Kasabian have become one of the country's biggest bands. Peter Warzynski looks at the Mercury's coverage of the city rockers.
February 1999 The band's first mention in the Leicester Mercury under the name, Saracuse. The first words they uttered in the paper were: "There are no boundaries to our music, as we would like it to appeal on a universal scale."February 2000 A year later and another brief mention as Saracuse. This time a review of a gig at the Charlotte. "Singer Tom Meighan has a confident, powerful and tuneful delivery, the two guitars mesh and spark off each other in an incendiary fashion and the whole band has a certain impressive swagger about it."November 2003 An interview in The Week, with the lads talking about their mounting fame, and Serge is still called Sergio. "We're just normal lads from Leicester," says Tom. "We've been in meetings with marketing and record company people when they've started to get a bit pretentious and, for us, it's hard not to laugh."May 2004 One week before the release of Clubfoot, the band meet reporters at HMV in High Street. Sergio said: "This isn't fake. We've got a major record deal and the city of Leicester is behind us. "We always thought we were going to get signed – we also thought we were going to be the biggest band in the world."June 2004 Kasabian give music lovers some rock for breakfast at Glastonbury on the Other Stage. Guitarist Serge Pizzorno said: "We're first on in the morning and we're going to play like we're headlining. Our aim is to set the mark for other bands."January 2005 Kasabian single Cut Off enters the chart at number eight. Tom said: "We're on the crest of a wave, so we've just got to keep going that way. We've got to. "Let's face it, we're grafters man, we're not lazy gits. We love it."July 2006 Lead singer Tom Meighan describes their album, Empire, as "Marc Bolan smoking crack with Doctor Who".December 2006 The local heroes play the first of two gigs at De Montfort Hall to a crowd of almost 2,000 supporters.August 2007 The lifelong Leicester City fans talk about the new-look club. "Milan Mandaric is a fantastic chairman," said Tom. "He is responsible and respected, and cares about the people. "I think we have got, in Martin Allen, the kind of manager we have been missing for a long time." Leicester are relegated to the third tier of English football by the end of the season.March 2008 Halfway through recording West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum, their third album. Tom said: "We're hitting a peak right now and it's an amazing time for us to be making a third album. "I don't think we'll get to this peak again. "We want this to be our ultimate record."August 2008 Serge calls the bomb squad to his house after a hand grenade was found in his garden. He said: "All it could have taken was the vibrations from a kickabout in the garden or some loud music and we would have been blown to pieces in a pile of rubble and smoke."May 2009 Three weeks before the release of West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum. "I created this stuff in a bedroom in Leicester and now it's all over the world, and it keeps going," Serge says. "I wrote the new album in my house, in a little room."June 2009 West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum goes straight to number one in the charts.November 2009 Kasabian feature on the front cover of NME with the quote: "Oasis have gone. WE are the biggest band in Britain now!"July 2010 Spanish footballer Fernando Torres reveals his love for the band. He said: "I read that Messi had discovered Oasis and was listening to them before World Cup matches, so I texted him to say that, while Oasis were good, Kasabian were the best British band since The Beatles."April 2011 Velociraptor! is released. On writing the album, Serge said: "I see myself as a sort of vessel, I don't even think the songs have anything to do with me. "I don't really know how or why it works, but every now and again something happens and I just seem to be able to write a song." October 2011 Noel Gallagher was asked about rumours that Kasabian tried to recruit him after the break-up of Oasis. He said: "No, that's nonsense – and I would've joined that band in a heartbeat, by the way. "But they never asked. I never really got calls off anyone."November 2013 The Victoria Park homecoming gig is announced. "It feels like it was just meant to be," said Serge. "It's going to be the 10-year anniversary of the first album, so it feels right. "It feels like we've been building up to this since the start. We're so excited. Hopefully the whole city will come alive."June 2014 48:13, the band's fifth album, is released along with the first single, Eez-eh. "It's about having a bit of fun," said Tom, right. "It's cheeky. People were shocked when we first played it. "People were like, 'what the **** is this', but you can't get the stuff out of your head."• For more Kasabian news, reviews, galleries and features see our Kasabian page.
