Kaiser Chiefs - The Future is Medieval

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1.0 (1)

After a three year hiatus, Kaiser Chiefs are back with their fourth album ‘The Future Is Medieval’. Read below for triplew.me’s review

In a marketing stroke of genius, the Kaiser Chiefs have released their latest album on their website allowing fans to mix and match from a selection of twenty tracks to ‘make their own album’. This was a fresh and inventive way to engage their fans with the new release, and credit must be given to the Chiefs, for coming up with the idea and running with it. The only real problem here is that every album will sound different than the other  - so this is the review of one of the many versions of ‘The Future is Medieval’.

The single ‘Little Shocks’, which has a fun and summery feel – starts off abruptly in a Maximo Park-style and at one point, almost delivers a defining moment of greatness only to falter with an average guitar solo, which turns the tune into an average pop song (which could have been so much better).

However, the iconic lead singer, Ricky Wilson, does not put a foot wrong on this album. The use of overdubbing (‘Back in December’) is very clever. The instruments play second fiddle on the track to Ricky’s haunting voice which stays with the listener long after it the song ends.

One of the standout songs from our version of the album, is titled ‘Fly On the Wall’. The song starts off with a poppy guitar & drums combination which is elevated with a change in the tempo. Also, the clever use of synthesizers adds another dimension to the quirky number. But still there remains a feeling that with a little bit of magic this song could have been a masterpiece.

The Kaiser Chiefs do try new tricks on this album – the proof is, ‘If You Will Have Me’, which takes the band into an uncharted territory, stripping the big beats and drums and exposing a lighter sound. The acoustic guitar, cello and violin combine with Ricky’s voice to make a delightful swell of sound that begs to be repeated. In another part of the record, the band stays true to its colors - ‘Problem Solved’ is very reminiscent of ‘Employment’ with its three minute formula of fast paced music, which funnily enough creates order out of chaos.

No matter which songs you select for your personalized ‘The Future Is Medieval’, you won’t find that one great song that will dominate the airwaves in the coming months. What you will find, though, is a variety of good songs that will meet the expectations of fans but will leave a slightly disappointing aftertaste.

Kaiser Chiefs - Little Shocks

Editor review

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