Kings of Leon Live @ Old Trafford Cricket Ground, Manchester, 19/06/2011

The rise of Kings Of Leon in the past few years has been incredible; they have ascended from little-known Southern rock act to huge stadium-filling anthemic rock band in the space of one album. This showing at the sold-out Old Trafford Cricket Ground, demonstrated the dramatic shift in sound that has accompanied the Followills’ climb and seen them ditch the label that was attached to them earlier in their career - the Southern Strokes.

Kings of Leon’s debut album, Youth and Young Manhood – which gained them a strong cult following in the UK – was virtually non-existent in a set that revolved around the foursome’s most recent stadium-friendly output. There were 12 songs in total from the band’s last two albums, the biggest selling album of 2008, Only by the Night, and their most recent fifth album, Come Around Sundown. However, the band clearly attempted to satisfy those who sought a set based around their debut album and the formidable follow up, Aha Shake Heartbreak.






Kicking off with the rowdy, stomping fun of ‘Four Kicks’, followed by ‘Taper Jean Girl’ and ‘The Bucket’, it was pretty much the perfect start for fans of earlier KOL material. Even the first single from Come Around Sundown, ‘Radioactive’, was beefed up from the record version – sounding much better without the cringe-worthy addition of a choir in the background. The Followills then thrashed out a frantic version of ‘My Party’ from Because of the Times, the album that marks the transitional point between the furious, unintelligible Kings Of Leon at the start of their career and the current, anthemic version of the band. Another track from Because of the Times that made an appearance was ‘Fans’, which combined perfectly with the best song from Come Around Sundown, ‘Back Down South’, with both songs leaning strongly on the acoustic guitar.

After the laid back acoustic numbers, Kings Of Leon reverted back to the full-on, uncompromising, rawness of their earlier material, with ‘McFearless’, ‘Crawl’ and ‘Charmer’ capturing the Tennessee four-piece at their most impressive. ‘Charmer’, in particular, was a huge crowd pleaser, with its intoxicating bass and Caleb’s haunting scream inviting the capacity crowd to participate in some frenzied moshing.

Part of the problem with the most recent KOL album was that it sounded too polished, too clean; it could easily be played in the background during a social function without anyone batting an eyelid. Essentially, it entered into Coldplay territory. However, the tracks they did play from the new album sounded much better live, especially ‘Mary’, which sounded more like a catchy pop song on the record, compared to the lively, bluesy, rocker it became when belted out in front of thousands of fans.



Whilst Kings Of Leon seem eager to move on from their earlier material, Youth and Young Manhood wasn’t completely disregarded. ‘California Waiting’ and ‘Molly’s Chamber’s’ were played back-to-back towards the end of the set, to a great reception from the crowd. As the set reached its conclusion, Caleb and Co. kicked into anthemic, area-filling mode, playing songs such as ‘Closer’, ‘Pyro’ and ‘On Call’. The latter – as admitted by the band – was an attempt to break the U.S market that ignored them for so long, highlighting their determination to make it in their homeland, whilst also selling out stadiums such as the Old Trafford Cricket Ground. This determination eventually manifested itself in the radio-friendly, super-smash hit, ‘Sex on Fire’, which dominated charts and compels instant sing-a-longs within seconds of hearing the opening riff. It isn’t the greatest song ever written - that’s for sure - but it is incredibly infectious, and the communal sing-a-long it invokes is almost unmatched. ‘Sex on Fire’ was followed by a brief break, before Kings Of Leon returned for an encore, which began with the majestic and touching opener from Because of the Times, ‘Knocked Up’.



The four song encore also included ‘Manhattan’ and ‘Use Somebody’, with the two songs from Only by the Night provoking further sing-a-longs. With the set drawing to a close, Kings of Leon concluded an impressive show in the only way they know how, with the classic KOL sound emanating from the bar-room brawl sounds of ‘Black thumbnail’. It certainly wasn’t the perfect set. Whilst songs such as ‘Notion’ and ‘Manhattan’ were okay, when you consider the songs that could have been in their place on the setlist – ‘Red Morning Light’ and ‘Trani’, in particular – then anything else is a disappointment. Yet this is a small gripe in a set that showcased the transformation of the Followills from nerdy, hairy Southerners, to clean-cut poster boys selling out stadiums in minutes. Kings Of Leon have achieved everything they ever wanted from their career; they are one of the biggest bands on the planet and are selling albums by the bucket load. Whilst the Tennessee rockers may have ditched some of the intensity and rawness from their initial sound, they have evolved into an impressively slick live band, one that never fails to entertain.