A celebration of Kasabian's 23-year career

Fans have been rocked by the news that Tom Meighan has left Kasabian on 6th July. The band released a statement to their social media profiles, which read, 'Tom Meighan is stepping down from Kasabian by mutual consent.

'Tom has struggled with personal issues that have affected his behaviour for quite some time and now wants to concentrate all his energies on getting his life back on track. We will not be commenting further.'

The band also turned commenting on the post to avoid discussion amongst fans. Tom then spoke out about leaving Kasabian later on in the day, writing on Twitter, 'Following today's announcement I just wanted to let you all know that I am doing well. I'm in a really good place now. Thanks for all your love and support. I'll be seeing you all very soon. TM x.'

WATCH: Kasabian backstage at Isle Of Wight Festival 2018

They may have been on a break recently, but Kasabian will come bursting back onto the scene VERY soon with new music, as they're currently in the studio. After releasing 'For Crying Out Loud' in 2017, Tom Meighan, Sergio Pizzorno, Chris Edwards and Ian Matthews, took some time out of the band to chill out.

After announcing a gig for the summer of 2020, Serge told NME about the upcoming record, "We’ve trodden a lot of ground with the back catalogue of the band being quite varied and insane, which is beautiful. The last decade was just us waiting at the bus stop, now the bus has come. Let’s get on it and get on to the next decade." Read on for more about Kasabian's career so far...

Where are Kasabian from?

Kasabian formed in Leicester in 1997. Originally known as Saracuse, the founding line-up was made of singer Tom Meighan, guitarist-singer Serge Pizzorno, guitarist Chris Karloff and bassist Chris Edwards.

Following in the footsteps of the likes of The Band and Traffic, Kasabian lived together in a remote farmhouse as they worked on their musical stew. Their ingredients included elements of The Stone Roses and Happy Mondays, with an added dollop of Oasis-style swagger and Primal Scream electronics.

Who are Kasabian named after?

Kasabian are named after Linda Kasabian, who was a former member of the notorious murderous 60s cult, The Manson Family, which was led by Charles Manson. She was the getaway driver for the infamous Tate-LaBianca murders and later became a key witness during the prosecution of Manson.

How many albums have Kasabian released?

To date, Kasabian have released six albums: ‘Kasabian’ (2004), ‘Empire’ (2006), ‘West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum’ (2009), ‘Velociraptor!’ (2011), ’48.13’ (2014) and ‘For Crying Out Loud’ (2017).

When are Kasabian releasing new music?

Very soon. The band shared a photo in August 2019 on Twitter of a hand with some writing on which reads, 'Light BBQ tune guitar album 7'. So that's what we can expect!

When did Kasabian headline Glastonbury?

Kasabian brought the festival to a close when they headlined the Pyramid Stage on 29 June, 2014. Playing a 21-song set, highlights included spirited renditions of ‘Bumblebee’, ‘Processed Beats’, ‘Underdog’ and perennial closer ‘L.S.F. (Lost Souls Forever)’. They were also joined by comedian and friend of the band Noel Fielding during ‘Vlad The Impaler’.

Kasabian’s performance was subsequently nominated for Headline Performance of the Year at the 2014 UK Festival Awards, and for Best Festival Performance at the 2014 Live UK Music Business Awards.

Kasabian’s Glastonbury headliner was their fifth appearance at the legendary festival. Their Glastonbury debut was made at the unholy hour of 11am in the Other Stage in 2004. They returned to the Other Stage the following year and played just before headliners Razorlight.

They then made their first Pyramid Stage appearance in 2007 ahead of Arctic Monkeys’ headlining slot, and then again two years later before Bruce Springsteen And The E-Street Band.

How many hits have Kasabian had?

Kasabian have scored 12 Top 40 hit singles: ‘Club Foot’, ‘L.S.F. (Lost Souls Forever)’, ‘Processed Beats’ (2004), ‘Cut Off’ (2005), ‘Empire’, ‘Shoot The Runner’ (2006), ‘Me Plus One’ (2007), ‘Fire’, ‘Where Did All The Love Go?’, ‘Underdog’ (2009), ‘Days Are Forgotten’ (2011) and ‘Eez-eh’ (2014).

Five of their albums – ‘Empire’ (2006), ‘West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum’ (2009), ‘Velociraptor!’ (2011), ’48.13’ (2014) and ‘For Crying Out Loud’ (2017) have all gone to No 1 in the UK album charts.

Have Kasabian appeared on any film soundtracks?

They have indeed. To date, their music has been used in 12 films. These include ‘Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle Of Life’ (‘Reason Is Treason’) and ‘Avengers Assemble’ (‘Pistols At Dawn’).

The makers of the 2011 crime movie ‘London Boulevard’, which starred Colin Farrell and Keira Knightly, were clearly huge fans as three songs were included in the soundtrack: ‘La Feé Verte’, ‘Narcotic Farm’ and ‘Club Foot’. So much so, in fact, they let Serge Pizzorno compose the music for the film.

How much are Kasabian worth?

To date, Kasabian’s self-titled debut has gone 3 x Platinum in the UK, while ‘Empire’ (2006) has gone twice Platinum, as has ‘West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum’ (2009).

‘Velociraptor!’ (2011) and ’48.13’ (2014) have both been certified Platinum, and ‘For Crying Out Loud’ (2017) has gone Gold.

So that’s quite a fair bit, then

Have Kasabian split up?

The band haven't split up, but frontman and vocalist Tom Meighan has left the band after releasing a statement on social media.

Kasabian solo projects

Guitarist and songwriter Serge Pizzorno has been working on his solo project, The S.L.P., which is named after the initials of his full name, Sergio Lorenzo Pizzorno. The S.L.P.’s debut single, ‘Favourites’, was released in 2019 and featured the rapper Little Simz, while the eponymous album reached No. 7 in the UK charts.

Scroll through to see our favourite live Kasabian moments:

WATCH: Kasabian - 'Fire' (Live at The Box for Absolute Radio in 2012)

You can hear Kasabian's biggest hits on the Absolute Radio playlist. Listen to Absolute Radio now.

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