| |
| |
![]() |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
When British rock band Oasis were in town earlier this year, singer Liam Gallagher took delight in trashing young rock bands. But when pressed to name a band he did like, he said without hesitation: "Kasabian".
They supported Oasis during their 2005 tour and are heading to Southeast Asia. Not to Singapore, unfortunately, but Sunway Lagoon in Kuala Lumpur, where they're performing at this year's MTV Worldstage "Live in Malaysia" on Aug 15, with other acts like Boys Like Girls, Pixie Lott and Raygun.
"We're pretty excited to go there to play," said guitarist Sergio Pizzorno over the phone where they were touring the UK.
Kasabian began life about 10 years ago as Saracuse. Former member Chris Karloff chose the name after Linda Kasabian, the member of Charles Manson's cult and getaway driver when they went on their 1969 killing spree.
The band hit their stride in 2004 with their self-titled debut album and entered the UK Top 5. The second "difficult" album, Empire (2006), shot to No 1 and cemented their status as one of the hottest bands by winning Best Live Act at the 2007 NME Awards.
Which brings us to album No. 3, West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum, released earlier this year - another UK No. 1 hit - as well as their upcoming gig in Malaysia.
Pizzorno, the band's chief songwriter, said the album was inspired by a documentary about a mental institution in Leeds. He said the songs were like "a look into the madhouse".
"In your mind, you can go wherever you want," he said. "See life through the looking glass in a totally different way, it gives you the opportunity to follow your mad ideas."
You've said it's an album of reckoning. Why?
Well, you know, it's a very interesting time to do music at the moment, especially with the Internet revolution... I think this is an important record. It's a very challenging, very ambitious record, and you don't really know what people might make of it when they hear it for the first time. I think we make really good records though!
You've said the previous album was tough to make - what about this one?
I don't recall this being a challenge, actually. It all kind of flowed seamlessly, and it was one of those albums that just kind of happened really naturally and easy. We'd made (Empire) very quickly, just after we came off touring. For this, we spent a bit more time recording and getting everything down.
Were you surprised it got to No. 1 in the UK?
I wasn't too surprised. I was just happy that it got listened to and that people like it.
Your music sounds very visual, actually.
Yeah, West Ryder is like the soundtrack to an imaginary movie. We want people to listen to it as a whole piece of work, like a film or like looking at a painting. It's like the album takes you on a journey. We really care about how the album flows, what track comes first, the whole order of the album. But we like bending people's minds.
How did you get actress Rosario Dawson to sing on West Ryder Silver Bullet?
It's part of this thing about bending people's minds. It's just a really cool thing. She's a really good actress. And we liked a sort of Serge Gainsbourg/Jane Birkin duet thing, so that's kind of what started it off. She has an amazing voice. Beautiful.
You won for Best Live Act, and Liam Gallagher digs your show. Is there any pressure to up the ante?
Yes, absolutely! We want our fans to see the best performance. We're always thinking about the set and how we can make it great. But all the pressure is from within. We're always trying to keep things interesting.
What can we expect in Malaysia?
Twenty-first Century rock and roll! We do a kind of sleazy high-energy show. Kind of like Godzilla!
Do you get the touring blues?
Naturally. I think you learn to deal with it. It's not for everyone, being a touring band. I think you need a certain state of mind to get you to the end so that when you really are low with energy, you never really feel it.
What's the biggest lesson you've learned all these years?
Drinking water is important. You drink lots of water, you feel better through the day.
What is the most important thing you need to take with you on tour?
The band. Our crew. English tea!
What's your musical guilty pleasure?
Sometimes when I've been drinking, I go onto iTunes and download stuff. I wake up the next morning and think what the f*** was I doing downloading Bananarama!
MTV World Stage "Live in Malaysia" will be telecast on Aug 28 at 8pm on MTV Asia (StarHub TV Ch 20).
- TODAY/rs
|
