Kings of Leon...are they really that good?
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thunderDAN wrote:and Radiohead changed their sound to a sound nobody has heard before. They took instruments and effects that have never been heard before. Kings of Leon made an album of everything they thought their fans liked off the previous release, while trying to make a CD that would make them blow up in the States. It's no different than what Coldplay has become- so involved in your own desire for fame while you forget your craft. They never were an 'indie' band, and it's funny that you are accusing me of being 'too indie' on a Pearl Jam board.
They haven't forgotten their craft. If they wanted to write more stuff like the first 2 albums, they would. Just because you don't like the new stuff doesn't mean they're not making the music they want or only seeking fame. Maybe they like playing tunes that people enjoy hearing. You know how much it would suck to see Pearl Jam if they played a set full of songs like Cropduster? I dig a band that takes pleasure in delivering the music their fans respond to. Would that PJ would stop shelving songs like Down and Sad for shit b-material.
I'm just incredibly tired of hearing people complain about how KoL used to be cool, but now their clothes are too nice and their music is too catchy. It's old and annoying.0 -
soulsinging wrote:
I'm just incredibly tired of hearing people complain about how KoL used to be cool, but now their clothes are too nice and their music is too catchy. It's old and annoying.0 -
I hardly ever agree with anything Pitchfork has to say about albums; anything mainstream sucks, and anything ultra indie is amazing; however they hit the nail on the head with Only By the Night. It's the exact feeling I got when I listened to it. You can call me "too indie" but considering I'm a Pearl Jam, Radiohead, and even Oasis fan to some extent, I find that labeling funny. I'm not saying I'm turned off to anything KOL does from now on, just saying that the last album was weak
After years spent building a career on the enduringly romanticized Stillwater archetype, Kings of Leon have laterally shifted from one easily understood linear narrative (festival band) to another (arena rock band). Dropping the transparently hayseed act, the band could have turned an artistic corner; yet the first single from Only By the Night is called "Sex on Fire", so if there was any debate about whether Kings of Leon are in on their own joke, I think it can be put to rest. If we're misreading them, we're missing out on one corker of a comedy album based on an "SNL"-level premise: What if Bono got lost in the Blue Ridge Mountains and was replaced by a local yokel? (Suggested band name: Y'All2.)
But even the move from "southern Strokes" to "southern U2" is way better in theory than in practice-- these are the same clunky Kings of Leon songs, just now presented in an incredibly weird context. It all starts with Caleb Followill's never-ending need to play to type, and if you've kept up to this point, you know the drill-- though his band has toured the world several times over, dude can't see past his own dick. He sings terribly on Only By the Night, any modicum of youth and young manhood compromised by "real talk" overemoting and an accent that seems to have no geographical origin.
But why go on when Followill is more than happy to hoist himself on his own petard, doling his typical mix of stock characterization, open misogyny, and bizarre non-sequitirs. You can hear the brooms sweeping as the lonesome guitars of "Revelry" attempt some sort of last-call poignancy, but it's spoiled from the time Followill opens a mouth full of Meatloaf-- "What a night for a dance, you know I'm a dancin' machine/ With the fire in my bones and the sweet taste of kerosene." This goes on before you get the dominant KoL ethos on the chorus: "With the hardest of hearts I still feel full of pain/ See the time we shared it was precious to me/ But all the while I was dreaming of revelry." It's basically "The One I Love" with no riff and no irony.
Meanwhile, "Sex on Fire" turns out to be disturbingly literal, while the dopey travelogue of "Manhattan" has Caleb waxing with the naïve enthusiasm of a senior yearbook quote: "We're gonna set this fire we're gonna stoke it up/ We're gonna sip this wine and pass the cup/ We're gonna show this town how to kiss these stars," and it's nearly impossible to stifle your laughter when he punctuates each verse with a smarmy soul-papa "I SAAAAIIIID!" All that's missing is the attendant video where Caleb walks the NYC streets and gives dap to passers-by while the band taps away at their idea of funk. You'd figure "17" would be right in their wheelhouse, because what's a better Kings of Leon topic than underage pussy? But after the first line (I'll spot you "Winger" as a hint and let you guess what it is), it just sort of trails off, leaving the last memorable moment of an album that still has about 20 minutes to go.
