Analysis of Kings of Leon

So, Kings of Leon have been hitting the music scene pretty hard lately, with such recent hits as "Sex On Fire" and "Crawl." Both songs are instrumentally very intriguing and I like the "feel" of them. Driving through downtown New York earlier today after some encouraging conversations (more to come on that topic later), I found myself slightly jamming out when "Crawl" came on my XM radio. Kings of Leon's music is definitely the rock out, pump up kind of stuff...really entertaining, but their lyrics are hardly uplifting.

And there is the rub...Kings of Leon's lyrics are clearly delving into some intense topics, but not dealing with them very constructively. Now I don't want to spend too much time criticizing, but I do want to point out some things I find rather interesting: the powerful feel of their music and the gripping nature of their soul-searching lyrics. It is evident from listening to a few of their songs that they're trying to make sense of some weighty subjects: rough relationships, pregnancies out of wedlock, loneliness. These themes will play into the ears of many a listener, and help shape the way they see the world. Yet with KOL's music I don't get a sense of hope, it's mostly a lot of searching.

I'm attaching an article, which I think does a pretty good job drawing out some of these themes and expounding on the band's inner struggles: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/3560771/Kings-of-Leon-with-God-on-our-side.html

Here are some key excerpts:

His belated discovery of contemporary bands was a revelation. "It just lifted the blanket of fear. I heard stuff that made me forget about all the things I would hear in
church every day, things that made me feel as if everything was wrong. Music gave me my own little world." That conflict between the spiritual and the earthly, between the promise of eternal redemption and the temporal pleasures of sex and drugs has been at the heart of some of the greatest rock and roll...

"When things were starting to happen, I can recall every night trying to go to bed and something was saying, 'If you leave, you can never come back [to the church].' It was like being a kid again, sleepless nights, over and over, and I would have to turn on the TV to drown it out. And then one day I looked at myself and said, 'You know, this is what you wanna do', and it was like a weight was lifted. It was almost as if God was smiling down on me, saying, 'Finally, you made a decision, you quit struggling with yourself.' And the voices went away. For a little while."

Much of the new album is almost defiantly sexual, caught between emotional loneliness and a love of "revelry". Yet on the bleak, powerful closing track Cold Desert, Caleb wails: "Jesus doesn't love me, and no one ever carried my load." "There's still lingering guilt, and once I start to drink you don't want to be around me because there's a level of brutal honesty, if not just pure meanness. In a way, I lash out at everyone else because that's when I start to point fingers at myself. And that's when I write lyrics."

I really see these guys as people living in extreme tension. They're wrestling with big questions and looking-often in bleak, dark places-for some kind of answers. The discussion drawn out with one of the band members, Caleb, in the aforementioned article is especially enlightening as it explains how Caleb grew up in an intensely religious, judgmental environment and ended up turning to entertainment as an outlet for his frustration. It seems evident that he felt abandoned by the church and by God and so, sought his fortunes elsewhere. Interestingly, it doesn't seem like he's found much rest or joy looking in other places.

While Kings of Leon's lyrics offer few encouragements, they're also not a band putting out the next "Thong Song." There's a deeper vein of honest reflection (and struggle) running through this group. They're searching, feeling lost, and longing for beauty, meaningful relationship, and honest communication. My heart really goes out to these guys.

It is worth mentioning that the Jesus that Caleb talks about in his interview stands in stark contrast to the Jesus that I know and believe in: one that is loving, closer than blood, and unfailing. And I agree, the Christian community can be really hard on people, judgmental and hypocritical; but not all Christians are like that. I cannot even count on two hands the number of close friends and family members who have either left the church or rejected Christian teaching because they were turned off by other Christians. That's a big deal. However, while we might just want to say "see ya," we can't. Things might appear bleak, but is it really brighter on the other side? Just because we don't feel very hopeful, it doesn't mean that hope isn't out there. And, just because we have problems and are a wreck, it doesn't mean things cannot get better than they are now. The reality is, life is tough and the world is broken...but as musician Katie Herzig says "I believe there is peace in those hills up ahead." We can't give up; there is something better to come. Wrestling through the tension instead of giving up is always worth it.

Eugene Peterson puts it better than I can in his recasting of what Jesus says in Matthew 11:28-30:

"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly."