Review: Ben Connolly
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The Kings of Leon really do have a lot to answer for, don’t they? There’s the re-introduction of initially swampy Dixie-styled rock, and the tight jeans, the lank hair and the homely Southern drawl, to name just a few. Perhaps more worryingly was the eagerness with which they helped to re-introduce some seriously lol-worthy Spinal Tap moments back into the world of rawk (just follow one of the brothers Followill’s twitter-feed to get an idea on how little grasp they have on reality), and by how much their adoring young fan-base seemed to lap it up. There was also the the warp-speed with which they jumped from being a curious, intriguing pseudo-experimental rock band into a firmly entrenched MOR behemoth of blandness and pyrotechnics. |
The result of this, and the greatest crime of all it must be seen, must be the fact they’ve shown this warp-speed blandification as a legitimate career-path with similar like-minded wanna-be acts.
The latest of these is California’s Cold War Kids, whose third album Mine Is Yours has just landed and has signalled quite clearly that the quartet has its eyes firmly on being the next revelation of arena-style rock. From start to finish the album is big and boxy and packs a serious bottom-end punch, which highlights a clear delineation between it and its predecessors (2006’s debut Robbers & Cowards and 2008 follow up Loyalty to Loyalty). It’s no suprise that KoL’s knob twirler Jacquire King had a big hand in this production. For all the bombast and pomp, however, there’s something not quite fitting in the equation and by album’s end, it’s all a little limp and contrived.
Continue reading Cold War Kids “Mine Is Yours” – Album Review
Day two of Sunset Sounds 2011 arrives, bringing with it steady rain and a forecast of nothing but. Organisers have spread sand over some of the affected areas, but when I arrive on Thursday afternoon the damage that the combination of thousands of feet and a whole lot of rain did to the grounds yesterday is easily apparent. Areas that were grassy are now plains of squelchy mud ready to snatch unsuspecting thongs from feet and disappear them forever and the paths we traversed yesterday are now boasting small streams of rainwater.
Billed by organisers as the perfect way to cap off New Year’s celebrations, Brisbane’s Sunset Sounds has become renowned for its impeccable line-ups and alluring Botanical Gardens setting. With headline act Interpol leading the charge of an impressively diverse set of artists, the 2011 festival kicked off on the muggy afternoon of Wednesday January 5th.
Absolutely everything that was put in place by the organisers was solely for the enjoyment of the 16,000 attendees. I would find it really hard to find something negative to say about the whole experience.
