The Kaiser Chiefs are back and happy to talk Leeds, Diego Maradona and Man Utd shirts.
Kaiser Chiefs guitarist Andrew 'Whitey' White reveals his fanaticism for Leeds, Gary Lineker shinpads... and a secret about a Man Utd shirt
What would you say if a Leeds United fan told you that their first football kit was that of bitter rivals Manchester United? 'Oh my god, I can't believe it' (ahem)?
Cringe-worthy jokes aside, Kaiser Chiefs guitarist Andrew 'Whitey' White was honourable enough to admit to
skysports.com shortly before a ripping set at Glastonbury that he did have a footballing skeleton in the closet.
There is a reason behind the Manchester United shirt (while a promise was made that the full explanation would be printed) and it has not dented his unquestionable devotion to Leeds, which has existed since the Seventies.
Away from football, the band, who are all Elland Road season-ticket holders, have just released new LP 'The Future is Medieval' on an innovative digital platform that allows fans to compile their own album, create their own artwork ... and earn from it, while a CD is available at the same time.
The Kaiser Chiefs also famously took their name from the former club of Leeds icon Lucas Radebe, and we were happy to hear the truth behind the tale as part of Football Firsts.
Before we get started, what's the full story about the band taking the name from Radebe's former club in South Africa, Kaizer Chiefs?
It was actually a friend of ours who mentioned it. We loved the name and knew the connection. He is a total hero and we have met him numerous times. We've met the actual Kaizer Chiefs football team as well. We played with them and Lucas in South Africa. Just walking around the streets with Lucas in South Africa is like walking around with a god. Honestly, apparently he is the second most recognisable face in South Africa next to Nelson Mandela. He is a really nice man and I am genuinely proud to have met and to know him. So, yeah, we nicked the name. But for copyright reasons we used an 's'.
Leeds United
I was born in Leeds in the Seventies. If you were born in Leeds in the Seventies, you are going to be a Leeds fan. I was born in '74, so it was quite a popular time to be a Leeds fan. All my family on my dad's side were all Leeds fans, so there was never going to be any other team.
What have you made of the transfer rumours this summer? Would you welcome back Lee Bowyer and Alan Smith?
Yeah, definitely Bowyer. I don't see why not. I thought Bowyer had a brilliant season last year. As for Smith, it (moving to Manchester United) is all water under the bridge now. Whether he has still got it in him as a player, that's another thing.
Shrewsbury Town v Leeds United - 1987/1988
Not a glamour tie! It was the Mickey Mouse Cup... the Simod Cup (Full Members Cup) it was called at the time. It was a night match, I remember that much, and Leeds won. My family used to live in Shrewsbury and my brother took me. He was a little bit older and he was a Leeds fan, but his second team was Shrewsbury. I must have been about 13 or 14 and we walked from the centre of town. It was the whole dark, wet streets. I loved it. I remember being really cold and having something to eat. I loved the fact that I was with my big brother and he was taking me to a football match.
Gary Lineker
The story I remember was that there was a sport shop in Garforth (a town to the east of Leeds), where I lived, which funnily enough used to be owned by Jackie Charlton. I went in there with my friend wearing our Campri ski jackets, that was the trend at the time. It was 1986, so was around World Cup time. In the shop, there were Peter Beardsley shinpads, which were red, and Lineker shinpads, which were blue. My friends all went for the Beardsley shinpads and I went for Lineker. Leeds at the time were a division down and people like Lineker were stars. He went on to have a great World Cup and was Mr. England. I was really proud of the shinpads.
Diego Maradona
Definitely Maradona for the Hand of God. It's the same thing as Lineker - the 1986 World Cup. The whole nation got caught up and crucified Maradona. In the playground we used to play soldiers and someone would be Maradona and we would run after him and shoot him. It was just after the Falklands War as well so there was the England-Argentina tension.
World Cup 1990
We went on holiday to a place called Sandy Balls, it's a real place, on the south coast. I remember watching David Platt scoring in extra-time against Belgium, the volley over his shoulder. I was jumping up and down on the sofa.
Coventry 3 Leeds 2 - 12/4/1987
It was 1987 and Leeds got knocked out of the FA Cup semi-final against Coventry. I didn't go, but it was on tele' and we go beat 3-2. I think Coventry were Division One and Leeds were Division Two. We played really well and were unfortunate to get knocked out. My entire family were moping around and were gutted. I wasn't faking it, I was obviously sad, but, I wanted to fit in as well so I was even more sad.
Garforth comprehensive school
To be honest, I was a pretty ropey footballer. In high school, I don't think I ever had a match, I was always on the fringes of the first team. Then we went to sixth form and never really got a match. But I did really badly in my A Levels and had to re-sit a year. I came back and (laughing) I was pretty much the biggest kid in the school. I think the sixth-form team was defunct and we started it up again. We got a bunch of reprobates together, the big kids, we were into music, we had big hair, and so never really conformed to anything. I was a left-back. I was lazy, but could kick it quite hard, kind of like Stuart Pearce. We made each other captain just so we could say in the future that we captained the school football team, so... I was actually the captain of the school football team. One of our most memorable matches was against a team from Leeds called Notre Dame and we got beat 10-0.
Manchester United
I don't really want to tell you this, but I'm going to be honest... It was Christmas time and I was about four or five. My mum is a Man United fan and all her family are from Manchester. She is from Newton Heath. So I went downstairs on Christmas morning and all the presents were laid out. My mum had bought me a Man United kit. I was young, so I didn't know. I was wearing the kit and my dad came downstairs after just waking up. He saw me in the kit and all I remember is he frogmarched me outside and, on the inside of the house, he and my mum had a huge argument. He wouldn't let me back into the house until she made me change into something else. I would never go near anything like that now.
Queen Greatest Hits
I can't really remember an album. Singles were big in the late Eighties and I had Freddie Mercury's 'The Great Pretender'. It's not a cool single, but I think I might still have it somewhere. First album was probably a Queen Greatest Hits. I used to love Queen, they are a pretty cool group.
What about Kaiser Chiefs' own new album. You worked with legendary producer Tony Visconti, how was that experience?
We went into the studio with Tony and a guy called Ethan Johns, who did the Kings of Leon and Ryan Adams. They were two totally different producers, but two really brilliant guys. Listening to Visconti's stories and tricks, it was really good to have him in the studio. We got inspired from that and the way Ethan records, which is all live and about the vibe. I would love to work with them again.
Kaiser Chiefs' fourth studio album 'The Future is Medieval' is available via a brand new platform at www.kaiserchiefs.com through Fiction / B-Unique Records.
