Several members of the band are ardent fans of the English football team Leeds United (as the band originates from Leeds). The band are named after the South African Kaizer Chiefs Football Club, the former team of long-serving former Leeds captain Lucas Radebe.
The band's main musical influences include The Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Kinks, Blur, Eric Burdon, The Jam, and other new wave bands. Andrew White (b. England; guitar), Ricky Wilson (b. Charles Richard Wilson, 17 January 1975, Keighley, West Yorkshire, England; vocals), Nick Baines (keyboards), Nick Hodgson (b. Nicholas Hodgson, 20 October 1977, England; drums) and Simon Rix (b. James Simon Rix, 18 October 1977, England; bass) formed the band in early 2003, having originally played garage rock under the Parva moniker. Their energetic brand of post-millennial guitar rock, which would have been branded "indie" in previous decades, quickly found favour on the local gig circuit. The quintet issued their debut, the XTC-soundalike Oh My God, before they had even signed a proper recording contract, teaming up with the Drowned In Sound website in May 2004 for a limited edition release. A contract with the B-Unique label followed and the band began to attract wider interest at the end of 2004 with the release of their storming I Predict A Riot. The topical lyrics, concerning alcohol-fuelled violence in small English towns, attracted as much attention as the band's anarchic update on late 70s new wave.
The band's explosion onto the global music scene in early 2005 was epitomised when they had their first single I Predict A Riot off their debut album Employment played on the radio around the world and opened Live8 in Philadelphia. Several years prior to 2003 the members of the band had been a garage rock group called Parva (before that they had been known as Runston Parva). However, after their label Mantra Records went bust in late 2002, the band went back to their roots and adopted a more britpop sound, helping the band reach their current popularity within the UK and beyond as a consequence.
The band re-released the single Oh My God on 21 February, which charted at #6. The debut album Employment was released on 7 March 2005 and entered the charts at #3 that week. Despite becoming favourite after being shortlisted, the album failed to win the 2005 Mercury Music Prize. They covered the Marvin Gaye classic, Heard it Through the Grapevine for the War Child album Help! A Day in the Life, giving a whole new slant on the song.
A DVD, entitled Enjoyment, was released in November 2005. The basis of the DVD is a (semi-false) documentary about the band narrated by Bill Nighy. It also includes all the promo videos, live performances and more.
An internet-only (so far) music video for their song Sink that Ship has been released in September 2005. The video appears on Electronic Arts' website as a promotional tool for their game Burnout Revenge but is completely unbranded.
Wilson auctioned off his red tambourine to radio show Xfm in late 2005 to raise money for the homeless charity Shelter. The winning bid was £375.00.
On February 5th, The Kaiser Chiefs Released their next single, Ruby, which was a major success reaching #1 in the singles charts.
The Kaiser Chiefs released their new album, Yours Truly, Angry Mob on February 23, 2007 in The Netherlands and Belgium, February 26, 2007 in the United Kingdom and on March 27, 2007 in North America. A double disc edition is also available, the second disc being a DVD.
It is known that three of the band members went to a school near Highroyd, Leeds. Also, Nick (drummer) announced during a gig in Newcastle Upon Tyne that his dad went to a school called St. Cuthberts in Newcastle. Other famous people from that school include Ant & Dec and Sting.
The band released their third album, Off With Their Heads, on October 20, 2008. It contains the hit single Never Miss a Beat.
Songfacts states that the band's fourth album, The Future Is Medieval was released through the band's website on June 3, 2011. In effect the world's first bespoke album, fans are able to create their own version of the record by choosing their favorite 10 tracks from the selection of 20 on offer. One-minute excerpts allow them to make their selections and each song is represented by an object.
After creating their own album, people can then share their version of the record with other fans, and earn £1 each time it is purchased by someone else.
5th album "Education, Education, Education and War!" was released on 31st March 2014 on Fiction Records, featuring the UK Top 40 single, 'Coming Home', and was their first UK number one album since 2007's 'Yours Truly, Angry Mob'.
Also on the Fiction label, their 6th album, Stay Together, was released on the 7th October 2016, with a notable shift towards dance-pop, hitting #4 on the UK Albums Chart.
In 2019, they moved to Polydor, and released 'Duck' on 26th July, featuring the singles 'Record Collection' and 'People Know How To Love One Another'. It peaked at #3 on the UK Albums Chart.
Performances
Kaiser Chiefs' first big festival show was at the dual-site Reading and Leeds Festival on 27 August 2004 and in the following year, on 16 May 2005, they appeared at the Pinkpop Festival in Landgraaf, The Netherlands. After that, things went fast. They were the opening act at the Philadelphia Live 8 concert on July 2nd 2005, one of only two British acts in the lineup (Def Leppard being the other). They performed I Predict a Riot, Everyday I Love You Less and Less and Oh My God. They played Reading and Leeds in 2006 before Franz Ferdinand and were extremely popular.
