Estibaliz Pereira Rabade: Kings of Leon - The Joint

Saw Kings of Leon, a sold out show at the new Joint last Wednesday with my friend Shanda. Not only was it sold out, some of the security were complaining that it was OVER SOLD, and we could tell, it was ridiculously crowded. It took us forever just to maneuver the line to get in the damn place. Once we got in the first band, The Whigs (never heard of them, didn’t really get a chance to get a sense of what they’re all about), were already playing so we immediately hit the long line for beer. Only had one beer all night because after making it through the line once, there was no way I was ever getting back in it!

There was an interesting crowd at Kings of Leon, now that the band has broken through to the mainstream and become a "boy band." There were lots of girls dressed in next to nothing with ridiculously high heels. Really, why would anyone go to a three hour long, standing room only show in four inch heels? Even more odd, there was also a lot of straight boy love for KOL. There were pockets of frat-like "bros" so super psyched for the show that they were dancing emphatically (that’s the best way I can describe it), shouting towards the band, throwing their arms around each other, really, REALLY into it!! I pegged them as boys raised on hip hop and pop who didn’t know rock and roll could be like this. It was like they heard Kings of Leon on the radio and suddenly their penises reacted primally to the sound and they were converted to rock and roll. Those boys were hysterical to watch! Not surprisingly a lot of the crowd was there strictly for the radio hits and once Sex on Fire was played they cleared out. No loss there.

The band put on a great show as usual. This was my fourth time seeing them live and they are always top notch. You can tell that they have more money now because their production design is really cool with lots of video screens and lights. Lead singer Caleb Followill did have a bit of a hissy fit during the show when it appeared that his monitor wasn’t working. At one point he slammed down his mic stand after a song and had some very heated words with the stage crew. He went on to sincerely apologize to the audience making sure we understand that when he gets angry at technical issues it’s because he wants to ensure we have the best experience possible. I thought that was quite nice.

They played a good mix of new and old tracks, the highlight for me being Four Kicks, a great song to dance to! There were a ton of people taking pictures and even filming the show. I’m posting all my photos here (taken with my iPhone) and also various video I could find on youtube. Enjoy!