Employment

Kaiser Chiefs

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 15, 2005)
• Original Release Date: March 15, 2005
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Umvd Labels
• ASIN: B0007TKH1Q
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (125 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #19,853 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Is it too early for a Britpop revival? Not on the watch of Leeds quintet Kaiser Chiefs, who just a decade after the release of Blur's scene-making 1994 album, Parklife, offer a striking follow-up. They've hired the same producer--Stephen Street. They've studied the same influences--the Buzzcocks, the Jam, the Kinks. They've even picked up the same English slice-of-life themes--"I wanna wear my clothes tight/Matching jackets and a fistful of notes/New sneakers and a fresh pack of smokes," goes "Saturday Night." The resulting album, Employment, is just as catchy and captivating as you might expect, swinging from the stormy social commentary of "I Predict A Riot" to the shouty insouciance of "Oh My God." A Trainspotting sequel can't be far off. --Aidin Vaziri

Product Description

Sometimes the greatest success stories sprout from the tiniest of ambitions. When Kaiser Chiefs formed up in Leeds around the summer of 2003, their aim wasn't to conquer stadiums and change the world. Instead, these five Britpop-obsessed oddballs began plotting a rather more modest plan. In the shadowy corners of clubs and venues across the city Ricky Wilson (lead vocals, owner of stylish blue and orange suit), Andrew 'Whitey' White (guitar), Simon Rix (bass), Nick 'Peanut' Baines (keyboards and modeller of impressive pork-pie hats) and Nick Hodgson (drums and vocals) decided to form a band that would harness the awesome capability of being able to blag an early slot at the following year's Leeds Festival.

The Kaisers' story actually begins some time before they'd decided to name themselves after a successful South African football team. School friends Simon, Peanut and Nick had been playing together in various bands since the age of 15 before spying art school graduate and restless-ball-of-energy Ricky singing with a Rolling Stones tribute band.

Right now, everybody wants a piece of the Kaiser Chiefs. Blur producer Stephen Street was so bowled over he offered his services for debut album Employment. A barrage of bouncing art-pop brilliance, it's scheduled to soundtrack 2005 from the minute it hits stereos this March.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars ...Here they come, and the Kaiser Chiefs SCOOOOORE, March 24, 2005

By	Paul Allaer (Cincinnati) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Kaiser Chiefs hail from Leeds but named themselves after a soccer team in South Africa. After a commercially under-the-radar but critically acclaimed debut single last Spring, Kaiser Chiefs became a hot commodity, leading to the UK breakout single "I Predict a Riot" last Fall.

"Employment" (12 tracks, 44 min.) starts off with a British humor-bursting "Everyday I Love You Less and Less", with the music just as irreverent and fun. "I Predict a Riot" is the monster track on this album, insanely catchy (similar in spirit to Franz Ferdinand's "Take Me Out" on its debut album). I'm just afraid that eventually this will cross play onto US mainstream radio and it'll get played to death (again, see "Take Me Out"). The first half of the album is near perfect: "Modern Way", "Na Na Na Na Naa" and "Oh My God" are all irresitable (the latter being that obscure debut single, but it's being re-released in the UK). The second half is not as strong, but still quite strong, in particular "Saturday Night", the lite-reggae "What Did I Ever Give You", and the 60s-Kinks sounding "Time Honoured Tradition".

It's not like the Kaiser Chiefs have come up with a new or unique sound, but "Employment" is a fun album with lots of catchy songs, very much like Franz Ferdinand did a year ago. The UK music scene is brimming with good new bands (the Futureheads, Kasabian, Bloc Party, etc.) and Kaiser Chiefs stand proudly at the head of that group. Highly recommended!

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Pneumothorax is a word that is long., August 18, 2005

By	Jason Stein (San Diego, CA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Kaiser Chiefs join the ranks of other nu-wave bands of the moment, and I, for one, can't get enough of this revival. It's challenging to place Kaiser Chiefs influences, but The Clash, Talking Heads, The Cars, and other new wave bands of yore come to my mind.

