Kasabian
The West Ryder Pauper Lunatics Asylum
Rating: 3.5
Label: RCA/Red Ink
Whether they intend to or not, Kasabian provide a concise history of Britain’s best musical flavors. Their mouthful-titled third album burns a similar torch of Britpop, psychedelia and Britronica that they previously swaggered around with, albeit with some of their most profound work to date. Sure, you could label them a more sonically apt Oasis or a blues-rock version of Primal Scream. And if Pink Floyd ever recorded a punk rock track, it’d result in something akin to the swirly, palpitating “Swarfiga.” This is Kasabian’s most discernible aspect; seeing their easily comparable qualities on paper may trigger a copycat image, but their distinct hybrids speak in refreshing tones that countless lackadaisical imitators can’t effectively execute.
The fuzzy, warbling synths break into a mega-stadium-bound guitar lick on opener “Underdog,” where singer Tom Mieghan entices: “Kill me if you dare/ Hold my head up everywhere/ Keep me riding on this train.” Immediately from this groove-filled getgo, Dan “The Automator” Nakamura’s (The Gorillaz) electronica-influenced production tints this creamy, psychedelic blues with an engrossing dome of sound. While things ride steadily on par for the next few tracks, Kasabian dive into different parts of the musical spectrum during the middle. “Thick As Thieves” propels all of West Ryder’s momentum by seamlessly-melding Gypsy-tinged folk with energetic, anthemic rock. In the partial title track “West Ryder Silver Bullet,” Kasabian expand into Middle Eastern territory, complete with exotic instrumentation and vocalizations. It’s almost as prominent as The Beatles’ early forays into sitar music. To shuffle genres, the following track, “Vlad the Impaler” is an eerily-themed raver that adds a subwoofer pulse not found on previous tracks.
As with the band’s other albums, the trite-ridden lyrics leave much to be desired. “All my friends are as sharp as razors/ Cut you down if you touch the faders/ Listen up all you masqueraders/ Now we have got the floor” is one of the album’s groaners. These banalities inhibit the superstar potential Kasabian have; this Achilles heel may be quite ubiquitous, but it is compensated by Kasabian’s lively melodies, which are certainly their chief forte. “Fire” perfectly exemplifies just what they’re about: Sergio Pizzorno’s and Jay Mehler’s chug-a-lugging guitars and ethereal synths roar the speakers ablaze with a simple melody yielding a familiar novelty, while Mieghan enthusiastically croons “Move on, You got to move on/ I’m gonna get you real good/ So you can shake on.”
What remains is another worthy testament to great British rock ‘n’ roll. Kasabian are making the progress needed to rocket them to their deserved stardom, though they’re not conceptually quite there. Hopefully, West Ryder will someday be out shined by a milestone album from the band. Until then, West Ryder is more than enough to make us tap our feet contently.
by Jory Spadea
