This is a review of "Everything Is Average Nowadays" recorded by Kaiser Chiefs. The review was written by Nick Rowan in 2007.

The video for Everything Is Average Nowadays contains a sequence where a production line manufactures a series of replicas, from vodka bottles and fine art through to punks and cheerleaders, culminating in the mass cloning of each member of the Chiefs. Rather than just the intended commentary on the fact that identity is becoming an off-the-peg purchase and casual plagiarism is ubiquitous, the scene is also a reminder that the Kaisers are fast becoming an inferior facsimile of their earlier selves.

The song does sound a little too familiar. The lyrics are delivered with the usual Ricky Wilson bounce but that merely hides a simmering nostalgia, as well as a slight hint of superiority and cynicism (“And everything is going down the pan / And everyone is following the craze / And everything is average nowadays”). Somehow their rose-tinted stance on the past seems disingenuous. If indeed there is - “Not much to believe in / Left up on the shelf” - was there ever much there before?

Fortunately they haven’t lost the art of creating memorable pop hooks. As is customary they stack chorus upon chorus, with Nick Hodgson’s clever backing vocals adding some additional gloss to Stephen Street’s luscious production.

That just leaves me sufficient time to climb aboard my own high horse and proclaim that this track is nothing more than a minor work.