With the world in a global pandemic and lockdown, I have started venturing out of my usual playlist... here's what I've discovered so far:
Kings Of Leon - Youth And Young Manhood
Most famous for their hit 'Sex on Fire', Kings of Leon's earlier work is often forgotten and lost amongst their widespread reputation created by their pop ballad. Listening through their first album, 'Youth And Young Manhood' it became very clear to me how their style has evolved.
Personally, on first listen I got a strong sense of country combined with indie and soft rock... not my go to combination to say the least... BUT I gave it a second listen all the way through and I think it is safe to say that although it is not what I would usually warm to, it does it very well. I feel as though there is just the right combination of the three genres that first stood out for me to make it such a unique and definitive sound for the band. The tracks are varied enough to be different yet similar enough to provide consistency.
The section from 'California Waiting' up to and including 'Genius' stood out for me in particular. This section of four songs is between 'Trani' and 'Dusty', two of the longer songs on the album which are more mellow than the rest and feature guitar solos: they seem to sandwich burst of steady walking bass and foot- tapping beats very well.
The whole album is a work of art: consistent but also varied, providing an immediate sense of escapism upon listening. Although not my usual cup of tea, there have been a few songs that really stood out for me ('California Waiting', 'SpiraI Staircase', 'Molly's Chambers' and 'Genius') meaning that I can safely say I have ventured into new musical pastures.
On a side note, I had a rather out there interpretation that 'Talihina Sky' seems as a bit of an anomaly in the album: it seems like it should be the end credit scene to the western movie of the album... but that's just a passing thought.
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