No longer steeped in Dixieland signifers, Kings of Leon now weirdly owe a debt to Washington state. If the rumbling toms, splashy cymbals, and cascading synth strings of songs like "Notion" or "I Want You" sound familiar, I'm willing to bet you have a copy of Sunny Day Real Esate's The Rising Tide or a recent Death Cab record. Strange bedfellows, and not really the right ones-- while the latter two were trying to adjust their modest hooks and personal lyrics to a larger scale, Kings of Leon have always been as emotionally cavernous as the drum sound here, and when the tempo slows, ladies and gentlemen, we are floating in swamp. Followill is haunted by all that he can't leave behind, trying to have it both ways with riffs that are supposed to bellow with reverb and bite with distortion. The band never soars, instead mostly muddling in a bog of muffled echo that liberally applies Caleb's cottonmouth to every other instrument.
At its best, Only By the Night at least gives the impression that Kings of Leon is actually an interesting band that would be exponentially and immediately improved with someone even average at the controls (call it the Tavaris Jackson Corollary). Musically, "Closer" sets the bar unrealistically high for the rest of the album, building on squeaking, modulated keys, tricky polyrhythms, and a solid melody unfortunately piledrived by Followill's self-pity ("You took my heart and you took my soul.../ Leaving me stranded in love on my own"). "Crawl" could pass for something off the first Secret Machines record with its hydraulic, distorted bass and hotly mixed percussion, but even before they can seal the deal with some dubious conspiracy mongering (something about the red, white, and blue crucifying you), you get the usual KoL idea of sweetalk: "You better learn to crawl before I walk away." Next thing you know, "Sex on Fire" starts and Kings of Leon's fourth album has peaked after seven minutes. Surely, we can do better for the platonic ideal of a rock band than four guys gunning for a spot rightfully inhabited by My Morning Jacket but instead coming up with the best songs 3 Doors Down never wrote0 -
thunderDAN wrote:I hardly ever agree with anything Pitchfork has to say about albums; anything mainstream sucks, and anything ultra indie is amazing; however they hit the nail on the head with Only By the Night. It's the exact feeling I got when I listened to it. You can call me "too indie" but considering I'm a Pearl Jam, Radiohead, and even Oasis fan to some extent, I find that labeling funny. I'm not saying I'm turned off to anything KOL does from now on, just saying that the last album was weak
After years spent building a career on the enduringly romanticized Stillwater archetype, Kings of Leon have laterally shifted from one easily understood linear narrative (festival band) to another (arena rock band). Dropping the transparently hayseed act, the band could have turned an artistic corner; yet the first single from Only By the Night is called "Sex on Fire", so if there was any debate about whether Kings of Leon are in on their own joke, I think it can be put to rest. If we're misreading them, we're missing out on one corker of a comedy album based on an "SNL"-level premise: What if Bono got lost in the Blue Ridge Mountains and was replaced by a local yokel? (Suggested band name: Y'All2.)
But even the move from "southern Strokes" to "southern U2" is way better in theory than in practice-- these are the same clunky Kings of Leon songs, just now presented in an incredibly weird context. It all starts with Caleb Followill's never-ending need to play to type, and if you've kept up to this point, you know the drill-- though his band has toured the world several times over, dude can't see past his own dick. He sings terribly on Only By the Night, any modicum of youth and young manhood compromised by "real talk" overemoting and an accent that seems to have no geographical origin.
But why go on when Followill is more than happy to hoist himself on his own petard, doling his typical mix of stock characterization, open misogyny, and bizarre non-sequitirs. You can hear the brooms sweeping as the lonesome guitars of "Revelry" attempt some sort of last-call poignancy, but it's spoiled from the time Followill opens a mouth full of Meatloaf-- "What a night for a dance, you know I'm a dancin' machine/ With the fire in my bones and the sweet taste of kerosene." This goes on before you get the dominant KoL ethos on the chorus: "With the hardest of hearts I still feel full of pain/ See the time we shared it was precious to me/ But all the while I was dreaming of revelry." It's basically "The One I Love" with no riff and no irony.
