Kasabian Explain New Cover

Returning Leicester indie giants Kasabian have been busy explaining the meaning behind the cover art to forthcoming album 'West Rider Pauper Asylum'.

Kasabian leapt out of the midlands clutching a handful of fantastic songs and oodles of ambition. Their debut album was released in 2004 to no little acclaim, catapulting the group into a world of arena tours and gold discs.

Five years on and it still sounds great, earning a place in our Essential 50!

The band last released an album in 2006, with 'Empire' spawning a number of hit singles. Since then Kasabian have been busy touring but found time to sneak out the low key EP release 'Fast Fuse'.

An immediate favourite with fans, the EP showed the direction the band were heading in. Forthcoming album 'West Rider Pauper Asylum' is a ballsy return, full of Kasabian's trademark attitude. The band previewed the album with a spectacular set at Camden Crawl recently, click here to read all about it!

However the album's newly released cover art has confused fans. Showing the band in vintage dress, guitarist Serge Pizzorno is dressed as an 18th century church minister - a far cry from the rock 'n' roller we all know him to be.

Speaking to NME the guitarist said "well, it’s the fancy dress in the asylum, we’re sort of getting ready to go to the end of year ball or the work do at the asylum".

"Ideas of grandeur, y’know, when kings go mad, power gets to them and they see themselves as other things…Tom (Meighan)’s Napoleon and I'm a sort of Butcher Priest. Ian (Matthews)’s a sort of mad pagan monsters of sorts and Chris (Edwards) is a little pauper sort of losing his mind eating light bulbs, reading mad literature. It’s great, you can’t take your eyes off it and it’ll fuck people off."

The band have long spoken of their love for psychedelia, and elsewhere in the interview singer Tom Meighan explains that the artwork was inspired by The Rolling Stones' classic album 'Their Satanic Majesties Request'.

"We wanted to do, like you know the Stones dressed up as wizards, and all that kind of shit," he explained. "You see these psychedelic bands dressed up as kings and stuff, so that was the take on it."

Kasabian are set to release their new album 'West Rider Pauper Asylum' on June 8th.