Kasabian

Formed in Leicester in 1999, the band Saracuse re-named themselves after Linda Kasabian, getaway driver-turned-state-witness with the infamous Charles Manson's murderous cult. The original line-up featured Chris Karloff, Serge Pizzorno, Tom Meighan, Chris Edwards, and Ash Hannis and they played and recorded at the Bedrock Studios, where Edwards worked as an engineer. They released their debut album in 2004 and built a loyal following with their raucous stage act, achieving their first hit with stage favourite "Club Foot." Ian Matthews replaced Ash Hannis on drums in 2004 and guitarist/keyboard player Chris Karloff, also one of the main songwriters, left prior to the release of their second album Empire in 2006. Philadelphia-born guitarist Jay Mehler and keyboard player Ben Kealey became regular touring members of the band prior to the release of their third album West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum to assert their place as one of Britain's most charismatic and anarchic bands, and by 2010 they had won the approval of the masses when they won the BRIT Award for Best British Group. Fourth album Velociraptor! was released in 2011 but failed to make much of an impact on the charts, not even breaking the Billboard Top 200. They embarked on a UK tour in 2012, with their show at London's O2 filmed and screened in cinemas in the UK. The following year the band announced that Jay Mehler had left, moving his talents to Liam Gallagher's band Beady Eye. With new guitarist Tim Carter on board, they set about recording a new album, to be titled 48:13. This was released in 2014 with the lead single "Eez-eh" reaching number 22 in the UK Singles Chart. The album made the number one spot in the UK, with several other top 20 positions across Europe. The following year, off the back of the success of 48:13, Kasabian were nominated for nine NME Awards, winning two in the categories of Best British Band and Best Album. In 2017 the band released their sixth album, For Crying Out Loud, and took a five-year break before returning with their seventh studio album in 2022. The Alchemist's Euphoria marked a significant line-up shift, with Serge Pizzorno taking over lead vocals after former frontman Tom Meighan was sacked in 2020 amid his domestic assault conviction for assaulting his then-fiancee Vikki Ager.

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