Announced this morning on the 2010 Big Day Out line-up, Kasabian is on top of its game. Since undoing the – œlad-rock’ clichés with this year’s West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum, the lads from Leicester blitzed the European festival circuit with their galvanising live show.

Last night, FasterLouder got frontman Tom Meighan on the phone to talk Australian summers, music piracy and those warring Gallagher brothers.

Your most recent album, West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum, is a very different album from your past releases on many levels. How have the tracks on it fit into your renowned live set?
It’s all fit in quite well, actually. I mean, we have songs like The Underdog and Where Did All The Love Go on there. They fit in amazingly. There will always be people with question as to how the new stuff sounds live, but I can tell you it all sounds amazing. And we’ve got more songs to pick and choose from now as well.

The last time you were here for a proper tour was big for a few reasons: it was the 2007 Big Day Out, it was your debut Australian tour and the Ashes were being held here, bringing a flock of your compatriots along to each show. How was that experience, from your side of the stage?
What got me was it was the first time I’d ever been to Australia. I just had no fucking idea about the entire place. Now I fucking love Australia! It’s this massive fucking island and everyone treats it like a sport. We were on about 3 o’clock as well, and it was boiling hot! I think we got a 6pm slot this time or something.

- œ07 wasn’t exactly the hottest year for a Big Day Out, by the way…
Oh, fuck me! How hot does it get January?

Very. And we’re having dust storms these days, to match.
I better get some wind shields. Sounds apocalyptic.

On the note of going up bills and the like, in June you played second to – œThe Boss’, Bruce Springsteen at Glastonbury. How does it feel to look back at the progress you’ve made as a band to get to that stage (both metaphorically and physically)?
You get taken aback, y’ know. Glastonbury was amazing because of that. It shows how far we’ve come. And after touring for years and playing all the clubs and such, it just shows the power of the band now. And this year has really felt like our year, and that was really the moment were’ it all came together. It was a moment that we didn’t take for granted; it’s very easy to forget what we’ve done to get here.

Between your recorded material with its roots deep in British musical history and the unique attitude of your live shows, Kasabian are considered almost a flagship band for British culture these days. How do you feel about that tag?
Well, it was great for the first two albums and such. Then we made this third record that was absolutely off the scale. It was filled with stuff we hadn’t done before; it was a massive risk. It could have flopped or it could have gone massive. And that’s the amazing thing about this record: it’s a piece of art that also has great singles on it.

So I get how people thought we were just a Brit-rock band, but we’ve crossed over now. They’d call us – œlad rock’ and all that shit, but it’s changed now. We got nominated for the Mercury Award and that’s a very serious award. We’ve made that crossover now, and people can’t put shit in.

So you would say that critical opinion has swung to your side now?
Yeah, [the critics] are shitted. A lot of people are shitted. But it also means we get a whole new heap of fans. Because people who wrote us off are finally seeing what we can do.

Your friendship with the band Oasis has been quite well-documented. What’s your view on the split that happened a few weeks back between the Gallaghers?
It was horrible; I had never actually seen ‘em fighting or bickering, but there was always a lot of tension going on. It’s really, really sad and it left a lot of people upset. Especially Serge and I, because they’re such good friends of ours and we toured with them this year. But at the end of the day, it’s just rock ‘n’ roll.

Just on another headline-grabbing incident, there’s a lot of talk in the UK about the legality of music piracy, which seems to have split the music world right down the middle, culminating in Lily Allen quitting recorded music altogether. Where do you stand on this somewhat controversial issue?
I think Lily Allen has got a massive point. I think music pirating is fucking wrong. It’s common sense, really. You don’t go into a restaurant then walk out for free, do ya? Or you don’t go to the bank and just borrow some money, walk off and go, “Oh, don’t worry about it.”

And it’s hard for Pink Floyd to say that [music piracy is okay], isn’t it? They’ve sold 800-million-fucking-albums or whatever. I get it; if we sold 50 million fucking albums I could give my next album away for free. But we haven’t done that. It’s a bit silly really, to be honest. Radiohead were the first to do it, but they have sold 50 million albums and can say that.

I agree with what Lily Allen said on it. It’s fucking wrong man, it’s piracy. You don’t go into a cinema and just not pay, do ya? It’s weird.

Do you think that music piracy has stunted your sales internationally, considering the disproportionate level of sales between your home country and the rest of the world?
There’s a little bit of that to it. But in the US, we don’t get much radio play. The radio over there is very hard to get on. You never know, but there’s definitely a bit of it, yeah.

On a lighter note, what’s the strangest festival situation you’ve been in?
In the US we got into a huge argument once backstage. But, to be honest with ya Albert, we never really get into situations with any bands, nor do we really feel comfortable with anyone either.

So you’re not the social butterflies backstage?
Well, we don’t stay locked up in our dressing room backstage. But at the same time, we just try to get along with everyone.

One band you have gotten along with was our own Jet. Have you kept in contact?
Man, I haven’t seen Jet in ages! I’ve seen Mark, the bassist, at a festival in Germany and we had a short talk for about ten minutes and that. But we’ve always got on with them. They’re sort of our party boys, our partners in crime. Nic and Chris [Cester] are amazing. I love that band to pieces and I love the music they make. It’s brutal rock ‘n’ roll. I miss them guys. Are they gonna be at the Big Day Out?

They haven’t been announced yet, but there’s a second announcement so it’s still a huge possibility. If they are, will the after-parties be stomping ground of Jet and Kasabian?
Oh yes! [laughs] On that note, I can guarantee ya, bro! You better bring a fucking helmet and shield!

Kasabian plays Big Day Out 2010 on the following dates around the country. Check out the first line-up announcement for who else is making the trip.

Sunday January 17th – Gold Coast Parklands
Friday January 22nd – Sydney Showground
Tuesday January 26th – Melbourne Flemington Racecourse
Friday January 29th – Adelaide Showground
Sunday January 31st – Perth Claremont Showground