Velociraptor!

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Velociraptor!
Studio album by Kasabian
Released 16 September 2011 (2011-09-16)
Recorded November 2010 – March 2011 in Leicester, England and mixed in San Francisco, USA.
Genre Indie rock,[1][2] neo-psychedelia, space rock, electronic rock
Length 50:38
Label RCA, Columbia
Producer Dan the Automator, Sergio Pizzorno
Kasabian chronology

West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum
(2009)
Velociraptor!
(2011)
TBA
(2014)
Singles from Velociraptor!
  1. "Days Are Forgotten"
    Released: 12 August 2011
  2. "Re-Wired"
    Released: 21 October 2011
  3. "Goodbye Kiss"
    Released: 20 February 2012
  4. "Man of Simple Pleasures"
    Released: 7 May 2012

Velociraptor! is the fourth album by the British indie rock[1][3] group Kasabian, released on 16 September 2011.

It was well-received and became their 3rd UK Number one album, it's lead single Days Are Forgotten, first released in Belgium on 12 August, and in the United Kingdom on 9 September 2011 - debuted at number 28 on the UK Singles Chart.

Miscellany

"Switchblade Smiles" was made available as a free download to anybody who pre-ordered the album from the band's official website store from 7 June 2011.The track is also available as a free download on the band's fanpage on Facebook.

Q magazine listed "Re-Wired" as the number 1 track to download in their October 2011 issue.

The album cover is an edited picture of all four band members covered in feathers (as Velociraptors were traditionally feathery) and screaming, edited from the "Switchblade Smiles" music video.[4] Music videos for "Days Are Forgotten", "Re-Wired", "Goodbye Kiss", "Man of Simple Pleasures" and "Neon Noon" were also produced and released through the band's Vevo page on YouTube.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source Rating
Metacritic 79/100[5]
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [6]
Consequence of Sound [7]
Digital Spy
The Fly
Guardian [8]
The Independent
NME [9]
Q [10]
Slant [11]
Daily Telegraph [12]
Focus [13]

The album has received mostly positive reviews. On Metacritic, Velociraptor! has the band's highest rating with a score of 79 out of 100 based on 23 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[5] Their previous best album score is 68, held by West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum (2009).[14]

NME stated that Kasabian have lived up to expectations and believe the album is a huge step up from their previous albums.[citation needed] Antiquiet gave it 4 1/2 stars out of 5 and declared that "Kasabian has found a way to channel everything you love about The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and Radiohead while still keeping the unique sound that sets them apart from the contemporaries like Coldplay, Muse and The Killers."[15]

Commercial performance

The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart, selling over 90,000 copies in its first week. In 2011, Velociraptor! sold 279,000 copies in the UK.[16] With little support from Sony Music, the album failed chart in the United States.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Sergio Pizzorno. 
No. Title Length
1. "Let's Roll Just Like We Used To"   4:47
2. "Days Are Forgotten"   5:02
3. "Goodbye Kiss"   4:04
4. "La Fée Verte"   5:47
5. "Velociraptor!"   2:51
6. "Acid Turkish Bath (Shelter from the Storm)"   6:01
7. "I Hear Voices"   3:58
8. "Re-Wired"   4:44
9. "Man of Simple Pleasures"   3:51
10. "Switchblade Smiles"   4:13
11. "Neon Noon"   5:20

Personnel

Kasabian

Additional musicians
  • Ben Kealeykeyboards
  • Sandris Skyrimš – guitar
  • Tim Carter – guitar, percussion
  • Dan Ralph Martin – guitar, percussion (tracks 4 and 9)
  • Gary Alesbrook – trumpet
  • Mat Coleman – trombone
  • Andrew Kinsman – saxophone

Technical personnel
  • Aitor Throup – design and art direction
  • Neil Bedford – photography

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Chart (2011) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[ 1] 8
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[ 1] 17
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[ 1] 16
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[ 1] 11
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[ 1] 17
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[ 1] 37
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[ 1] 32
French Albums (SNEP)[ 1] 14
Irish Albums (IRMA)[ 1] 2
Italian Albums (FIMI)[ 1] 11
Mexican Albums (Top 100 Mexico)[ 1] 88
New Zealand Albums (Recorded Music NZ)[ 1] 21
Polish Albums (ZPAV)[ 1] 13
Scottish Albums (OCC)[ 1] 1
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[ 1] 31
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[ 1] 10
UK Albums (OCC)[ 1] 1
UK Digital Albums (OCC)[ 1] 1

