The Kaiser Chiefs can do no wrong it seems. They are the current darlings of the indie crowd and their platinum selling debut album Employment has spawned hit single after hit single and was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize. Their set was arguably the highlight of this years Glastonbury Festival despite front man Ricky Wilson almost being upstaged by a giant inflatable dinosaur, subsequently nicknamed the Kaisersaur. Their star is still very much in the ascendancy and it’s showing no signs of slowing down just yet. Music4M's Michelle Annable caught up with the Chiefs guitarist Andrew ‘Whitey’ White during the bands US tour. Usually one of the less vocal members during group interviews, we got him alone and found that, far from being the so called quiet one, he is utterly charming and once you get him started he just can’t shut up!

You’re on tour in the States right now. How’s it going?
“It’s going OK. We’re on tour with the Foo Fighters and Weezer and we’re having a ball. It makes a nice change that we’re having fun this time around.”

Didn’t you have fun last time?
“Not really, it was much more hard work. We played 16 gigs over 20 days which in itself isn’t a problem. We could go out and play every night. It’s the travelling that gets you, well it gets me anyway. The gigs we played were really far apart and, if we weren’t playing, we were on a bus or a plane. This is probably going to sound a bit daft but flying is really exhausting. Playing ended up becoming a really welcome break from all the travelling, for me at least.”

What have you been doing differently on this tour then? Have you learned to relax?
“We’ve been hanging out with the Foo Fighters a lot after shows. They’re a great bunch of lads. We get on really well with them. They’re just so . . . . nice! And really easy to get along with.”

Well, they do say that Dave Grohl is “The Nicest Man in Rock TM”.
“It’s true! He is literally the nicest man in rock, possibly even the nicest man in the world. He’s one of those people who from the second he walks through the door, he commands the room with his presence. The man has no arrogance whatsoever. He’ll make time for anyone who wants to talk to him. He is just so nice! I really can’t think of a better way to describe him.”

What kind of reaction are you getting from Foo Fighters audiences?
“It’s really good. They’re taking to us quite well. With these gigs there’s a split audience. You’ve got your people who are there to see the Foo Fighters and your people who are there to see Weezer. We might sound a little bit different to them but essentially we’re all about the same thing – good quality rock and roll songs. We want people to have a good time and there’s been lots of jumping up and down so we must’ve succeeded.”

Has your profile in the US increased as a result of your appearance on the Philadelphia leg of Live 8? “Not really massively. But then we weren’t actually shown on the televisual marathon over in the States. A really big deal was made of it back home in the UK, they were like, ‘we’re now going over live to Philadelphia so you can see our very own Kaiser Chiefs open Live 8 USA’. In reality the only people who saw us were the people who were actually there and the people watching on TV back home.”

But we keep hearing all these reports of how you’re succeeding where so many British bands have failed. How you’re going to return home as all conquering heroes, having blazed a trail across America and had them worshipping at your feet.
“Yeah, I know that’s what the papers back home have been saying but it’s a bit of an exaggeration. We are doing well and we are getting a good reaction from the audiences over there but there’s still a long way to go yet. Middle America is traditionally the hardest area to crack and it’ll be no different for us than it has been for any British band that has gone before us. Unfortunately it’s not as simple as flying over there and playing a few gigs. You have to really get in their faces before they sit up and pay attention. We’re only just beginning the hard slog.”

Do you think you can do it?
“I don’t know (chuckles), maybe. We’ll have to wait and see.”

M: What are your plans when you return to the UK?
“We’re doing another tour and then we’ve got a single out in November which will be available from your local music emporium from . . . the 11th I believe, should you wish to buy it (laughs). Only joking! Seriously though, we do have a single out in November. It’s called Modern Way and it’s going to be the last single taken from Employment.”

You forgot to mention the DVD.
“Oh yeah. It’s going to be called Enjoyment. See what we did there? (laughs) Personally I think it’s going to be really good. To put it simply we’ve made a film about ourselves, it’s about ninety minutes long with loads of live footage, documentary style clips and bit of home video and charts our history over the last eight years. It tells the story of how the Kaiser Chiefs came to be.”
M: Eight years worth of footage! So it even goes back to the old Parva days then?
“Yeah, it does. It’s really cool. For anyone who doesn’t know Parva was the BKC (Before Kaiser Chiefs) incarnation of the band. We’re really chuffed with it. It has everything the Kaiser Chiefs fan could possibly want and a whole lot of other stuff they probably didn’t even think they wanted but will once they find out about it. It basically our life for the last eight years and making it brought back some great memories.”

Employment has been hanging around in the top ten albums for months on end now. Were you shocked by its success? “In a word, yes. I mean, we were confident in what we’d written. We thought it was good and we hoped other people would think so too. We didn’t anticipate anything like this . . . .” he trails off.

 Now, I don't usually do this but at this stage I feel compelled to point out just how genuinely shocked Whitey seems by his bands meteoric rise to the top. He's quite clearly still coming to terms with it himself so he can be forgiven for struggling to find the words to explain how it feels to someone else.
M: How are you going to follow it up? Do you think you can better it?
“I don't know what we'll come up with next. It's not going to be a carbon copy of Employment I can tell you that much. As for topping it, maybe we will, maybe we won't. It's too soon to say. All we care about is writing good songs. As long as we do that then we're happy.”

Is it possible you'll return to the heavier sound you had back in the Parva days?
“Maybe. We've learnt not to categorize what we do in terms like, that's a heavy song or that one's a poppy song. We just look at things in terms of good and bad. Something either works or it doesn't and that's all we're bothered about. We just want to be like the Beatles. We're not alone in that I think most bands want to be the Beatles, just look at Oasis. It's nothing to be ashamed of.”

Ooh, I’d never have guessed. Anyone who has seen the Kaiser Chiefs live can’t fail to have noticed the grey suit, mop top hair do and high slung guitar a la John Lennon you’ve been working.

Do you think you have the strength and depth of talent to sustain your career for as long as the Beatles did? Do you think your songs will stand the test of time like their songs have?
“Yes I think we have. I don’t want to sound like I’m blowing my own trumpet or anything but I’ve written fifteen songs over the last few months which may or may not appear on the next album. Nick (Hodgson, drums) wrote most of the songs on the last album but that doesn’t mean he’s the only songwriter in the band. We all have the talent and ability to write and there’s plenty of room for everyone to have a go. We all have different influences too and with that strength in numbers I think there’s a good chance that we can develop and have longevity.”

What does the New Year hold for the Kaiser Chiefs?
“More touring.”

Speaking of touring I had hoped you’d be playing Newcastle on you October tour. Are we not good enough for you any more? “No it’s not that. You didn’t have any venues big enough for us!” (laughs) “No not really. We’re hoping to do a more extensive UK tour next year which will take in more places.”

What do you miss about the UK when you’re away?
“Hmm . . . (thinks). Actually, do you know what I miss the most? Talking to another British person. Hearing your Geordie accent is so nice.”

Ooh you smooth talker you! Flattery will get you everywhere.
“No really. I’ve heard nothing but American accents for the last few weeks and it’s nice to be reminded of home. To hear a British accent, especially a northern one is nice. It keeps your feet on the ground and makes you look forward to going home. It’s been really nice talking to you.”

With that he’s off. He has a sound check to do and is running late. It’s no wonder! Glancing at my watch I see that our ten minute chat has turned into half an hour. Whitey is an easy conversationalist and ever so charming with it. I think I have a new crush.
 

www.kaiserchiefs.co.uk