June 2005 saw them headline at the May Ball at Queens' College, Cambridge, supported by Anada, before an acclaimed appearance at a rain-soaked Glastonbury festival during the same month, whilst August's appearance at the V Festival featured a very enthusiastic set despite Ricky Wilson having his leg in plaster. Also more recently they embarked on their own headline UK Tour, supported by Maximo Park and The Cribs. Their first US tour (with The Cribs) ran through the summer of 2005, and they followed it by playing a few shows on the Foozer tour. This was followed up by opening for Foo Fighters during their Australian tour in December 2005. They also played to Jools Holland and his audience on December 31, 2005.
Their song Ruby, from the album Yours Truly, Angry Mob was featured as a bonus song in Guitar Hero III, and I Predict a Riot from Employment was eventually released as downloadable content for the game.
Kaiser Chiefs are set to return to the European festival scene this summer, having been booked for Switzerland's Gurten Festival.
Heard It Break
Kaiser Chiefs Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I swear I heard it break, break
I swear I heard it break, break
I swear I heard it break
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
I could've sworn that I heard it snap
It's been broke before but this hurts some more
Stretched beyond normal capacity and possibly torn
But they do say a sprain hurts more than a break
Or is that just to make you feel better about it?
I swear I heard it break
I swear I heard it break, break
I swear I heard it break, break
I swear I heard it break
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
Something is wrong a crack in the world
That'll never be right again
I'm not coping well and it's starting to tell
One thousand missed oppurtunites and possibly more
All I had to do was to look after you
And it turns out that I'm the one who needs looking after
I swear I heard it break
I swear I heard it break, break
I swear I heard it break, break
I swear I heard it break
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
In the song “Heard It Break,” Kaiser Chiefs sings about heartbreak and the physical pain that it can cause. The repeated phrase “I swear I heard it break” suggests that the singer’s heart has been broken to the point of physical pain. He compares it to a sprain – something that causes pain and can hinder movement but is not as severe as a broken bone. The lyrics go on to suggest that something in the world is not right, and it’s affecting the singer’s ability to cope. He’s missed opportunities and failed to take care of someone he cared for, leading him to feel like he needs looking after himself.
The song provides an interesting perspective on heartbreak – one that focuses on the physical pain as well as the emotional pain. It’s a reminder that heartbreak doesn’t just hurt emotionally; it can cause physical pain as well. The lyrics also hint at a sense of guilt or responsibility – the singer feels that he should have taken better care of someone and that he’s the one who needs looking after.
Overall, “Heard It Break” is a powerful song that explores the physical and emotional pain of heartbreak. It’s a reminder that love can be painful, but that we can also learn from our mistakes and take better care of ourselves and the people we care for.
Line by Line Meaning
I swear I heard it break
I am convinced that something important has been damaged or lost.
I swear I heard it break, break
I am certain that something has been broken into pieces.
I swear I heard it break, break
I am sure that something has been shattered.
I swear I heard it break
I have no doubt that something has been damaged or destroyed.
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
I am experiencing emotional pain but it is not as severe as it may seem.
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
I am feeling sadness or hurt, but it is not permanent.
I could've sworn that I heard it snap
I am certain that something has cracked or broken.
But they tell me it's just a sprain
Others are trying to reassure me that my situation is not as bad as I believe it to be.
It's been broke before but this hurts some more
I have experienced damage or loss before, but this time the pain is more intense.
Stretched beyond normal capacity and possibly torn
Something has been pushed to its limit and may have sustained damage.
But they do say a sprain hurts more than a break
Some people suggest that a less severe injury can still cause significant discomfort.
Or is that just to make you feel better about it?
I am questioning whether reassurances are given to make me feel better, rather than being based in truth.
Something is wrong a crack in the world
I perceive that a fundamental problem or flaw exists in my experience of the world.
That'll never be right again
I am coming to the realization that a situation or relationship cannot be repaired.
I'm not coping well and it's starting to tell
I am struggling to deal with my emotional pain and it is becoming evident.
One thousand missed opportunities and possibly more
I regret actions or inactions that may have contributed to my current situation.
All I had to do was to look after you
I had a responsibility to care for someone, but failed to do so.
And it turns out that I'm the one who needs looking after
I now realize that I am the one who needs help or support.
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
I am still hurting emotionally, but the situation is not as dire as it may seem.
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
I am experiencing emotional pain, but it is not permanent.
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
I am feeling sadness or hurt, but it is not as severe as it may seem.
It feels like I broke my heart again but it's just a sprain
I have experienced emotional pain before and can recover from it.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ANDREW WHITE, CHARLES RICHARD WILSON, JAMES RIX, NICHOLAS BAINES, NICHOLAS HODGSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind