FITTINGLY, for a man whose band’s debut album was named Employment, Ricky Wilson reminded a damp Dalby Forest of his best work.
Wilson – lead vocalist of Leeds band Kaiser Chiefs – is known to as many people these days for his three-year stint as a judge on BBC’s The Voice.
But, having promised to entertain his sold-out North Yorkshire audience after arriving on stage in a pink leather jacket, Wilson delivered and he remains an accomplished frontman, encouraging crowd participation, surfing above their heads and climbing scaffolding during a rousing one-and-a-half hour set.
Admittedly, like Wilson’s CV, the Kaisers’ shows are a little more mainstream a decade on from the days of bouncing around in sweaty Glasgow conference centres.
Kaiser Chiefs at Dalby Forest: "A move towards more pop-sounding material". Picture: Mike Cowling
Many of those fans were still present, but plenty had primary school-aged children bobbing up and down on their shoulders who were thrilled when Wilson picked them out and started mimicking their moves.
Having also showcased four new songs from their forthcoming album Stay Together, due to be released in October, all but one suggested a move towards more pop-sounding material with the likely next single Parachute seemingly a mixture of three different Eighties’ hits you can’t quite put your finger on. I’m still undecided whether that’s a good thing or not.
I Predict A Riot, meanwhile, retained all of its live lustre and the equally-anthemic Ruby was a big crowd pleaser before Oh My God ended the night.
As everybody headed for their cars chanting the accompanying chorus, "I’ve never felt this far away from home", Dalby’s brilliantly organised stewards also deserve great praise for ensuring that wasn’t quite literally the case, given the Forestry Commission woodland's challenging access headaches.
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