{"id":508825,"date":"2026-04-02T11:20:11","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T11:20:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/508825\/"},"modified":"2026-04-02T11:20:11","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T11:20:11","slug":"serge-pizzorno-on-being-fuelled-by-imposter-syndrome-and-why-new-album-act-iii-is-all-thats-great-about-kasabian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/508825\/","title":{"rendered":"Serge Pizzorno on being fuelled by “imposter syndrome” and why new album ‘Act III’ is “all that\u2019s great about Kasabian”"},"content":{"rendered":"

As Kasabian<\/a> announce details of their ninth album \u2018Act III\u2019 with new single \u2018Great Pretender\u2019, Serge Pizzorno<\/a> has spoken to NME about using his \u201cimposter syndrome\u201d as a frontman to his advantage and how the record captures \u201call that\u2019s great\u201d about the band.<\/p>\n

While they recently dropped the dance-leaning one-off Calvin Harris collab \u2018Release The Pressure<\/a>\u2018, the Leicester indie veterans\u2019 new album \u2013 arriving on Friday July 17 \u2013 picks up where lead single \u2018Hippie Sunshine<\/a>\u2018 left off as a blast of guitar-heavy festival-ready rock.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe guitar is really prominent on this record,\u201d Pizzorno told NME. \u201cWe\u2019re nine albums in and have trodden a lot of ground. As a songwriter, I get bored really quickly so I move about a fair bit. \u2018Great Pretender\u2019 was one of those mornings where the guitar was there and this song literally happened in 10 minutes. They\u2019re few and far between but they\u2019re amazing when they happen.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just thought, \u2018Let\u2019s make a proper fucking guitar track for people to get together\u2019. It\u2019s just joy.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Pizzorno explained how the feel-good anthemics of \u2018Great Pretender\u2019 explore how \u201cimposter syndrome is not as a weakness, but as a sign you\u2019re on the edge of something real\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an interesting place to be: the moment before you go on stage, that \u2018now or never feeling\u2019,\u201d he told us. \u201cOn some level, even the greats, we\u2019re all just blagging it. Everyone feels exactly the same, even the best to have ever done it. Being out of your depth is great because playing it safe is not the one.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like I\u2019ve spent my career on that tip. It goes back to being an outsider, going back to those days at school of being on the outside of everything. To me that feels like the place to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 45-year-old might be more prone to imposter syndrome than most, having only stepped up as frontman of Kasabian after the departure of Tom Meighan<\/a> around the time he was convicted for assaulting his then-girlfriend-now-wife in 2020<\/a>. Meighan has pursued a solo career while Kasabian remain an arena and festival-headlining band, but there are still some fans faithful to the old line-up who are critical of the new era. For Pizzorno, he said it was built-in for him to stand his ground.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing in a band, you\u2019re always proving people wrong,\u201d he argued. \u201cThat energy is powerful because it\u2019s there from day one. If you come from an unknown town \u2013 and Leicester\u2019s not known for its music \u2013 then you\u2019re always pitched as the underdog. You\u2019re always put in that place. You go to a careers officer and they say, \u2018Have you thought about plumbing?\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cYou put out music and you inevitably get used to the power of not giving a fuck, of believing in yourself, going out there and doing everything with heart. When there\u2019s no bullshit behind it, it\u2019s fucking untouchable.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"KasabianKasabian live at Glastonbury 2024. Credit: Andy Ford for NME<\/p>\n

He continued: \u201cThis is a whole new thing for me. I\u2019ve always written everything myself and I\u2019ve had to learn how to be a frontman, and learn quick. It\u2019s not like I\u2019ve had time! I\u2019ve been put at the front of a massive band but I\u2019ve kind of embraced that. It\u2019s like being a martial artist: I\u2019m fully dedicated, and late in the game (I wish I was 25). I\u2019ve watched people and seen how it\u2019s done, now I\u2019m going out there and baring my soul. These people just entertain. You have to find a different part of yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, Pizzorno is comfortable with the outgoing front-facing person he has unlocked within himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe as I am, I\u2019m just happy to sit at the side, get a notepad out, make some nice mood boards, write some lyrics, make some loops, think about what mad synth I can get next,\u201d he admitted. \u201cThat guy\u2019s not getting up there, but there\u2019s a part of me that I have to access that gets up there and is ready to entertain 80,000 people. That part of me might not have ever existed.\u201d<\/p>\n

