48:13 is the fifth studio album by English rock band Kasabian. The album, produced by the band's leader, songwriter, guitarist, and second vocalist Sergio Pizzorno[7][8] (being their first album that Pizzorno became as main producer for the band), and named after its total running time, was released in Germany on 6 June 2014 and in the UK on 9 June 2014.[9][10] The album entered at number one on the UK Albums Chart in its first week of release making it the band's fourth consecutive UK number one album. The album received mixed-to-positive reviews from critics who were divided on the electronic-heavy direction as well as criticising the lyrics.
On 13 November 2013, Kasabian posted a teaser video on their official YouTube channel, announcing that the band's guitarist Sergio Pizzorno had been in the studio for the previous six months working on material for the new record.[11] In an interview with QRO magazine, the band also revealed that the album would be produced by Pizzorno, who also co-produced their 2011 album Velociraptor!.[7]
On 28 April 2014, Pizzorno said in a statement announcing the release of 48:13, "I felt that we had the confidence to be more direct, more honest with this album. I started to strip away layers rather than to just keep adding." Kasabian vocalist Tom Meighan added, "Less is more, you know? It's direct. It is what it is. Just listen to it. We've had the confidence to lay ourselves bare. Serge has stripped it right back. It's unbelievable."[8][12]
48:13 is notable for being the band's only album before Meighan's departure in 2020 in which Pizzorno's lead vocal duties outweigh that of Meighan, with 4 tracks being sung by Pizzorno on the standard edition, 3 sung by Meighan and 3 tracks which feature both on lead vocals.
Preceded by a 1-minute intro "shiva" that segues in, "bumblebeee" kicks the album off with a "pile-driving electronic rock" sound[15] featuring gang vocals among its "pogoing chorus pulse [emphasising] the theme of togetherness in the sunshine and under the moonlight".[16] It was described by Pizzorno as a "Beastie Boys dub with a sort of Zeppelin, Rage Against the Machine chorus". "stevie" features a driving beat and taut bass riff with strings and horns described as "menacing" and "dramatic",[17] alongside an "empowering" chorus.[18]
The interlude "(mortis)" features Pizzorno's grandfather Wilf Dillon reading in Latin.[19] "doomsday" has been characterised as "glam ska-pop pushed through an electronic filter". "treat" has been regarded by Pizzorno as the "centrepiece" of the album,[19] with its near 7-minute length divided into the first half featuring "razor-sharp guitars" and an acknowledgement to the band's hometown of Leceister, and the second half containing "floaty electronics"[17] compirising a "glacial synth disco coda".[15] "Glass" combines "cycling sequenced electronics"(Independent) with "eastern-tinged guitar"[17] and outro from British spoken word poet Suli Breaks.
The electronic track "explodes" features "sub-bass wub-wubs, and analogue melodies redolent of Kraftwerk". Both this and the following interlude "(levitation)" have been compared to Velociraptor!, with the latter being described as an "Eastern psychedelic track" featuring Pizzorno on vocals.[18] The psychedelic influences continue on "clouds", which was highlighted as an example of the band's "stadium-sized UK 60's psych-rock influences"[16] and overall denoted as a "stirring electro rampage".[20]
Lead single "eez-eh", derived from the Leicester pronunciaiton of 'easy' is an electro-rock[16] song that features Meighan and Pizzorno singing in unison over "laser-guided galumph".[15] This is succeeded by "bow", which has been defined as an "oddly slick teen-rock anomaly in the vein of Linkin Park"[20] and featuring a contrast between "brooding verses and anthemic choruses".[17] The close "s.p.s", an acronym for 'Scissors, Paper, Stone' is an acoustic-based ballad featuring lap steel guitar, strings and cricket chirping sounds.[15][18]
On 4 April 2014, Tom Meighan and Sergio Pizzorno appeared in East London dressed in white overalls, painting large numbers "48:13" on a wall belonging to artist and fashion designer Aitor Throup, with whom the band has previously worked on the cover art for Velociraptor! (2011) and the music video for "Switchblade Smiles".[21][22] On 28 April 2014, the band announced the release of the album, and it became clear that the mural was referring to its title and artwork.[12]
The album cover features simple black text on a pink background displaying the length of every track between the band and album title, although the deluxe edition omits the track lengths and enlarges the text. According to Pizzorno, he chose the pink colour scheme to go against the perception that Kasabian is a "very masculine" band, noting that "there’s a very punk element to it."[19]
48:13 was promoted by the lead single "Eez-eh",[23] released on 29 April 2014. A music video for the song, directed by Aitor Throup, was released onto YouTube the same day.[24]
On 11 June 2014, Pizzorno featured alongside Pete Donaldson on his Absolute Radio show, during which full versions of "Stevie" and "Treat" were played.[25] In support of the album, Kasabian made several appearances at festivals in Europe and Japan.[21] The band also headlined the 2014 Glastonbury Festival, performing on the Pyramid Stage on 29 June 2014.[26]
The second single, "Bumblebeee" was released on 3 August 2014, with the music video, directed by Alex Courtes released on 27 July.[27] Over two months before its release, on 29 May 2014, "Bumblebeee" was awarded Zane Lowe's Hottest Record.[28] The B-side of the "Bumblebeee" single is "Gelfling", named after the creature of the same name from the film The Dark Crystal.
The third single, "Bow" features Pizzorno on lead vocals, their second single to do so after the 2007 single "Me Plus One". It was solely released in Italy, but received some airplay in the UK. [29]
The fourth single, "Stevie", was a part of the soundtrack of the game, FIFA 15, made by EA Sports.
48:13 received mixed reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 62 based on 14 reviews, indicating "generally favourable" reviews.[30]
Digital Spy's Lisa Wright commented that "Kasabian are not quite up to Alex Turner's level of social commentary," but concluded that "when Kasabian accept what they do best and run with it – and at least half of 48:13 stays resolutely in this spirit – they're the lairy masters of undeniably pumped-up hedonistic fun."[34] Michael Hann of The Guardian wrote that the album is "properly exciting" and the band members "never forget that their purpose is to entertain," however, "the lyrics throughout are reliably terrible."[36] James Hall of The Daily Telegraph wrote a scathing review of Meighan's lofty ambitions for the album, surmising that "no moulds were broken during the making of this album".[33]
