Kings of Leon’s fifth album, “Come Around Sundown”, is the fifth installment of a great body of work from the Nashville-based rock quartet. After their earlier release of the album “Only By the Night”, with chart-topping songs like “sex on fire” and “Use Somebody”, they had a challenging act to follow. The Kings had a lot to accomplish with the release of “Come Around Sundown”. They required to develop an album that not only cemented their status as the next “It” band in the mainstream, but they also required to inspire the accurate fans, the ones that have been around because “youth and young manhood“, to believe that they haven’t fallen into the bottomless pit of “selling out” and creating disposable arena-rock.

After “Only By the Night”, lots of of the KOL fans had a poor taste in their mouth about the Down-south rockers. The overabundance of middle-aged drunk ladies singing along to “sex on fire” at their tour this summer was sufficient to make myself, a KOL fan by means of and by means of, abstain from my own karaoke expertise. Nevertheless, I loved the tracks of the fourth album since they showed a side of KOL that hadn’t just before been revealed–it was challenging not to love them.

Concerning their newest album, “Come Around Sundown”, I would say that it is practically there. Tracks like “Pyro”, and “Pickup Truck” echo the early, grittier days of the Kings, and “Mary” and “Back Down South” touch on the Southern roots that the Kings have so regularly referenced. On the other hand, elements like the music video of “Radioactive” just scream OVERPRODUCING. Certainly? A choir of small youngsters? I extremely doubt Caleb sat back with a bottle of beer and said, “I know! WE COULD HAVE Small Youngsters IN THE VIDEO WITH US, and maybe they could be running via a sprinkler? It Certainly captures the meaning of the song.”

My hope is that the Kings do what they said they would: stick to their roots. They ought to ignore the producers that are attempting to make their image and just do what they feel. Keep in mind Caleb’s insane asylum bangs? That nonconformity is what made KOL such a amazing band to listen to; the music is fantastic and the guys in the band don\’t care what anybody thinks–they just jam.

Musically, “Come Around Sundown” is listenable, enjoyable, but not Actually “rock-out-able”. So I guess the only factor we fans can do is see what the quartet brings out next, and hope that it stays accurate.

Now, by no means does this review mean I don\’t like the new album. Kings of Leon is incredible, versatile, and will constantly be one of my favorite bands. Their worst song is fifty times far better than the crap that “KE$HA” and Lil’ Wayne puts on the scene.

RATING: three.5/5

Jordan Reynolds
Soundlion Staff Member
www.soundlion.com