The frontman revealed that it was the performer side of his personality that has driven the full-throttle festival banger feel of new album \u2018Act III\u2019 \u2013 and that all roads for this iteration of Kasabian through 2022\u2019s spacey \u2018The Alchemist\u2019s Euphoria<\/a>\u2018 and 2024\u2019s colourful \u2018Happenings<\/a>\u2018 have led to here.<\/p>\n

In some ways, it feels like the last six years have been a mini opera of sorts, and this is the third act where everything comes together,\u201d he said. \u201cMoving on, anything is possible. I\u2019ve never been more energised and excited about making art. The last two albums have come so quickly and I just can\u2019t stop thinking about what comes next.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"KasabianKasabian announce new album \u2018Act III\u2019. Credit: Press<\/p>\n

The album\u2019s tracklist comes adorned with the message \u2018Based on true events\u2019 with the lyrics coming from \u201clittle passing moments and things that have happened to me and shaped by the people I love,\u201d Pizzorno shares.\u00a0For \u2018Act III\u2019, the sound all comes down to four friends making a racket and the feel of playing live. \u201cThat\u2019s sacred,\u201d he goes on. \u201cIt\u2019s so important to be able to come and see live music played by real people who have spent years dedicated to trying to get a little bit better.\u201d<\/p>\n

You may have heard how Pizzorno was inspired by recent gigs by Oasis, Radiohead and Fred Again..<\/a> in shaping Kasabian\u2019s summer shows. Well, that same energy is what they were aiming for in \u2018Act III\u2019 too.<\/p>\n

\u201cI went to see Oasis<\/a> and Radiohead<\/a> last year, and then Fred Again.. with Daft Punk\u2019s Thomas Bangalter<\/a>. Seeing all those people come together for Oasis and what music can do to the neurons in the brain just makes you go, \u2018Fucking hell, man. What other art can do this?\u2019,\u201d said Pizzorno.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith Radiohead, I lean more towards \u2018Kid A\u2019 and \u2018In Rainbows\u2019 but hearing the crowd singing \u2018Karma Police\u2019 and \u2018No Surprises\u2019 was just spiritual, like hymns. Then with Fred Again.., Thomas was just unreal. There were no phones and it felt like those rave tents back in the day. It was wild how many drops they played.\u201d<\/p>\n

He continues: \u201cBetween those three is the blueprint of what we\u2019ve been trying to do for years. I can hear what that sounds like, but the look is usually down to budget and people telling me, \u2018We can\u2019t afford that\u2019. What\u2019s important is what it feels like. Now we\u2019ve got the back catalogue that jumps between all those things, and this album is all that\u2019s great about Kasabian. It\u2019s got Kasabian DNA running through it. It\u2019s all the things that we\u2019ve done in the past.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SergeSerge Pizzorno of Kasabian at Glastonbury 2024. Credit: Andy Ford for NME<\/p>\n

Aside from the rumbling Black Rebel Motorcycle Club<\/a>-esque \u2018Hippie Sunshine\u2019 and the summer indie of \u2018Great Pretender\u2019, \u2018Act III\u2019 is loaded with nods to Kasabian\u2019s past with one eye on the future. The electro-rock of \u2018Nothing Better Than This\u2019 and surreal menace of \u2018Soulmate\u2019 (the latter featuring the surefire t-shirt lyric \u201cOne nation under one retail park\u201d) both feel like close relatives to the band\u2019s 2004 self-titled debut. Meanwhile, \u2018Silver Apple Day\u2019s leans into Kasabian\u2019s more psychedelic side and \u2018Superpowers\u2019 is something of a Gorillaz<\/a>-y R&B meets indie departure.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the early days, we\u2019d finish playing at a festival, down tools and we\u2019d go straight to the dance tent because they went on late,\u201d Pizzorno shared. \u201cIt exposed us to those kinds of parties. The tents would trap that energy, the tempo, the bass, the tribal feeling. You\u2019d just get completely lost in it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pizzorno added: \u201cWith \u2018Nothing Better Than This\u2019, I just wanted to make something with that gnarly bass and you\u2019d instantly know in four seconds, \u2018That sounds like Kasabian\u2019. I saw this meme of four upside-down bats that looked like goths dancing in a club. I wanted to make a song that they could dance to, so it\u2019s got a weird goth edge to it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

