Hired

With a sound fused from the likes of The Talking Heads, The Kinks, The Beach Boys, and dare it be said the Bay City Rollers, the Kaiser Chiefs debut album Employment strikes with success. The melody is simple, the harmony is kitschy, and the lyrics are at times downright hilarious. Drawing from rock and pop’s extensive archives, the Kaiser Chiefs have created a sound all onto their own.Included in the album are two different approaches to form the sarcasm that embodies the charm of the group. Some tracks contain pathetically simple melodies and lame harmonies covered by lyrics that are insubstantial and repetitive; it’s like Grease 3 for the airways. The catch is in the delivery. Singer Ricky Wilson displays a mocking undertone that makes the sound unavoidable. “Born To Be A Dancer” includes Wilson singing the word “England” against three syncopated beats. It’s so awful it’s amazing.

The other approach is with peppy beats, more rapping vocals, and lyrics that are amusing but conceptually irreverent. The chorus of “Everyday I Love You Less and Less” includes “Ohh/ And my parents love me/ Ohh/ And my girlfriend loves me/ Ohh/ They keep photos of me/ Ohh/ That’s enough love for me/ Ohh” Additionally, “na na’s” and “ho ho’s” are added for further abstractness.

In either event, the Kaiser Chiefs succeed. They took a large risk lyrically, which paid off, but lyrics aside, they’re musically talented. The Chiefs should succeed in whatever genre they decide to parody, but be doubly prepared should they ever decide to go mainstream.