Kings of Leon - Aha Shake Heartbreak

Genre rock Publisher RCA Records External Links Official Website RCA Records

In retrospect, I should have been smart enough to take the British press' touting of any American rock band as the "saviors of southern rock" to the American rock community with a good deal of skepticism. After all, what on earth do the British really know about the Southern Comfort-before-breakfast ethos that goes hand in hand with the genre orchestrated by the brothers Allman and Skynyrd some 30 years back? But I was had.

In keeping with the aforementioned bands' ties to family, the Kings of Leon are a group of 3 brothers and a cousin from Nashville that were touted as the next great thing in American music by the British press about two years ago. And while the music on their sophomore release Aha Shake Heartbreak is a promising example of these boys' capabilities, at this point it becomes clear that the only real quality they share with "southern rock" is their place of origin.

Make no mistake; at no point on Aha Shake Heartbreak will you hear verses whined in gorgeous southern drawls or reverb laden guitars attacks that characterize three of my favorite "southern rock" bands on the scene today: Drive By Truckers, Widespread Panic and most of all, My Morning Jacket. What you will find is a collection of 2 and 3 minute songs that more closely resemble the work of a hip New York City pop-punk ensemble than any rock album recorded south of the Mason Dixon line. And although the topic has been beaten to death, taking a look inside the album jacket at their mugs and dissecting the line Girls are gonna love the way I toss my hair from "Day Old Blues" proves that the Kings resemble the Strokes or Interpol more than just musically.

Moving to a third geographic region of this great country, let us travel to the American west and look at The Good, The Bad and The Ugly of Aha Shake Heartbreak. Musically, this band is quite interesting and talented. The Kings have a very "full" sound that is sustained for nearly all of the record. They often sound like a band with twice their size and experience. They are helped largely in part by the excellent bass playing of Jared Hollowill, whose work is especially notable on my favorite track "Razz." His fills are melodic, always helping to maintain a groove while making the occasionally tinny and thin guitar work of Matthew Hollowill a little more excusable (where's the damn reverb Kings?!?).

The Bad. Occasionally, and unfortunately, the King's accomplished musicianship is lost amidst songwriting that is borderline juvenile. File "Taper Jean Girl," "Milk," "Soft" and "Day Old Blues" in that category. I wouldn't even go as far as to call these songs "bad," but each one of them features a line so perplexingly dumb (take "Milk's" She saw my comb over, her hourglass body / she had problems with drinking milk and being school tardy" hunh?!?!) and are therefore dealt large blows. Lines like these only show the young group's inexperience; hopefully in time their lyrics will match their musicianship.

And finally, the Ugly. I was perplexed by singer Caleb Hollowill's voice the entire record, and I still don't know if I like it or not. Occasionally it works and occasionally it doesn't. He is not a good singer in the classical connotation of the word, tying them closer again to the Stokes than My Morning Jacket. While he doesn't possess nearly the melodic range of Jim James, Hollowill's drunken mumbles did grow on me the more I listened to this record.

For a band so concerned with beauty (the cover features a cross section of an orchid), more attractive vocals and lyrics to match their sharp playing and looks would make Aha Shake Heartbreak really unique. Yet it's a solid record worth hearing. Just don't go in expecting southern rock.