February 1999 The band's first mention in the Leicester Mercury under the name, Saracuse. The first words they uttered in the paper were: "There are no boundaries to our music, as we would like it to appeal on a universal scale."February 2000 A year later and another brief mention as Saracuse. This time a review of a gig at the Charlotte. "Singer Tom Meighan has a confident, powerful and tuneful delivery, the two guitars mesh and spark off each other in an incendiary fashion and the whole band has a certain impressive swagger about it."November 2003 An interview in The Week, with the lads talking about their mounting fame, and Serge is still called Sergio. "We're just normal lads from Leicester," says Tom. "We've been in meetings with marketing and record company people when they've started to get a bit pretentious and, for us, it's hard not to laugh."May 2004 One week before the release of Clubfoot, the band meet reporters at HMV in High Street. Sergio said: "This isn't fake. We've got a major record deal and the city of Leicester is behind us. "We always thought we were going to get signed – we also thought we were going to be the biggest band in the world."June 2004 Kasabian give music lovers some rock for breakfast at Glastonbury on the Other Stage. Guitarist Serge Pizzorno said: "We're first on in the morning and we're going to play like we're headlining. Our aim is to set the mark for other bands."January 2005 Kasabian single Cut Off enters the chart at number eight. Tom said: "We're on the crest of a wave, so we've just got to keep going that way. We've got to. "Let's face it, we're grafters man, we're not lazy gits. We love it."July 2006 Lead singer Tom Meighan describes their album, Empire, as "Marc Bolan smoking crack with Doctor Who".December 2006 The local heroes play the first of two gigs at De Montfort Hall to a crowd of almost 2,000 supporters.August 2007 The lifelong Leicester City fans talk about the new-look club. "Milan Mandaric is a fantastic chairman," said Tom. "He is responsible and respected, and cares about the people. "I think we have got, in Martin Allen, the kind of manager we have been missing for a long time." Leicester are relegated to the third tier of English football by the end of the season.March 2008 Halfway through recording West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum, their third album. Tom said: "We're hitting a peak right now and it's an amazing time for us to be making a third album. "I don't think we'll get to this peak again. "We want this to be our ultimate record."August 2008 Serge calls the bomb squad to his house after a hand grenade was found in his garden. He said: "All it could have taken was the vibrations from a kickabout in the garden or some loud music and we would have been blown to pieces in a pile of rubble and smoke."May 2009 Three weeks before the release of West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum. "I created this stuff in a bedroom in Leicester and now it's all over the world, and it keeps going," Serge says. "I wrote the new album in my house, in a little room."June 2009 West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum goes straight to number one in the charts.November 2009 Kasabian feature on the front cover of NME with the quote: "Oasis have gone. WE are the biggest band in Britain now!"July 2010 Spanish footballer Fernando Torres reveals his love for the band. He said: "I read that Messi had discovered Oasis and was listening to them before World Cup matches, so I texted him to say that, while Oasis were good, Kasabian were the best British band since The Beatles."April 2011 Velociraptor! is released. On writing the album, Serge said: "I see myself as a sort of vessel, I don't even think the songs have anything to do with me. "I don't really know how or why it works, but every now and again something happens and I just seem to be able to write a song." October 2011 Noel Gallagher was asked about rumours that Kasabian tried to recruit him after the break-up of Oasis. He said: "No, that's nonsense – and I would've joined that band in a heartbeat, by the way. "But they never asked. I never really got calls off anyone."November 2013 The Victoria Park homecoming gig is announced. "It feels like it was just meant to be," said Serge. "It's going to be the 10-year anniversary of the first album, so it feels right. "It feels like we've been building up to this since the start. We're so excited. Hopefully the whole city will come alive."June 2014 48:13, the band's fifth album, is released along with the first single, Eez-eh. "It's about having a bit of fun," said Tom, right. "It's cheeky. People were shocked when we first played it. "People were like, 'what the **** is this', but you can't get the stuff out of your head."• For more Kasabian news, reviews, galleries and features see our Kasabian page.
