There’s a compelling argument to suggest that the traditional album format is rapidly approaching its end. The boom in music downloading, be it legal or illegal, coupled with heavy marketing budgets for i-pods etc. may well signal the death of the album, to be replaced by the short attention span friendly single, and the home made compilation. This of course will resolve the notorious 'difficult second album’ problem for many bands. A scant consolation for The Kings of Leon, who present their second album A-ha Shake Heartbreak under the usual critical conditions.
The question then is, is the album a) any good, and b) does it show any artistic progress/depth in relation to the first release?
The band broke through to attention with last year’s Youth and Young Manhood, to a rapturous reception in the UK in particular. Cynics could suggest that a slick media campaign focussing on the group’s strange background (three brothers, the sons of a preacher, and their cousin, from Tenessee) played its part in their meteoric rise to success. Unfair perhaps, but every advantage helps, and they wouldn’t be the first talented group to benefit from a bit of media hype (The White Stripes spring, nay pole vault, to mind).
So, to get back on topic, is the album any good? Yes, definitely. There are a number of instantly memorable tunes, and a great sound, that sets them out on their own.
The album opener Slow night, so long sets the tone for the album – neither a gentle introduction, nor a rip-roarer. It’s got a groove to it, and both lyrically and musically it suggests a certain disillusion with success, and falls into a grand tradition of artistically tackling the burnout factor associated with sudden fame and constant touring. There’s a beautiful coda to the song, where Caleb Followill croons “Rise and shine all you gold digging mothers/ are you too good to tangle with the poor poor boys”. It’s not hit single territory, but it’s a great song.
Pistol of Fire is probably the tensest song on the album, but aside from the diversions of checking the lyric sheet against Followill’s mangled pronunciation (“who stole the fire”) it’s all bluster with little substance. Sure, it’ll probably work live, but on an album it’s a filler, and that’s a seventies tradition that the world can do without.
If there’s any song on the album that demonstrates that the Kings of Leon have grown as songwriters and musicians, it would be Milk. It confidently allows Caleb’s vocals to carry the song for a good minute before being joined by the rest of the band. It yearns and shimmies. Where much of the first album was down to great three minute rock songs, this is the sound of a band that’s willing to wing it a bit, creating space and mood in a song, with promising results. The chorus is wonderful, and sits just the right side of propriety to get on daytime radio and tv, while reeking of coded depravity:
she saw my comb over, her hourglass body
she had problems with drinking milk
and being school tardy
she’ll loan you her toothbrush
she’ll bartend you party
A number of tracks could quite happily have sat on the first album, the only difference, perhaps, being a subtle improvement in production and crafting. King of the Rodeo, Four Kicks , and Velvet Snow for example. It’s not that they’re bad per se, but the words “treading water” come to mind.
Two of the catchiest songs Soft and The Bucket highlight one of the problems that the Kings have though, and that’s the echo of other bands/influences. On Soft for example, it could easily be The Strokes, if not for Caleb’s vocals. While that proposes an interesting dilemma – can you plagiarise a plagiarist? – it doesn’t necessarily do them any favours, providing soft targets for critics to say “heard it all before”. Which would be a shame, because The Bucket for example is a great song, though it has influences, ranging form Hanoi Rocks through to U2, screaming out from its big guitar sound and drum rolls. Bonus track Where Nobody knows interestingly enough rips of The Bucket – which if I didn’t know better might come across as some ironic, post-modern, piss take on the word 'bonus’.
The album closer Rememo is another one of the confident, brave, and frankly brilliant tracks on the album. It’s a slow burner, with yodelling (!?!?) that works. Bands willing to breathe life into their music should be praised, regardless of any reasonable moral objections to the deployment of the fearsome yodel (which terrifyingly it seems is being taught online! Find the link yourself if you’re sick enough)
Enough rambling, to put it clearly, this is a strong, confident and catchy second album. It’s a strong artistic statement, marking the Kings of Leon as a band with staying power. It’s ironic then that, having ripped them off (ever so slightly), the Kings of Leon’s second album gives one more reason for The Strokes to hang their head in shame.