Back in time

8 July 2023

Nashville’s rock family KINGS OF LEON started their crusade to global stardom
20 years ago – 7 July 2003 – with their debut LP YOUTH AND YOUNG MANHOOD.

It peaked at #3 in the UK but didn’t even chart in the US, but that would change quickly.

NME said: “Arriving in the poker-faced wake of The Strokes, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
and The Libertines, ‘Youth & Young Manhood’ was a breath of fresh Southern air. A gaggle
of hot-blooded 1970s throwbacks with more hair than Dolly Parton’s wig storage space, their chugging hillbilly groove wasn’t overly deep, but it was heavy with hooks, snarling personality and glorious imperfections, like Caleb’s cracked vocals on ‘Trani’ – the only track on the album to broach the five minute mark by a significant margin.”

TUTV: Good old sizzling Southern rock riffage. Their most authentic (read: before turning into major record label’s slaves), unrestrained and unbridled album to my ears and eyes (they were cooking on stage back then). Afterward, the albums’ quality became more and more mainstream and lost its original we do what we fucking want to do spirit. The big money came in. The band became a brand.

Singles/clips: Red Morning Light / Molly’s Chambers / California Waiting

– RED MORNING LIGHT –

– MOLLY’S CHAMBERS –

– CALIFORNIA WAITING –

ALBUM

.
KOL: Instagram – Bio – Discography