There will be plenty of chances to see Kasabian bring \u2018Act III\u2019 to life this summer, including their biggest London headline show to date to 45,000 fans at Finsbury Park<\/a> on July 4, and playing as the first ever Thursday night headliner at Leeds Festival<\/a> this August.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re rehearsing already,\u201d said the frontman. \u201cIt\u2019s great and the set is just full-on relentless. We\u2019re so excited. We\u2019re reimagining the songs and it\u2019s an eras-defining set with songs passing through from the start, a few little surprises and some mad bits that people will recognise.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re just going to give the people what they want; that\u2019s the story of this summer. It\u2019s an excuse to go insane.\u201d<\/p>\n

They\u2019ll also be giving \u2018Great Pretender\u2019 its live debut as the third musical guest to appear on the recently imported SNL UK<\/a>, performing on Saturday (April 4) with Riz Ahmed acting as host.<\/p>\n

\u201cI saw the first episode,\u201d said Pizzorno of the newly-launched divisive show<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s obviously an American institution that has been on over there for decades, so once people start to understand the structure of it and get the pace, then it\u2019ll be great.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s really beautiful is having music on the telly again. I might sound like a fossil here but I think that\u2019s great. Seeing a band have two songs and then having all the clips on socials is brilliant and we\u2019ve been missing that opportunity for a while. I saw Wet Leg<\/a> play and Rhian [Teasdale, frontwoman] was absolutely phenomenal. Their transition from first album<\/a> to second [\u2018Moisturizer<\/a>\u2018] has been amazing, and what an entertainer she is.\u201d<\/p>\n

So with a rock-tinged album on the way, a love of indie bands lighting up the TV and a stacked line-up joining them at Finsbury Park<\/a>, does the man who once made headlines for saying guitar music was \u201cin the abyss<\/a>\u201d feel like it\u2019s on the way back?<\/p>\n

\u201cYou feel like it is,\u201d he replied. \u201cIn terms of festivals and live stuff, just seeing people performing who have dedicated their lives to getting good at something has a power, a truth and an honesty to it. It\u2019s mesmerising seeing someone playing guitar, bass and drums and just going for it.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf it\u2019s that humans need and that\u2019s what\u2019s missing, then that\u2019s where you\u2019re going to find it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"KASABIAN_CALVIN_EDIT_3\"Kasabian and Calvin Harris team up for \u2018Release The Pressure\u2019. Credit: Press\/still<\/p>\n

Kasabian release \u2018Act III\u2019 on Friday July 17. Pre-order it here<\/a> and check out the full tracklisting below:<\/p>\n

\u2018quiet on set please 1m9\u2019
\u2018SOULMATE\u2019
\u2018Hippie Sunshine\u2019
\u2018SUPERPOWERS\u2019
\u2018GREAT PRETENDER\u2019
\u2018NOTHING BETTER THAN THIS\u2019
\u2018mind palace 2m7\u2019
\u2018SILVER APPLE EYES\u2019
\u2018THE GURU AND THE CRYPTO TIME MACHINE\u2019
\u2018npc 3m12\u2019
\u2018GLIDE\u2019
\u2018HYPER\/\/RISING\u2019
\u2018SAY YOU (CLOSER)\u2019<\/p>\n

Kasabian\u2019s summer tour dates include headlining London\u2019s Finsbury Park on July 4 before festival appearances at Leeds Festival, Boardmasters, TRNSMT, Victorious Festival, Mad Cool, and more. Visit here<\/a> for tickets and more information.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As Kasabian announce details of their ninth album \u2018Act III\u2019 with new single \u2018Great Pretender\u2019, Serge Pizzorno has…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":508826,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[96,128,3584,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-508825","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-music","8":"tag-entertainment","9":"tag-music","10":"tag-rock","11":"tag-uk","12":"tag-united-kingdom","13":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508825","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=508825"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508825\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/508826"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=508825"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=508825"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=508825"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}