Saturday, November 06, 2010
Sundown Came and Went
After almost killing the CD player in my car with non-stop multiple sessions of their previous album "Only by the Night" and much out-of-tune personal karaoke moments, the latest album by Kings of Leon, "Come Around Sundown", looks like it's going to do the same for my vocal cords and CD player again.
It's a good thing I usually drive alone in the car because my voice is really something.
"Only by the Night" was a huge success for Kings of Leon (if all you music purists can count winning a Grammy award as "success"), and it introduced a lot of people to their brand of Southern rock music. A lot of their fans are calling their latest album a little too mainstream for their liking, but I really don't think it matters as long as there are people who can still enjoy the music.
The Followills (Nathan, Caleb, Jared, Matthew - 3 brothers and 1 cousin) have been at it since 1999, so they've been around the block for awhile and it seems like they've finally decided that an arena rock sound is what suits them the best. And I think it works really well. "Come Around Sundown" has this stadium feel to it, like every song was written just so it would sound it's best at a live concert or music festival with thousands of people singing along to Caleb Followill's twangy Southern tunes.
The album starts off with the ironically-named song "The End". It's rich with a teasing guitar sound following the whole song with some synths thrown in for good measure. It's a good introduction to Caleb's voice that just warbles on consistently in every song.
The first single from the album, "Radioactive", is full of energy and gets me a little too excited in the morning. The guitar riffs are fast, catchy and fun. It builds up towards the end as a gospel choir joins in with Caleb letting loose with the hypnotic lyrics. Another song that has almost the same energy would be "No Money" and although the guitar riffs feels a little similar, it's more upbeat with a guitar solo that would no doubt inspire plenty of air-guitar impersonations. But it's all in good fun.
Things slow down abit with songs like "Mi Amigo" which is a rocking ballad with a hint of the blues and "The Face" which sounds all full of sadness, amplified by a haunting guitar hook that matches Caleb's melancholic voice perfectly. "The Face" is one of the highlights of this album for me.
One of the songs that latched on to me and immediately staked its claim as my personal favourite is "Mary". I love it! I'm not too sure why, but it's pretty catchy. It's a blues rock ballad that won my heart over with it's anthemic guitar riffs and vocals that just pleads for me to give it a chance.
If this album sounds like we're being tricked in to listening to country music by the Followills, songs like "Back Down South" and "Pickup Truck" will reaffirm that suspicion for you. It's all full of Southern twang, complete with some cowboy imagery randomly running through your head. The former even has some people whooping and cheering at the end, like they just finished playing in a barnhouse party.
Overall, the album is pretty good. It's easy to listen to, won't confuse you or make you feel like you're listening to an obscure brand of music that only the hipsters like. Caleb's sweeping voice can come off as a little high and nasally if you're not used to it, so maybe try not to listen to the whole album at one go on your first try. The songs are grand and Caleb's voice echoes nice and clear in most of them, giving most of the album a "live" feel. I think Kings of Leon are going to win a lot of new fans over with "Come Around Sundown".
Plus, I think they all look better with less hair altogether.
If you want more information about this album or any of their previous ones, check out Sony Music Malaysia on Facebook/Twitter.
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