Meanwhile, "Sex on Fire" turns out to be disturbingly literal, while the dopey travelogue of "Manhattan" has Caleb waxing with the naïve enthusiasm of a senior yearbook quote: "We're gonna set this fire we're gonna stoke it up/ We're gonna sip this wine and pass the cup/ We're gonna show this town how to kiss these stars," and it's nearly impossible to stifle your laughter when he punctuates each verse with a smarmy soul-papa "I SAAAAIIIID!" All that's missing is the attendant video where Caleb walks the NYC streets and gives dap to passers-by while the band taps away at their idea of funk. You'd figure "17" would be right in their wheelhouse, because what's a better Kings of Leon topic than underage pussy? But after the first line (I'll spot you "Winger" as a hint and let you guess what it is), it just sort of trails off, leaving the last memorable moment of an album that still has about 20 minutes to go.
No longer steeped in Dixieland signifers, Kings of Leon now weirdly owe a debt to Washington state. If the rumbling toms, splashy cymbals, and cascading synth strings of songs like "Notion" or "I Want You" sound familiar, I'm willing to bet you have a copy of Sunny Day Real Esate's The Rising Tide or a recent Death Cab record. Strange bedfellows, and not really the right ones-- while the latter two were trying to adjust their modest hooks and personal lyrics to a larger scale, Kings of Leon have always been as emotionally cavernous as the drum sound here, and when the tempo slows, ladies and gentlemen, we are floating in swamp. Followill is haunted by all that he can't leave behind, trying to have it both ways with riffs that are supposed to bellow with reverb and bite with distortion. The band never soars, instead mostly muddling in a bog of muffled echo that liberally applies Caleb's cottonmouth to every other instrument.
At its best, Only By the Night at least gives the impression that Kings of Leon is actually an interesting band that would be exponentially and immediately improved with someone even average at the controls (call it the Tavaris Jackson Corollary). Musically, "Closer" sets the bar unrealistically high for the rest of the album, building on squeaking, modulated keys, tricky polyrhythms, and a solid melody unfortunately piledrived by Followill's self-pity ("You took my heart and you took my soul.../ Leaving me stranded in love on my own"). "Crawl" could pass for something off the first Secret Machines record with its hydraulic, distorted bass and hotly mixed percussion, but even before they can seal the deal with some dubious conspiracy mongering (something about the red, white, and blue crucifying you), you get the usual KoL idea of sweetalk: "You better learn to crawl before I walk away." Next thing you know, "Sex on Fire" starts and Kings of Leon's fourth album has peaked after seven minutes. Surely, we can do better for the platonic ideal of a rock band than four guys gunning for a spot rightfully inhabited by My Morning Jacket but instead coming up with the best songs 3 Doors Down never wrote
Thanks for reminding me why I never read Pitchfork. Holy pretentious batman!
You can splice out lyrics from any band anywhere and make them seem stupid. Personally, I like the misogyny and simplicity. Call me un-PC... I listen to rock music to have fun, not for life lessons. I've got the literate writings of actual thinkers if I want philosophical meditation. Plus, I LIKE U2.
It cracks me up how cookie cutter Pitchfork this review is.
How to write a Pitchfork review:
1. Song X sounds like Band Y doing Band Z with (insert faux-literary metaphor to make reviewer seem like the lost gem of his college creative writing class).
2. Repeat, song by song.
3. At end, dismiss as weak effort of band trying to sound like band C (cool band) but ending up sounding like Band D (band that has sold more than 1000 copies).0 -
soulsinging wrote:FYI to the OP: this is what you say if you want to appear cool. This way you can acknowledge their goodness while still maintaining your "I'm too indie and unique to like anything remotely poppy or mainstream" edge.soulsinging wrote:Personally, I like the misogyny
Learn to discuss with maturity, you might actually learn something."He who hears music, feels his solitude peopled at once" R. Browning0 -
mavi wrote:Do not put words in people's mouths. You are the one who's pretentious and childish in your arguments, patronizing and dismissing anyone who has a different opinion so you won't have to actually take them seriously.
Holly shit :shock: do you even know what that word means?
Learn to discuss with maturity, you might actually learn something.
