If you're looking to discover a new dose of zany and spontaneous indie-rock, lyrics so profound as to really stir you or a full, epic-rock sound grand enough to recall Zeppelin or the Stones, look... further. Kings of Leon's new album, Because of the Times, offers none of these hallmarks.
What it does possess is a new sound for KOL that pairs eclectic and interwoven instrumentalities with simple lyrics and basic melodies.
This southern-borne group of three sons of a preacher and their cousin delivered two musical efforts before Times. Both of the previous albums drew upon the twang and drawl of classic rock, zippy guitar-strumming and a pairing of old-fashioned goodness and playful rebellion.
Though Times is still freewheeling, it abandons most of the carefree rowdiness of traditional KOL sound. There's less of the honky-tonk funk (as found in a debut EP titled Holy Roller Novocain) and more raw edge.
The song "Fans" still captures the happier, Bob Dylan era of classic rock that KOL once projected, while others like "McFearless" and "My Third House" represent the band's noticeable breech from its bouncier past, with dense guitar patterns and occasionally screaming vocals.
Although the entire endeavor of Times is unpredictable in contrast to the band's former efforts, the formula for its songs becomes predictable midway through the listening experience. There's basically one recipe for every song: A cycle of guitar segments builds, is then joined by other intertwining instrumentals and, finally, a raspy voice enters to screech a repetitive ditty on loop for the remainder of the song. This sequence is occasionally interrupted by the cacophonous blurt of an instrument or voice. Simply put, some songs contain a fair amount of noise.
The rough-around-the-edges vocals imitate the casual, nearly spoken style of Dylan -- a quality that you either really dig or can only stand for a track or two. For the Kings of Leon, these raspy vocals at times approach the pitch of heavy metal or screaming emo. In "My Party" vocals even take on the quality of a mic experiencing some serious feedback which might be a blatant irritation to many listeners.
The lyrics are at times irreverent, but mostly irrelevant, to the listening experience. If you like Times, it is most likely for the underlying and overlapping musicality and not for what's sung on top.
If you're willing to withstand the absence of some key components -- meaningful lyrics, aesthetically pleasing vocals -- you might be able to appreciate the promising elements that underlie Because of the Times. The album as a set of instrumental scores would undoubtedly shine, with sonorous strands running together and apart creatively. All in all, in spite of the album's jarring vocals, the album's got a certain slick jive to it that may redeem a few of its shortcomings for some.
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