Date: February 12th 2005
The lights dim on a crowd awaiting to be wowed as five lads file out onto the stage, one straggling, hampered by his robot walk. That’s frontman Ricky Wilson, as tame as he will ever get. The lights blaze to life and so does the crowd.
From the first harmony of ‘Na Na Na Na Naa’, the Kaiser Chiefs seize the energy, already high after the local New York support, Madison Strays and Prosaics, strutted their stuff, and multiply it into a heated fun-frenzy.
Peanut, the one with the famous pork pie hat and the ace keyboard, and Whitey, with the amazing guitar solos, stoically man their corners; Nick Hodgson keeps the beat (and also the count) on his drums while Simon Rix has a set path, face obscured at moments by his bouncing hair; a path that is usually out of Ricky‘s way.
A man of many talents, Wilson thrashes his tambourine, assaults his cowbell, executes high jumps in such quick succession that he’d qualify for the Olympics, and rushes around the stage like a kid in a sweets shop. No one is safe, except maybe Nick (though not safe enough as a thong thrown from the crowd hits him in the head, or so we’re told). He even manages to cling to Simon‘s back for an impromptu piggy-back ride in the middle of a song. Amazingly enough, not a note is out of place.
‘Everyday I Love You Less and Less’ is the perfect track for those broken hearts, while still maintaining the frenetic pace of the set. ‘I Predict A Riot’ is the predictable star of the show, starting with three fifths of the band huddled around the drums and prompting a sing-along during which Ricky almost tumbles into the crowd, leaving his microphone behind so that the fans can have a go. Whether it’s the raucous ‘Oh My God’ or the slower ‘Caroline, Yes!’, t’Chiefs are comfortable in their game, drawing the crowd in with the infectious melodies and unforgettable ‘la la laa’s,’ ‘oh oh ooh’s,’ and ‘na na naa’s.’
‘Saturday Night’ gets the loudest response for the clever lines, (“Cause we are birds of a feather/And you can be the fat one,”) but it is mostly the female contingent that does the shouting. Clever, don’t you see? And ‘Time Honoured Tradition’ is just slightly mental; after all, it’s supposed to be their last song.
But with an unexpected encore of ‘Take My Temperature’, played upon request from a fan on their message board (though a request during the show for ’1A.K.A.’ is refused with a firm ‘no’), they dazzle for a few more minutes before bowing out. There was no need to gauge the heat of the crowd – it was sweltering enough to make you glad to be out in the cold.
And, sadly, ‘that was the end of that.’
Previously published on This Is Fake DIY.
Tags: kaiser chiefs, Live, Review