Kasabian

The self-titled debut arrived in 2004. Its mixture of electronics, bass-heavy repetition and rock vocals gave the band a recognisable language early on. Sergio Pizzorno’s songwriting and Tom Meighan’s lead performances helped turn that language into songs which could occupy both a club-minded playlist and a festival set.

The important ingredient is patience. Kasabian can let a short figure run until the listener knows it physically, then change a layer around it. The song grows through additions and subtractions as much as through a new chord sequence.

Empire followed in 2006. The title track makes the band’s taste for scale clear: a commanding rhythm, a chant-like hook and a sense that every part is arriving from a slightly different angle. The surrounding album expands the arrangements without giving up the low-end drive.

West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum, released in 2009, makes more room for strange turns and contrasting moods. Fire is its most immediate example of tension being held, then released. The verse keeps something in reserve; the chorus spends it. That simple dramatic choice gives the record much of its force.

Later albums continued to alter the balance between electronic construction and the sound of a band in full flight. The early trilogy still explains the appeal particularly well. Under the spectacle there is usually a small, stubborn musical idea, and Kasabian know how long to keep it running before opening the doors.