Brit pop-art-synth-dance-punk of the Franz / Maximo Park / Hot Hot Heat variety. These bands all came out at the same time and no one ever quite figured out what to call the genre, but you know the sound -- slightly retro, slick and smart, dancey and punky. These kids may never top 2005's Employment (their debut), but this record (their fifth) is hilarious. They basically ripped off a different band for every track, and it's clear from the lyrics and the delivery that they're cheerfully cheeky about it. The hell, they're the Kaiser Chiefs, they can do whatever they want.

Note: This is the American version of their "The Future is Medieval" project, released in 2011. These guys are a BFD in Britain, not so much here.

RIYL: Maximo Park, Franz, Art Brut, Hot Hot Heat

try: 2, 8, 11 (**), 1, 3, 10, 12 (*)
no FCCs

*1. (3:44) ~3 sec warm-up. harsh verses, mid-tempo creeper rock. slinky sidewindy piano. hella maximo park. "i wish i could give you undivided attention every minute of the day but i can't".
**2. (4:10) ~6 sec warm-up. then: beepy aggressive chorus, rumbling electric. slurred 'oh's over accent bells. the riff is effing fantastic, and the riff is the song.
*3. (3:09) hit the fog machine! cookin' mid-fast vibe-addled steel drum supa staccato 80s dance shtick. high-reg harpy happy vibra-synth. this is some serious hall n oates duran duran action right here.
4. (2:38) surf guitar lead-in. fast, surfy retro rocker. think: if only the ramones had decent production value. (this song was way better when i thought the lyrics were "i thought you were american!")
5. (5:33) agitated rudder tone swells into washy wall-of-sound. whole-note low chorus. cough oasis.
6. (3:29) holy shit, it's like three beatles tracks in one! eleanor rigby harpsichord, cutesy bopping bass, unexpectedly pretty sighing falsetto chorus. what.
7. (3:35) unapologetically cheesy. starts and durates with street noise, military drums, funk bass, brassy electric, clash style revolution singalong. "start the revolution without me, i've got to cut my hair."
**8. (3:47) fuck yeah! funky sexy beepy david bowie. styled vox, mega synth, wah-wah pedal, tight drums, funny and fun. as if they attempted a bowie cover: "you guys know his song fame, right? aw fuck, i forget how it goes, let's just use the force!"
9. (3:44) mid-tempo, comparatively chill. beatles vox (a la taxman), amusing kung fu oriental-gong stadium tropes. slurry sing-songy chorus. gets soary towards the end.
*10. (3:03) takes ~23 sec to warm up. simple yet rockin' fast garagey electric. deep synth breakdown. hilarious lyrics about being a malcontent in a society of idiots: "i see you walking down the street, you know who you are, smiling all the time."
**11. (3:50) cooking draggy mid-fast synth-slam minor on par with "oh my god". wailing twin electric solos. finally, here in the back 40 they sound the most like themselves. "i can't mind my own business, that's why i'm never out of trouble with you."
*12. (4:43) unbelievably, this could be a shins cover (circa oh, inverted world). slower, haunty high-reg vox, melodic bass, pretty and creepy all over.
13. (3:23) naked strummed guitar. a downer, sweet, longing. there are strings. "if you will have me, i want to be the boy from a photograph."