaiser Chiefs.-Biography:He is an original member of the band Runston Parva, which later became Parva. He is also left-handed....
– guitar - Simon RixSimon RixJames Simon Rix is the bass player for popular British band Kaiser Chiefs and is famous for his large curly hair which has led to the nickname 'Jesus' by fans and 'curlywand' amongst friends.. He went to school at St...
– bass - Nick "Peanut" BainesNick BainesNicholas Matthew "Peanut" Baines, born 21 March 1978, is the keyboardist of the English indie-rock band Kaiser Chiefs.He studied at university for four years in Newcastle....
– keyboards, percussion (on You Want History)
Studio albums
As Parva- 2222 (album)22 was an album by Leeds band Parva . It was released on the Mantra Recordings label, which was folded by its owner Beggars Banquet soon after...
(2003)
As Kaiser Chiefs
- EmploymentEmployment (album)Employment is the debut album by English indie rock band Kaiser Chiefs, released in March 2005 on B-Unique Records. Employment takes its inspirations from the Britpop and New Wave movements, 70s'-era punk rock and Beach Boys-esque West Coast music...
(2005) - Yours Truly, Angry Mob (2007)
- Off with Their Heads (2008)
- The Future Is MedievalThe Future Is MedievalThe Future Is Medieval is the fourth studio album by English rock band Kaiser Chiefs, originally released through their website on 3 June 2011, a physical release was released on 27 June 2011.-Album information:...
(2011)