Year-end charts

Chart (2012) Position
Italian Albums Chart[17] 66

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Italy (FIMI)[18] Gold 30,000*
Poland (ZPAV)[19] Gold 10,000*
United Kingdom (BPI)[20] Platinum 300,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

Release history

Region Date Format Label
Australia[21] 16 September 2011 CD, CD/DVD,

Digital download

Sony Music Entertainment UK
Belgium[22]
Ireland[23]
France[24] 19 September 2011
New Zealand[25]
United Kingdom[26]
Spain[27] 20 September 2011

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Music Review: Kasabian album ‘Velociraptor’ full of anthemic indie rock, an instant classic (WashingtonPost.com)
  2. "Clash Magazine Album Review: Kasabian -Velociraptor!". Clash. Retrieved 26 September 2011. 
  3. "Kasabian Planning Special Festival Slots". Clash. Retrieved 12 March 2011. 
  4. 0:55 Music video by Kasabian performing Switchblade Smiles. (C) 2011 Sony Music Entertainment UK Limited
  5. 5.0 5.1 "Velociraptor! Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 12 December 2013. 
  6. Jeffries, David (19 September 2011). "Velociraptor! - Kasabian". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 January 2012. 
  7. "Album Review: Kasabian – Velociraptor! « Consequence of Sound". Consequenceofsound.net. 27 September 2011. Retrieved 7 January 2012. 
  8. Dave Simpson (15 September 2011). "Kasabian: Velociraptor! – review | Music". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 7 January 2012. 
  9. "NME Album Reviews - Album Review: Kasabian - 'Velociraptor!'". NME. 14 September 2011. Retrieved 12 December 2013. 
  10. October 2011, p.114
  11. "Slant review". 
  12. McCormick, Neil (15 September 2011). "Kasabian: Velociraptor, CD review". The Daily Telegraph (London). 
  13. "West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 12 December 2013. 
  14. "Kasabian Swing the Talons with 'Velociraptor!'". Antiquiet. 27 September 2011. Retrieved 12 December 2013. 
  15. "The Top 20 rock singles and albums of 2011 revealed". The Official Charts Company. 17 January 2012. Retrieved 17 January 2012. 
  16. "Top 100 Album Combined - Classifica annuale (dal 2 Gennaio 2012 al 30 Dicembre 2012)" (PDF) (in Italian). Federation of the Italian Music Industry / TV Sorrisi e Canzoni. Archived from the original on 16 January 2013. 
  17. "Italian album certifications – Kadabian – Velociraptor!" (in Italian). Federation of the Italian Music Industry.  Select Album e Compilation in the field Scegli la sezione. Select Week -- and Year ----. Enter Kadabian in the field Artista. Click Avvia la ricerca
  18. "Polish album certifications – Kasabian – Velociraptor!" (in Polish). Polish Producers of Audio and Video (ZPAV). 
  19. "British album certifications – Kasabian – Velociraptor!". British Phonographic Industry.  Enter Velociraptor! in the field Search. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Click Go
  20. "iTunes - Music - Velociraptor! by Kasabian". Itunes.apple.com. 16 September 2011. Retrieved 7 January 2012. 
  21. "iTunes - Music - Velociraptor! by Kasabian". Itunes.apple.com. 16 September 2011. Retrieved 7 January 2012. 
  22. "iTunes - Music - Velociraptor! by Kasabian". Itunes.apple.com. 16 September 2011. Retrieved 7 January 2012. 
  23. "iTunes - Musique - Velociraptor! par Kasabian". Itunes.apple.com. 16 September 2011. Retrieved 7 January 2012. 
  24. "iTunes - Music - Velociraptor! by Kasabian". Itunes.apple.com. 16 September 2011. Retrieved 7 January 2012. 
  25. "iTunes - Music - Velociraptor! by Kasabian". Itunes.apple.com. 16 September 2011. Retrieved 7 January 2012. 
  26. "iTunes - Música - Velociraptor! de Kasabian". Itunes.apple.com. 16 September 2011. Retrieved 7 January 2012. 
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