Kaiser Chiefs – The Powerstation May 10, 2012

It was their first show in New Zealand, and they played to a sold out crowd at Auckland’s Powerstation, so the good money was on the Kaiser Chiefs to be at the top of their game, and they didn’t disappoint.

After a brief (and somewhat bewildering) musical interlude from Sting and Dire Straits singing “I Want My MTV” from Money For Nothing, the Leeds rockers roared out of the starting gate with Na Na Na Na Naa, one of the many sing-a-long anthems for their 2005 album Employment.

Although the songwriting talent lies mostly with drummer Nick Hodgson, it is singer Ricky Wilson who commands the stage during the band’s live shows. After Everything Is Average Nowadays, he frantically insisted that the crowd stop clapping so that they had more time to play. Of course he only fuelled the fire as they kick into Kinda Girl You Are and Good Days Bad Days.

Wilson noted that their best-of compilation, Souvenir, was due to be released in about 90 minutes and then played On The Run, a new track from the album.

After that came an early highlight. Everyday I Love You Less And Less got the crowd jumping and after a somewhat subdued Little Shocks, the three-pronged attack of I Predict A Riot, Modern Way and The Angry Mob really got the fists pumping at The Powerstation.

Of course Ruby was another crowd-pleaser and after encouraging the crowd to yell their lungs out, Wilson led the band through a rocking Take My Temperature, before ending the regular set with Listen To Your Head, another new one from Souvenir.

The band was back on stage for Love’s Not A Competition and the obligatory Oh My God, which sent the crowd off satisfied and exhausted.

While the other bandmembers served their purpose just fine, it really was Wilson’s show all the way. He climbed on the PA, he ran through the crowd, he made his way to the back of the room; he even got most of the audience to sit down at one point.

The Kaiser Chiefs are not known for their subtlety, but rather their big, easy-to-sing-a-long anthems. That’s just what the sold out crowd came to hear, and that’s exactly what they got.

Marty Duda

Photographer Jonathan Ganley was on the scene to grab some images for The 13th Floor…look at them here: