Kaiser Chiefs

Kaiser Chiefs have finally made their way back to San Francisco in support of their March, 2014 release, Education, Education, Education And War. With their September, 2014 tour having been scuttled, the anticipation in the room for the rescheduled show at the Regency Ballroom was real. If not for the traffic diversions and limited parking on Van Ness, no doubt the folks crammed at the barricade would have been more deeply crammed. As it was, a number of folks seemed to have missed out on much of Priory's set but, by the time Kaiser Chiefs took the stage around 10:10 pm, the floor was packed.
Kaiser Chiefs

Kaiser Chiefs finally made their way back to San Francisco in support of their March, 2014 release, Education, Education, Education And War. With their September, 2014 tour having been scuttled, the anticipation in the room for the rescheduled show at the Regency Ballroom was real. If not for the traffic diversions and limited parking on Van Ness, no doubt the folks crammed at the barricade would have been more deeply stacked. As it was, a number of folks seemed to have missed out on much of Priory’s set but, by the time Kaiser Chiefs took the stage around 10:10 pm, the floor was packed.

If you’ve never seen the Kaiser Chiefs live, the first indication of what you were in for would have been watching the crew set up the stage … known for taping the monitors to the stage, this time the crew opted for a few jumbo-sized sandbags to do the trick. Why, you might ask? Because without those sandbags, those monitors would likely end up on the floor in front of the stage within minutes as frontman Ricky uses them non-stop as the launch pads for his energetic on-stage antics. As they opened the set with The Angry Mob, it would not have taken long to connect the dots.

Despite the packed floor, a good chunk of the crowd appeared downright lazy and, as a guy used to selling out arenas, Wilson was having none of it.  Apathy-fueled or not, Wilson was channeling some inner rage as he busted up a mic stand during Everything Is Average Nowadays. Not that the rest of the band didn’t go their part. Keyboardist “Peanut” Baines stepped out to the front of the stage backed by a jam of Hendrix’s Foxy Lady to get the crowd clapping along for Modern Way and they really didn’t let up until Ricky introduced a Duran Duran-esque new song called Falling Awake.

After a bit of a slow start, things seemed to be on track for both the band and the audience. The beverages were clearly flowing and by the time the Chiefs broke out the 1-2-3-punch of Ruby-Riot-Pinball, the room was wide-awake and the ensuing momentum easily carried through to the encore and set closer, Oh My God off of their 2005 debut, Employment.

Setlist:

  • The Angry Mob
  • Ruffians on Parade
  • Everything Is Average Nowadays
  • Everyday I Love You Less and Less
  • My Life
  • Modern Way
  • Na Na Na Na Naa
  • Never Miss a Beat
  • Little Shocks
  • Falling Awake
  • Ruby
  • I Predict a Riot
  • Pinball Wizard
  • Coming Home

–Encore–

  • Misery Company
  • Oh My God

Support act: Priory

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