Every once in a while a band creeps up and makes people sit up. I mean sit up, with pupils dilated, ears attuned and mouth moistening. Kings of Leon are exactly that type of band.
They haven't released a single yet, but the hype machine is already working overtime where this Tennessee based foursome are concerned. Already tipped by Rolling Stone amongst others as one of this year's bands to watch, Kings of Leon have a lot to live up to.
This debut EP is a little sampler of the promising talent which exists in the secluded Deep American South. The three-track opens with the swaggering jingle of Molly's Chambers, an honest, if somewhat amusing lesson in what to do if you find yourself in a sweet southern belle's bedroom, before realising what a headfuck she is.
California Waiting delights with its summer-tinged laziness. It seems as if it was deliberately written to be pumped out while burning down an open highway without a care in the world, with a slight sense of optimism looming in the hot air.
The band's final soundbite sees them loosen up on Holy Roller Novocaine. Sounding like a southern Strokes, lead singer Caleb Followill's laid back drawl sets the tone for this foot tapping hybrid of gospel, blues and balls out rock n' roll. This is what the Black Crowes would have sounded like had they grown up in trailers all their life.
An outstanding three-track debut that goes from laidback rock Americana to country and straight-up, no-nonsense rock. Hail hail, the Kings have entered the court.
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