'We're all wasting away!' barks vocalist Tom Meighan on the opening, title track to Kasabian's second album, Empire. A quick peek at the sales figures, however, proves that lean times are most certainly not on the horizon. After clocking up close to a million sales of their debut album, Leicester's post-baggy rock troupe have returned with an album that ramps up all their key hallmarks: the swagger of the Gallagher brothers, the wide-pupils euphoria of acid house/acid-rock, and the crushing, propulsive dancefloor heaviness of beered-up disco rabble-rousers Chemical Brothers and Fatboy Slim. From "Last Trip (In Flight)", a sort of gospel-enhanced remake of Hawkwind's "Silver Machine", to the driving, techno-engineered "Stuntman", it's heavy on the choruses, heavy on the fireworks, and seemingly custom-made for a festival crowd ??? which is, of course, no bad thing. "British Legion" is a surprising stand-out, an Lennon-esque ballad accompanied by acoustic guitar. And while the mystic-tinged "Sun/Rise/Light/Flies" suggests that shimmering Indian strings might be becoming as much of a clich?? as the bolt-on orchestra was in Britpop times, you somehow doubt Kasabian are at all bothered by the prospect of being too obvious. After all, it's the job of Empire to stamp Kasabian's name onto your face with a hob-nailed boot, and it succeeds in its mission admirably. ???-Louis Pattison

Having listened to this album first then their debut album I have come to be a big fan but backwards. I was given this album by a friend who said give it a go and my first impression was I not going to like this. Having listened to it my impression changed very very quickly this is a brillant album I can't believe how good this is. Ever track on the album is top draw from start to finish the stand out tracks for me on this is Seek And Destroy and Shoot The Runner.