You discover a band. You see them on MTV2, well you used to. You like the video. You love the song. You love them! You have fallen in love. You obsess over everything they do. They sail down the golden mile effortlessly, producing album after album of outstanding work and effort. You see them live. You meet them, they don’t remember you from the last time you met them out the back of the show, but those four hours you waited were worth it. You meet them again, this time out the back of an arena, because they’re not playing toilet gigs or O2 Academy sized shows anymore, no. They have sky rocketed. They headline festival after festival. They surpass their last album in an unmeasurable way. They meet with huge critical acclaim. They wrote that song that is your song. You know, the song you want playing at every single occasion. That song you murder on the karaoke every single time, the song you constantly request for, the song that you have the lyrics tattooed on you somewhere. They break boundaries. They blend genres. They have Number 1 albums and singles in most major countries.
After solidifying themselves as a bankable act, Kasabian went away and experimented a bit more, now they had a bit of cash behind them. They emerged prior to this album with the sublime Velociraptor!, which fuses so many elements. It is an excellent album, near perfect infact. It has everything you need from Kasabian; They hadn’t turned into bloated has beens chugging out album after album of just generic songs or muzak.
I saw them once again, and was in awe – Was there no stopping this band? They had nailed it. They had formula, it worked, why mess with it? Imagine my delight when they were on the horizon again. They announced a huge summer show in their home town in June, and were in NME again. This meant only one thing – A new album was looming.
I listened to the premiere of Eez-eh on Zane Lowe’s Radio 1 show. It was one of his Hottest Tracks In The World and it led me to think ‘Is this opposite day?’ because frankly, it was a bit fucking limp. Besides the stupid title, it just sounded flat. Was Zane Lowe really sat there, banging his head up and down and feeling a movement in his boxers at …this?
It’s not that it’s a train wreck of a song, it just doesn’t go anywhere. I kept my faith though, and awaited the arrival of the new album, 48:13, for which they released some viral videos, some during the recording of the album at Serge’s (Guitarist and Vocalist) ‘The Sergery Studios’, and some other videos of himself and Tom (Vocalist) painting the album title on a shop front.
My track-by-track review after picking up the album would go like this:
1. (1:07) (Shiva) – Reeks of Pink Floyd
2. (4:01) Bumblebeee – Yeah, it’s alright. Probably better on MDMA.
3. (4:45) Stevie – I would expect to hear this from a band on the BBC Introducing stage at Leeds Festival. At 11am. When no one is in the playing field yet.
4. (0:48) (Mortis) – Pink Floyd again.
5. (3:40) Doomsday – Lyrically, sounds like something you’d expect from a 90’s british pop act, like Spice Girls or Billie. “What you see is what you get with me.” Actually, it screams of the attitude displayed by Linda from Gimme, Gimme, Gimme. Very turn-of-the-millenium.
6. (6:53) Treat – Four Game Boys running through a Boss DS-1 Distortion pedal.
7. (4:48) Glass – I kind of fell asleep during this one. Whilst driving.
8. (4:18) Explodes – Yes, on and on it really does go. Repetition is the key. Repetition is the key. Repetition is the key. Repetition is the key. Repetition is the key. Repetition is the key. Repetition is the key.
9. (1:19) (Levitation) – Nando’s music.
10. (4:45) Clouds – College rock.
11. (3:00) Eez-eh – Songs like this are just made to be remixed by some douche bag.
12. (4:27) Bow – More like this please.
13. (4:22) S.P.S – Guitar? Is that you? GUITAR!! IT IS YOU!! – You old bastard! Where have you been? The best song on the album.
My problem is, they all sound like expensive demos or B-Sides.
Kasabian have the power to keep guitar music going, to inspire a generation to pick up a six string and smash out some chords – but instead, they released a synth-laden album, with minimal guitars. Serge’s 80’s post punk and new wave influences are very present, which makes me think is this a Kasabian album at all? Yes, they have always dabbled with electronic sounds, and I’m still hoping that one day Serge will release his own solo album because it will be a beauty but this is neither.
Sonically, it’s just awful. The synths are everywhere and too fucking loud. So loud I can’t make out most of the lyrics. What I do make out are distorted to the point where I can’t tell if it is Tom or Serge singing, and when I do decipher, all I am left with is a feeling of “Kasabian have nothing left to say.”
There doesn’t seem to be any real choruses anywhere. The lyrics are social commentary. There doesn’t seem to be anything but synths. For the most, it sounds like me when I first bought a Macbook and created ‘music’ using the Apple preset loops. Beeps and blips everywhere. This would have been a better album if it was released as an instrumental. Also, O have to put this out there: most of the song title choices are just weak. Bumblebee?
Kasabian are still one of my favourite bands but I just don’t enjoy this album. I have been wrong before and wrote albums off then learned to appreciate them and then even love them but if this is one of them, it will take a lot of time. Basically, every band I love would have to replicate Lou Reed’s Metal Machine Music for me to even consider putting 48:13 in my top ten of all time. It just doesn’t work.
Whilst I’ve been writing this, Return of the Jedi has been on in the background. So I will rate Kasabian albums based on the Empire’s hierarchy.
1. Velociraptor! – Emperor Palpatine
2. West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum – Lord Vader
3. Empire – Royal Guard
4. Kasabian – One of the Generals who rides in the Super Star Destroyer
5. 48:13 – Literally a Scout Trooper – A Scout Trooper who lets himself be taken over by Ewoks. Fucking Ewoks.
I usually rate an album out of how many tracks it has, none of this 10 out of 10 business.
4.5 out of 13
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