The
Kasabian show last night at Webster Hall was disappointing. Not the band's performance, which was quite energetic, but rather the new songs off of
Empire. They are pretty bad. Very bluesy rock, and unlike the stuff on
Kasabian. Kind of like how
Give Out But Don't Give In followed
Screamadelica (which also coincides with their progression as Primal Scream clones). The new songs also have a touch of
Heathen Chemistry-era Oasis, but not as good. Anyway, the surprisingly sold-out crowd seemed to enjoy itself. When Kasabian played their old stuff, like "Club Foot," "Reason is Treason," "Processed Beats," and "L.S.F.", the crows went especially mad. And the band seemed to have fun on stage, putting a lot of energy into the show. If only they stayed away from
Empire...
Now, I'm a huge fan of Kasabian's live show, and
I've said before that their live show was the best of the year. But there was something lacking last night - mostly when they played the new stuff.
Mew was one of the openers, and much like their albums, they had a couple of great songs, but a lot of slow, boring ones. Mew, whose members look like elves with guitars, has quite the flair for the dramatic - coordinating high-pitched vocals with the light show and bizarre videos behind the stage. "Special" and "Apocalypso" were great, but overall, the best I can say for Mew was that their show was "atmospheric." Very Pink Floyd-esque.
The Diggs