CD of The Week

Kasabian was not always a band that I enjoyed. I remember when they first came on the scene, they had some big supporters, most notably Noel Gallagher. Despite that, I never really came around to them. Recently, I have changed my tune. They’re really a fantastic band with an original sound, but it just took me a little while to realize it. Their latest offering, Velociraptor!, is a mini representation of that idea. After recently getting into Kasabian, I was looking forward to this new record, but when it came out, I was initially a little disappointed. The more I heard though, the more I realized that this was another great record from the Leicestershire five piece.

The most interesting part of this album is that there is not constant sound through out. It jumps from lighter beats to heavier ones, to songs with no beats at all. I’m sure this wasn’t the plan, but it sounds like they just wrote a bunch of random songs to put on the record. Despite this, it still sounds coherent. It starts with “Let’s Roll Like We Used To”, which kicks the record off with a gong, some trumpets, and a middle eastern type sound. From there, they just to a more typical Kasabian type sound with “Days Are Forgotten” with a perfect mix of heavier beats and good rock music. Then the next track is more of an acoustic track, and their off to being all over the place. One of the highlights is their Beatles influenced track called “La Fee Verte”, which sounds much like “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds”. It’s even complete with the lyric “Old green fairy, what you've done to me / I see Lucy in the sky telling me I'm high”.

Another stand out track is “Acid Turkish Bath”, which refers back to the Middle Eastern influence you heard in the first track. Kasabian is really showing off what they can do musically, and that they’re not a one trick pony. They’re certainly special musicians, and this just adds another dimension that they go through with this record.

This album may take you for a loop on first listen. Maybe you’ll ask yourself where they’re going with this. I can’t answer that, but I do know it’s good and one of my favorites from this year. Don’t give up on it after first listen, though! If you’ve listened to Kasabian only once before, give Velociraptor! a try, you just may learn to love the band. Check them out live at The TLAin Philadelphia on March 21st.