1. I have no problem with opinions different from mine. I DO have problems with people using that bullshit "their music has changed so clearly they've sold their souls to attract teeny bopper fans and are no better than the jonas brothers" argument.
2. I know exactly what misogyny means. It was very popular back when rock and roll was fun. You know, before everyone decided that rock music had to make some grand spiritual mission statement and only appeal to a narrow demographic of angst-ridden 20-somethings to be of any merit. Led Zeppelin were big on it, as I recall.0 -
swede wrote:I really enjoy their music - aha shake heartbreak is currently my favourite album of theirs
they are great live too. they really get me movingit's fun!
"I'm not present, I'm a drug that makes you dream"0 -
this thread will suck the life out of any who read it. ugh. should have come with a warning on page one.Van '98, Sea I+II '00, Sea '01, Sea II '02, Van '03, Gorge, Van, Cal, Edm '05, Bos I+II, Phi I+II, DC, SF II+III, Port, Gorge I+II '06, DC, NY I+II '08, Sea I+II, Van, Ridge , LA III+IV' 09, Indy '10, Cal, Van '11, Lond, Van, Sea '13, Memphis '14, RRHOF '17, Sea I+II '18, Van I+II, Vegas I+II, Sea I+II '240
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restlesssoul wrote:this thread will suck the life out of any who read it. ugh. should have come with a warning on page one."I'm not present, I'm a drug that makes you dream"0
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TW97526 wrote:they have some good tracks in their early albums but that's it to be honest... I think they are pretty typical type of mainstream band: hyped and overrated.
they weren't like that when they first started. I guess money will do that to you if you're bunch of sons of a Preacher from TN
Got my tickets to see them at Bill Graham on 5/21. That's the location where magic happened back in 2006, you knowI have no patience for bad music and stupid people...
The whole world will be different soon the whole world will be RELIEVED
#resistgezi #resistturkey #resisttaksim #direnturkiye #direngezi
#standingman #duranadam0 -
I'd definitely give them a listen. I'd start with Aha Shake Heartbreak and/or Because of the Times -- those are my two favorites. The other albums are good as well, but these two just really stand out for me. Also if given the chance to see them live, I'd go. They deliver the goods.<!-- Facebook Fan Badge START --><div style="width: 100%;"><div style="background: #3B5998;padding: 5px;"><img src="http://www.facebook.com/images/fb_logo_small.png" alt="Facebook"/><img src="http://badge.facebook.com/badge/147713062953.614141056.2133926001.png" alt="" width="0" height="0"/></div><div style="background: #EDEFF4;display: block;border-right: 1px solid #D8DFEA;border-bottom: 1px solid #D8DFEA;border-left: 1px solid #D8DFEA;margin: 0px;padding: 0px 0px 5px 0px;"><div style="background: #EDEFF4;display: block;padding: 5px;"><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tr><td valign="top"><img src="http://www.facebook.com/images/icons/fbpage.gif" alt=""/></td><td valign="top"><p style="color: #808080;font-family: verdana;font-size: 11px;margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;padding: 0px 8px 0px 8px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/donny.anderson3" title="Donny Anderson" target="_TOP" style="color: #3B5998;font-family: verdana;font-size: 11px;font-weight: normal;margin: 0px;padding: 0px 0px 0px 0px;text-decoration: none;">Donny Anderson</a> is a fan of</p></td></tr></table></div><div style="background: #FFFFFF;clear: both;display: block;margin: 0px;overflow: hidden;padding: 5px;"><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tr><td valign="middle"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Seattle-WA/All-Thats-Sacred/147713062953" title="All That's Sacred" target="_TOP" style="border: 0px;color: #3B5998;font-family: verdana;font-size: 12px;font-weight: bold;margin: 0px;padding: 0px;text-decoration: none;"><img src="http://www.facebook.com/profile/pic.php?oid=AAAAAwAgACAAAAAMe57NWURaItSTAkndkF9yqc7YLeudXUlRbmI8Zlgt-969scmCqdU_G75K8TUPm74XnrGy4aB9ajQkobWBvlZyhgM-q2b4ag6Rsz_-7m8GsQaFt3vc_HiYJNPN_5g-HvB-&size=square" style="border: 0px;margin: 0px;padding: 0px;" alt="All That's Sacred"/></a></td><td valign="middle" style="padding: 0px 8px 0px 8px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Seattle-WA/All-Thats-Sacred/147713062953" title="All That's Sacred" target="_TOP" style="border: 0px;color: #3B5998;font-family: verdana;font-size: 12px;font-weight: bold;margin: 0px;padding: 0px;text-decoration: none;">All That's Sacred</a></td></tr></table></div></div><div style="display: block;float: right;margin: 0px;padding: 4px 0px 0px 0px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/facebook-widgets/fanbadges.php" title="Create your Fan Badge" target="_TOP" style="color: #3B5998;font-family: verdana;font-size: 11px;font-weight: none;margin: 0px;padding: 0px;text-decoration: none;">Create your Fan Badge</a></div></div><!-- Facebook Fan Badge END -->0
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soulsinging wrote:thunderDAN wrote:the first couple albums were awesome, but the last one sucks
FYI to the OP: this is what you say if you want to appear cool. This way you can acknowledge their goodness while still maintaining your "I'm too indie and unique to like anything remotely poppy or mainstream" edge.
