Kings of Leon - When You See Yourself - 8/10

 

Kings of Leon have taken a journey back to an alternate reality.

In our article ‘Kings of Leon in 20 songs’, we explored the journey the band had been on from their raucous roots to the double edged sword that came with the heights of fame and success. The bigger the band got, the further away they seemed from all of the elements that had made them special in the first place.

‘When You See Yourself ’ offers the glimpse of the road they could have taken. The record is sonically the natural successor to their third album ‘Because of the Times’ and feels like an intriguing glimmer of a different route they could’ve taken. A road that may not have brought them the dizzying heights that ‘Sex on Fire’ did, but one that perhaps would have been more creatively enjoyable and fruitful.

The album kicks off with the steady pondering build of ‘When You See Yourself Are You Far Away'. It takes a few listens before it really sticks but it steadily grows on you and reminds the listener of ‘Because of the Times’ opener ‘Knocked Up’.

Lead single ‘The Bandit’ follows and kicks things up a gear. Launching in with a snaking distorted riff, it quickly builds into a juggernaut of crunching guitars, rolling synths and thudding bass and drums. A country and western tale set to a 21st century instrumental, it’s the most exciting and catchy song the band have written in years.

‘100,000 People’ slows things back down but, as you catch your breath, it’s enjoyable to get lost in its rolling melody. The song is a melodic relative of the Kinks classic ‘Strangers’ but is not at all pastiche. In fact it’s trademark Kings of Leon with Caleb’s yearning vocals floating over the gently thudding baseline and rippling riffs.

The instrumentals on the album are an absolute joy and sound like a band that have rediscovered the joy of writing and performing songs together. It is Jared’s bass that is the real star of the record. From its star role on the aforementioned ‘100,000 People’ ,to the effortlessly cool opening bars of ‘Stormy Weather’. The baseline provides the perfect lift to launch ‘The Wave’ into life and the gentle rumble of the melody to ‘Supermarket’.

That’s not to say that the guitars and drums don’t live up to expectation. The jagged riffs and rhythms that power ’Stormy Weather’ manage to be ragged and polished all at once. All the components come together in unison on ‘Golden Restless Age’ with the feral riff taking centre stage.

So what’s missing? Well, the middle section of the record does ponder along and at times seems to lack direction. ‘Echoing’ is one of their rawest and rowdiest songs for ages (the natural successor to ‘The Bucket’) but is stuck right at the album’s end - a last letting down of the hair before the steady close of ‘Fairytale’. Moving it earlier in the track listing would have injected some energy into the album's middle ground.

It is a long record clocking in at 51 minutes. Whilst some of the songs (‘A Wave’ for instance) benefit from a long steady build, others (‘Supermarket’ and ‘Golden Restless Age’) could have benefited from some constructive trimming down. Lastly, and perhaps an odd criticism, but the song titles lack creativity and invention. You know from the first listen that the song title is more or less certainly going to be the main line of the chorus - it just feels a little safe and boring somehow.

In fairness to Kings of Leon though, these are pretty minor criticisms. This record has many of their best moments in years. ‘Stormy Weather’ has the same raw unfiltered rock and roll spirit as ‘Trani’. ‘A Wave’ pushes them out of their comfort zone and lifts soaringly from its gentle start to a heavy thudding finish. ‘Claire and Eddie’ meanwhile is one of their loveliest songs to date and finds Caleb’s guitar playing and vocal delivery in fine shape as he wistfully reflects ‘the fires going to rage and people don’t change’ over his bandmates hushed vocals.

This lyric perhaps sums up where the band have got to. Who cares that this record arrived in 2021 and not 2009. Yes the band may have gone around the houses to get back to the sound that suits them but it is no less enjoyable for that. This band may have tried different identities out but fundamentally their sound hasn’t changed and the fire still rages. It’s a delight to find them back on such fine form and an exciting moment to see where they will go next.