Kings of Leon

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Just FYI you're new so probably don't know the general guideline is it doesn't really matter when the thread was started, so long as people are still currently posting regular pertinent info and it hasn't crossed the 1000 post threshold, threads that are basically discussing the same thing (especially general band threads) are typically merged into one. Plenty of people have been posting their thoughts since the album came out so don't be surprised if yours ultimately gets merged into that one also.

Anyways fwiw am not a huge fan of KOL. I didn't really enjoy their set when they opened for U2 and I guess I'm more of a 'radio KOL' kind of listener, so your review was interesting. Sounds like maybe I take a spin through it, at least give it a shot anyways..
 
"Work On Me" should have made the record. It's a shame that most people won't hear it since its only on the deluxe edition. Besides that and a few others, to me, the album sucks. It's so calculated and by the numbers. It's almost like a rock 101 album that falls flat. I fear for Caleb and the band as I feel they're going to go at it again eventually out of sheer frustration that this album hasn't generated another hit. In my opinion they need to hire a new producer they have never worked with and try to head in a new direction. They're boring as shit right now.
 
Gonna Run 2 U said:
"Work On Me" should have made the record. It's a shame that most people won't hear it since its only on the deluxe edition. Besides that and a few others, to me, the album sucks. It's so calculated and by the numbers. It's almost like a rock 101 album that falls flat. I fear for Caleb and the band as I feel they're going to go at it again eventually out of sheer frustration that this album hasn't generated another hit. In my opinion they need to hire a new producer they have never worked with and try to head in a new direction. They're boring as shit right now.
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I need to hear 'Work On Me' but yeah overall this album is really lame. I'm not saying bands can't change in fact its part of being in a band. But KOL have changed into some sort FM rock band.

I don't see these guys making another album after this one. I don't know who is making decisions on the style of music being made but they need to stop. I don't even want to go to a KOL concert anymore :sad:
 
Glass Houses

Gonna Run 2 U said:
"Work On Me" should have made the record. It's a shame that most people won't hear it since its only on the deluxe edition. Besides that and a few others, to me, the album sucks. It's so calculated and by the numbers. It's almost like a rock 101 album that falls flat. I fear for Caleb and the band as I feel they're going to go at it again eventually out of sheer frustration that this album hasn't generated another hit. In my opinion they need to hire a new producer they have never worked with and try to head in a new direction. They're boring as shit right now.
Click to expand...

This is some of the feelings I was experiencing as I listened to HTDAAB and NLOTH for the first time. The lure of mainstream success made for a "calculated" albums by Bono & Co. Many of the songs (City Of Blinding Lights ala Streets...) (Sometimes You Can't Make It...ala One) (Love And Peace ala Elevation) etc were U2 101.

Therefore before blasting KOL for their obvious intentions, let's remember we are in a glass house too. Our fave band is not exactly setting the world on fire with interesting and fresh sounds. That was the case from 1980 - 2000. But not in the last 13 years.

You feel that KOL needs a new producer...isn't this the same complaint we have with Eno/Lanois/Lillywhite?

Let's just realize that KOL is on their 6th album and after 10 years, ALMOST every band has exhausted their well of creativity.
 
There is nothing on Mechanical Bull that's even close to Fez or Cedars of Lebanon as far as creativity is concerned. As a matter of fact, the two bands aren't really comparable.
 
LemonMelon said:
There is nothing on Mechanical Bull that's even close to Fez or Cedars of Lebanon as far as creativity is concerned. As a matter of fact, the two bands aren't really comparable.
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Right!

I will say HTDAAB is comparable to the last 3 KOL albums. Sad thing is Vertigo rocks out more than anything on the Sun & Mechanical Bull. But NLOTH is a very good album for U2 & has times of brilliance.

And Bono still sings. Caleb sounds like he just doesn't give a f*** anymore.
 
