On Tuesday night, Brian and I drove up to Columbia, MD with some of his friends to see Kings of Leon play at Merriwether Post Pavilion. Here's the stellar review I wrote for my school paper...
Nashville-based rock-band Kings of Leon hit the stage at Merriwether Post Pavilion Sept. 8th and pleased fans with their impressive set, contagious energy and sexy vocals.
The Kings rocked-out to songs from their 2008 album, Only by the Night, such as “Notion,” “Closer,” “Manhattan” and “Crawl.” The band has a very distinct and recurring sound, yet each song had its own unique vibe to offer the patrons of the sold-out show. And because of the lead-signer’s seductive voice, each of those vibes was pleasantly captivating.
The songs “Use Somebody” and “Sex on Fire,” popular hits on radio stations across the country, were highlights of the show for many concert-goers. The entire stadium was dancing along and shouting-out the lyrics… “Your sex is on fire, Consumed with what’s to transpire!”
"There's always been an element of sex in our music, so I thought I'd just wrap it all up in one song and be done with the sex for the rest of the record," joked Caleb in the band’s website biography. “I don't really remember writing it. I just woke up with an empty bottle of wine and my songbook open and these words written down.”
Caleb, Jared, Matthew and Nathan Followill, (all brothers except for Matthew, a first-cousin), are Kings of Leon’s leading men. Caleb, on leading-vocals and rhythm-guitar, was clearly the camera’s favorite band-member. He entertained the crowd between songs with various words of wisdom and often accompanied these life-lessons with a large shot of liquor and a swig of red Gatorade.
“It took us a really long time to get to this point. We had three records out before people even started listening to us,” Caleb said. “This is the best show we’ve ever played. You guys are amazing. YEAH!”
“He’s a rock-star, so I guess he can say whatever he wants, right?” said Paul Turkevich of Arlington, VA. “I don’t know, judging by the singer’s current state-of-mind, it makes me wonder if they even know what city they’re in,” he joked.
Caleb on vocals and rhythm guitar, Jared on bass and Matthew on lead guitar all had similar hipster appearances with their tight jeans, flannel shirts and wispy hair. Nathan on drums, however, looked like he had taken a wrong turn on his way to a heavy-metal concert. His long black hair and sleeveless shirt looked slightly out of place next to his band-mates’ alternative styles. Nevertheless, he delivered a great show and thoroughly impressed the crowd.
One of the best parts of the show was the encore when the band blasted three memorable songs including “Knocked Up” and “Use Somebody.” By this point, all the band-members were drenched in sweat and you could see it fly through the air as they shook their luscious locks of hair. Caleb’s large cross necklace swung from side-to-side as the wetness flew from his body.
“I honestly thought the lead guitarist had a fan aimed at his head the entire time. His wings were out-of-control,” said Nick Scialli of Arlington, VA. “It was a great show, their set was on fire!”
And in case anyone cares… The opening band, The Features, also put-on a good show. The band consists of four scruffy Nashville boys that sound like everyone and no one you’ve ever heard. I couldn’t put my finger on it, who do they sound like!? Judge for yourself, visit their MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/thefeatures