Thanks but I don't try to maintain any sort of 'edge'.
I find your comment quite offensive, you don't know me.
I mean what I say and I say what I mean, no bullshit, nothing fake from me.
I just don't like what is out there at the moment and tread carefully when looking at contemporary bands.Adelaide 17/11/2009, Melbourne 20/11/2009, Sydney 22/11/2009, Melbourne (Big Day Out Festival) 24/01/20140 -
People have to remember that if I or anyone has an issue with KOL circa 2008/2009 it's nothing personal just an opinion. People can and do listen to what they like. I agree with the above poster also tread carefully when it comes to contemporary music.
People had issues with KOL when I was a big fan that was ok I dealt with it... Just that now more people know them and I think some of the older fans have an issue with their new poppy sound.0 -
Thoughts_Arrive wrote:soulsinging wrote:thunderDAN wrote:the first couple albums were awesome, but the last one sucks
FYI to the OP: this is what you say if you want to appear cool. This way you can acknowledge their goodness while still maintaining your "I'm too indie and unique to like anything remotely poppy or mainstream" edge.
Thanks but I don't try to maintain any sort of 'edge'.
I find your comment quite offensive, you don't know me.
I mean what I say and I say what I mean, no bullshit, nothing fake from me.
I just don't like what is out there at the moment and tread carefully when looking at contemporary bands.
No offense intended to you, I wasn't saying you were like that. I was mocking the people around here that are like that, and there are many.0 -
i thought they were GREAT when i saw them at lollapaloozaPJ:7/2/03.9/28/04.5/25/06.8/5/07.6/14/08.6/27/08.6/28/08.6/30/08.
10/30/09.10/31/09.5/17/10.9/7/11
EV:boston 1+2.albnay 1.boston 20100 -
soulsinging wrote:
No offense intended to you, I wasn't saying you were like that. I was mocking the people around here that are like that, and there are many.I have no patience for bad music and stupid people...
The whole world will be different soon the whole world will be RELIEVED
#resistgezi #resistturkey #resisttaksim #direnturkiye #direngezi
#standingman #duranadam0 -
soulsinging wrote:
No offense intended to you, I wasn't saying you were like that. I was mocking the people around here that are like that, and there are many.
Cool, it's all good dude.Adelaide 17/11/2009, Melbourne 20/11/2009, Sydney 22/11/2009, Melbourne (Big Day Out Festival) 24/01/20140 -
I love Youth and Young Manhood. It's an absolute shame that it doesn't get more play in their live sets. All you get, for sure, is Molly's Chambers. I know they started playing Trani a bit more towards the end of this last US tour. The same with California Waiting and Wasted Time. I wished they played Red Morning Light, Joes' Head, Happy Alone too.
As you can tell, my only beef with KoL is their setlists. They tend to keep it the same every night. I know, we've been spoiled by PJ, and I need to remeber that this is the norm for most bands. They have such a good catalog of music.
I have 4th row tix for their show in Boston on 4/18. I hope their set is different from when I saw them in November. Regardless, I'll still have a great time. They put on a great live show.0
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