KAISER CHIEFS

Kaiser Chiefs’ Easy Eighth Album (Kaiser Chiefs Recordings)

Remember the good old days, the pre-COVID days, the pre-austerity days of 2004? Yeah? Good, weren’t it? The first generation of post-Britpop bands. Young estate agents up and down the country doing key bumps to the hooligan pop of The Fratellis, the Soccer Aid belch of Kasabian and – bigger than them all – the meaningless stadium roar of the Kaiser Chiefs.

Naming their album and record label after themselves suggests a lack of confidence. Having outlived the competition, where do they fit in in a world of post-COVID, post-truth, pre-apocalyptic tensions? Hiring Nile Rodgers should give a clue. How 2 Dance is Get Lucky ordered from Wish; Burning In Flames sounds like something left behind from Bowie’s Let’s Dance.

There’s no doubting Ricky Wilson and co know their way round a pop hook and there’s plenty here for their fanbase to enjoy. The Job Centre Shuffle shows them at their most adventurous and belligerent, all squealing trumpets and effing and jeffing. But they know their audience, and closing song The Lads will keep them in adoring festivals for a good while yet.

words PAUL JENKINS