Kasabian at Victoria Park

Kasabian have released five studio albums since forming in Leicester in 1997. On the summer solstice, the band returned to their hometown in support of their fourth number one album 48:13, to a sold-out crowd of 50,000 people in Victoria Park in the centre of Leicester. Building up to the gig it seemed everyone in town would be going, and there was a palpable buzz around the city. There was a real sense that Kasabian were keen to do something special for their hometown fans, a decade since releasing their eponymous debut, and that the fans were keen to make it special for the band in return.

Supporting the headliners on the night were DJ Zane Lowe, Beardy Man, Jagwar Ma and Rudimental. After an explosive set from Rudimental the stage was flooded with pink lighting, the same pink as the 48:13 album cover and the countdown to the show began. The countdown reached the last ten seconds with the crowd roaring the final few numbers, and chants of Eez-eh and Lestah could be heard in earnest.

White sheets dropped around the stage as Kasabian emerged to the shouts and screams of their hometown, launching into (Shiva) and Bumblebee, the two opening tracks of their new release – both big songs that got everyboy jumping, surging forward, and singing along.

With five acclaimed albums, they weren’t short of tracks to play, almost all of them being hits and crowd favourites. Having been together since 1997 you can tell their comfort on stage, and how they still love performing together. They played songs from all of their albums, the performances were tight and you got a feeling that there were keen to show their local fans how far they’d come. The highlight of the concert was the encore; the band were in their stride as they re-emerged on stage to play Switchblade Smile and Vlad the Impaler, followed by Fatboy Slim’s Praise You. With the whole city singing along it, it was the emotional climax.

Kasabian closed the gig with LSF to a huge reaction, with the backing-vocal riff rippling through the 50,000-strong crowd screaming it at the top of their lungs.

Clement Cordery
Photos: Rococo Imaging

For further information and future events visit Kasabian’s website here.

Watch the video for Eez-eh here: