After snatching up four Grammy nominations this week, Kings of Leon frontman Caleb Followill spoke to SPIN Magazine about all the success from their 2008 album "Only By The Night". Followill explained that the band became bigger than they actually wanted to, and eluded to the new fans (likely people who enjoy shit like Rascal FLATZZZZ) that they've acquired through their new sound.
Personally, I hated Only By The Night from the first time I heard it. Kings were actually a band I enjoyed up until 2008 when they dropped this raunchy set of tracks on all of us. After hearing the album the first time, I experienced what many do when they hear a terrible album by their fav band; at first you try your hardest to make yourself like the songs, but then within a day you absolutely hate it, it's impossible to enjoy. When I noticed how much my mom actually liked the Kings singles from the radio, I knew something was wrong. "Use Somebody" is actually one of my most hated songs of all time, coming from a band that I used to like? How stupid is that? Not to mention all of my friends who used to enjoy Kings experienced the same withdrawal, knowing they could never listen to another album from these guys again. How rotten is it to like the first three albums from a band over the course of a few years, and then actually HAVE to stop listening to them!? Gross.
I figured my Leon days were behind me. I thought from now on every album would be terrible like the last one. But the interview with SPIN kind of let me see a little light. If the members of Kings of Leon can realize how shitty that last album was, maybe they'll steer away from it and release a good record the next time around. Wishful thinking? Let me know.
By the way, if you've experienced this with another band (which you definitely have), throw along an email or comment. I'll post on some of the best examples of this type of debacle.
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- Followill informed SPIN that apparently Eddie Vedder told him how much success they'd get from Only By The Night, while also saying that he didn't really believe Vedder liked the album. Interesting stuff.
Few tunes for ya: "Summertime Clothes" by Animal Collective, "Party Crasher" by Method Man, "Separate and Ever Deadly" by Last Shadow Puppets
-razzler
