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**Kasabian - Velociraptor! ★★★★☆**

By 2011, Kasabian had already carved themselves a sizeable chunk of the British rock landscape, but they were facing a crossroads that would have sent lesser bands scurrying back to their day jobs. The Leicester lads had weathered the departure of guitarist and primary songwriter Christopher Karloff in 2006, a creative rupture that could have spelled disaster for many groups. Instead, they'd doubled down on their swagger, with Tom Meighan's vocals and Serge Pizzorno's increasingly adventurous songwriting pushing them toward arena-sized ambitions. Fresh off the back of 2009's "West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum" – a psychedelic detour that proved they were more than just laddish indie rockers – the band entered the studio with producer Dan the Automator, ready to unleash something altogether more ferocious.

The result is "Velociraptor!" – complete with that gloriously unnecessary exclamation mark – an album that finds Kasabian embracing their inner predator with the kind of shameless confidence that British rock has been crying out for. This is music for the chemical generation, built from the ground up for festival fields and sweaty club nights, where the distinction between rock, dance, and pure sonic hedonism becomes beautifully irrelevant.

From the moment "Let's Roll Just Like We Used To" kicks in with its grinding electronic pulse and Meighan's sneering delivery, it's clear this is Kasabian operating at peak potency. The track builds like a controlled explosion, layering analog synths over pummeling drums until it reaches an almost transcendent state of controlled chaos. It's the sound of a band that's learned to harness their excesses without losing their essential wildness.

The album's crown jewel, "Days Are Forgotten," stands as perhaps the finest four minutes Kasabian have ever committed to tape. Beginning with a deceptively gentle acoustic strum, it gradually morphs into an anthemic monster that recalls the best of both Primal Scream's "Screamadelica" and the Stone Roses' imperial phase. Pizzorno's guitar work here is nothing short of inspired, weaving between crystalline arpeggios and fuzz-drenched power chords while the rhythm section locks into a groove that's simultaneously hypnotic and explosive. When Meighan declares "These days are forgotten," it feels less like nostalgia than a battle cry for the present moment.

Elsewhere, "Re-Wired" showcases the band's knack for marrying electronic textures with rock fundamentals, its stuttering beats and processed vocals creating an atmosphere that's both futuristic and primal. The title track, meanwhile, is pure adrenaline – a three-minute blast of punk energy filtered through the lens of modern production techniques that would make even the most jaded A&R executive reach for their checkbook.

What's most impressive about "Velociraptor!" is how it manages to sound both utterly contemporary and timelessly rock'n'roll. Dan the Automator's production strikes the perfect balance between clarity and grit, allowing every element to breathe while maintaining the raw energy that makes these songs feel dangerous. The electronic elements never feel like afterthoughts or concessions to dancefloor trends; instead, they're integral to the band's evolving sonic identity.

The album isn't without its occasional missteps – "Goodbye Kiss" ventures perhaps too far into ballad territory, and "Neon Noon" feels slightly undercooked compared to the surrounding material. But these are minor quibbles with what is essentially a statement of intent from a band hitting their creative stride.

More than a decade on, "Velociraptor!" stands as a high-water mark for British rock in the 2010s, a reminder of what can happen when ambition meets execution. While many of their contemporaries were either chasing American markets or retreating into indie comfort zones, Kasabian created something uniquely their own – a sound that was simultaneously massive and intimate, electronic and organic, celebratory and slightly menacing.

The album's influence can be heard in countless festival headliners who've followed, but few have matched its combination of sonic innovation and pure, unadulterated swagger. In an era when rock music often feels apologetic about its own existence, "Velociraptor!" remains gloriously, defiantly alive – a prehistoric beast perfectly adapted for the modern worl