Posting this link from the app so I dont know if this will work but what's maddening to me is that they performed this cover of Robyn's "dancing on my own" and here Caleb sounds brilliant. They just played this a few weeks ago along with a few cuts from the new record. To me this performance is better than the whole album! I guess there's something about singing other people's songs sometimes but he sounds more into this song than singing the new material.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQ-vU28uPb0&feature=youtube_gdata_player
 
Gonna Run 2 U said:
"Work On Me" should have made the record. It's a shame that most people won't hear it since its only on the deluxe edition. Besides that and a few others, to me, the album sucks. It's so calculated and by the numbers. It's almost like a rock 101 album that falls flat. I fear for Caleb and the band as I feel they're going to go at it again eventually out of sheer frustration that this album hasn't generated another hit. In my opinion they need to hire a new producer they have never worked with and try to head in a new direction. They're boring as shit right now.
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What song on this record do you see as a potential hit?

I'm not hearing anything that comes close to a "hit." Don't see why they'd be frustrated.
 
iron yuppie said:
Isn't this what KoL has always been about, though? Or at least what they have been doing for quite some time? And I say this as someone who doesn't mind their music.
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powerhour24 said:
That's been their MO on singles since 2008, it certainly wasn't before that. They weren't the most profound of recording artists, but the music wasn't over-produced and calculated for world dominance the way they are now.
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Been away for a couple weeks, but: iron, what he ^ said. :)
 
Yeah, I'm with this record a week now, and it's pretty good. Was not expecting a great album, KOL don't have any great albums, but they do have records with lots of good songs. "Supersoaker" really is a throwback for them. It moves and has all the right breaks. "Rock City" is a total groove. I love the guitar chorus. I'm a sucker for a guitar chorus. "Beautiful War" is a fine ballad. Rather understated. I'd expect a band only concerned with "hits" to avoid such a trait in the album's big ballad, but there it is. "Temple" is a great pop song. In fact, a review in this thread, kinda sums "Temple" up for me:

Kings of Leon return with 'Mechanical Bull' - Grantland

"If Mechanical Bull had 12 songs as durrr-brilliant as "Temple" and "Don't Matter," I would have it welded into my car stereo with the volume knob permanently fixed at 27. "

"Family Tree" is another groove thingy that I think works well. Very loose with a swampy accent to it. "Coming Back Again" is the album's ace. 80's propelled groove, ascending guitar riffs (another thing that sucks me in), wide open chorus. "On The Chin" is a fairly affective country weeper.

Not a great record by any means. Average lyrics, nothing close to brilliant, nothing as awful as:

"We get this bitch shaking like Parkinson's."

But a nice stock of really good rock songs.
 
I really like this album, and I really like this band. However, I'm afraid I don't hear a big "Sex on Fire" or "Use Somebody" type of single. Things like that don't matter to me, but you're going to start to see them downgrading to smaller venues and move down to 2nd on the bill at festivals instead of headliners.

To me, this band really blew it when they stormed offstage 3 songs into a show because of bird shit in 2010. That's the kind of PR disaster that'll stick with you the rest of your career. Then walking offstage again in Dallas of 2011 mid show, not returning, and then cancelling the rest of a US tour (but still playing the shows in Canada and Australia)... well, that pretty much put the nail in their coffin as far as the general public is concerned.

15 years from now, we'll see Kings of Leon, The Killers, Arcade Fire and The Black Keys doing a tour together of casino theaters, and not selling them out. It's sad, but true.
 
I wish you were right! But I disagree. I haven't heard any of the new tunes, and won't listen to the album as I don't like the band, but they can spend the next however many years riding off the back of Sex on Fire and Use Somebody. They were everywhere. Throw in Revelry and Radioactive for good measure. A quick wiki search reveals the album went to number one in Australia, Ireland and the UK so far.
 
The Killers and Black Keys I could see. Hell, The Killers already play casinos. Arcade Fire keeps dropping classic on classic though, they'll be relevant for quite some time.
 
Anu said:
Love love love KOL & love love love this new record. Hopefully the band can stay sober enough to mount an extensive tour based on this record.
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I'd rather them release another album soon. The drummer claims the next one is half way done. Maybe they'll release something new while touring? They are definitely trying to get back on track. The amount of advertising they are doing is nuts.
 
I don't know how it could take them longer than a month to make their albums unless there's crippling alcoholism involved.
 
They are headlining a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit bash in Nashville this week I believe. I'm hopeful they play a new song or two as they tend to do between albums.


Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interference
 
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