The band put a great deal of energy into "Employment", their debut album, and the lyrics are full of wry wit. However, in the end, it's the music that's a slight letdown. For some reason, listening to this album all the way through is repetitive. The band does differentiate each track, but the album as a whole has a very homogenous sound, which to me, became a little tiresome, thus the four star rating. Still, this is a great debut, and there are several songs to enjoy such as "Everyday I Love You Less And Less", "I Predict A Riot", "Modern Way", "Saturday Night" and "Time Honoured Tradition". The rest of the selections are strong, but not as memorable.

So, if you're looking for something else to listen to while you take a break from The Killers, Interpol, The Music, The Bravery, Keane, Franz Ferdinand, Coldplay, The Postal Service, Dogs Die In Hot Cars, Louis XIV, Gwen Stefani, Bloc Party, Caesars, The Futureheads or Duran Duran, then check out "Employment" by Kaiser Chiefs.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars an album not to be missed... one of the best of 2005, March 23, 2005

By	Mike Mineo (Berkeley Heights, NJ USA) - See all my reviews

Kaiser Chiefs have been building a dedicated fanbase for quite some
time now, with the release of their single, 'Oh My God' increasing it
even more so after recieving rave reviews from magazines such as NME.
The single was a very big accomplishment, and it deserved the reviews
it received as it felt very lively and energetic. It was clear to see
that Kaiser Chiefs had the energy in hand to be one of the most
memorable bands of the year if the album could follow on the
excitement on the single, 'Oh My God.'

Kaiser Chiefs first album, Employment, kicks off with the song,
'Everyday I Love You Less And Less', which could easily be an
attainable single, following the format the band followed with 'Oh My
God' with a display of fun lyrics and a catchy chorus. The lyrics may
be too simplistic at times, but the Kaiser Chiefs are not aiming for
complexity here. They aim for fun and this is what they achieve.
Wilson fun little chants such as, "Everyday I love you less and less,
it makes me sick to think of you undressed," continue throughout the
album in a somewhat repetitive fashion.

The second song on the album, 'I Predict A Riot' will most likely be
known as Kaiser Chiefs most popular song, as vocalist Ricky Wilson
sounds superb while he bounces off yet another song with a great and
hooking chorus. As simple as it may be, it works great for the band.
But instead of making an album where every song attempts to be a
generic single, the Kaiser Chiefs moved on to a more different
sounding territory with most further tracks.

'Modern Way' starts paving the way for the band showing that they
don't want every song to sound repetitive. After two explosive songs,
Wilson sings with a more hush-hush fashion, and he is successful in
doing so. 'Modern Way' is probably the best track on this album, and
it's a song that's not to be missed.

The album does have its blunder with the incredibly annoying 'Na Na Na
Na Naa' turning up into a disaster of a song. This is badly placed as
the fifth track, disrupting the flow, but luckily the Kaiser Chiefs
regain their ground with the enigmatic 'You Can Have It All' and 'Born
To Be A Dancer.' Both tracks are extremely catchy and again show that
the Kaiser Chiefs still have it in their debut of an album. As I've
already talked about the song 'Oh My God' earlier this is stationed in
between these two tracks as well, and it makes its way as the Kaiser
Chief's anthem-type of a track that has you nodding your head to the
beat. A great single, as I stated before.

'Saturday Night' may turn some off, as the Kaiser Chief's take a step
into a new direction but I personally find the song a breath of fresh
air as it's the only song on the album that cannot really be compared
with any others on the album. The album continues to finish off strong
with the creative 'Caroline, Yes' and the lush ending ballad of 'Team
Mate' as the album fades into the end.

Overall, the Kaiser Chiefs have a solid winner in their debut album.
Employment provides a welcoming sound with a bunch of stellar tracks.
One would think with songs such as 'Oh My God' and 'I Predict A Riot'
that most of the tracks would be fillers. That is far out of the
question. Though at first the Kaiser Chiefs will sound like any old
indie rock band, the songs grow on you tremendously. The Kaiser Chiefs
turn out one of the most fun records of the year in their debut, and
it's not to be missed.