It was announced today that Kings of Leon will be releasing a documentary chronicling their rise to fame. Talihina Sky will show us how the Followill brothers (plus cousin) struggled with ditching their religious upbringing for good old rock n' roll. It features some never-before-seen footage and revealing interviews by the band and their father, Ivan Leon.
As a huge fan of the band (I've been addicted since Youth and Young Manhood!), I'm obviously looking forward to checking this out. However, there's a tiny part of me that is seeing this as just another Followill cash-grab. Their last album, Come Around Sundown was alright. They kept up their mainstream sound and pretty much lost every ounce of their KOL originality. Yet, I still love them. I try really hard not to judge a band's career on a single album, but rather their entire musical background. In which case, they are an incredible band. I don't know why, but I have a strong feeling they'll return to their musical roots eventually...
The documentary is set to be shown at the Tribeca Film Festival later this month. There's no word yet on when it will be released worldwide. For now, you can watch the trailer below.
Death Cab For Cutie made history today when they streamed their video for “You Are A Tourist” live as it was being filmed. It had a very cute concept, complete with LED lights, projected patterns and a group of female dancers. I think it turned out to be a success and may just inspire other artists to do the same. You can watch the video below. You'll have to skip ahead about 16 minutes to get to the start of the actual music video though. Enjoy!
Friendly Fires, the alternative-dance trio of St Albans, England have confirmed the title of their second album which they plan to release this spring. The record is entitled, Pala, after the fictitious, Buddhist sanctuary in Aldous Huxley's 1962 novel, Island. Personally, I'm pretty excited about this. Friendly Fires are by far one of the most awesome bands I've come across in the last few years. Not to mention, they put on a great live show and live up to their name; they're actually really friendly! I met frontman Ed Macfarlane two years ago at Lee's Palace. We talked about restaurants in Toronto and how cheese makes you gassy, especially before going on stage. Can't wait for this album! It was co-produced by Paul Epworth, so we should expect greatness.
According to Spin, hip hop giant, Jay-Z, has confirmed that he will be co-producing a remake of Annie, staring Willow Smith. I hate remakes which I guess makes me completely biased in thinking this is going to be a sinking ship. But, seriously? Just because she's a “Smith” and her brother cut it in TheKarate Kid, doesn't mean she needs to reinvent the original Carrot Top.
The gloves are still not off between Glee's Ryan Murphy and Kings of Leon. According to Rolling Stone, Murphy sent an email to Perez Hilton (of all people) accusing drummer, Nathan Followill of being a homophobe (read Followill's tweet in the post below). The Glee creator continued to say that the cast loves KOL's music, but “cannot condone or even laugh at their clear disdain of gay people.” Followill replied through a tweet which read: “I'm sorry for anyone that misconstrued my comments as homophobic or misogynistic. I'm so not that kind of person. I really do apologize.” Will the madness ever end? Why can't we all just get along?
Today the Brooklyn electro-dance-punk duo, Sleigh Bells, released the music video for their latest single, “Rill Rill,” which you can find on their loud debut, Treats. Singer Alexis Krauss plays the role of a murderous schoolgirl, abandoning her beaten bandmate, guitarist Derek Miller, after throwing him out of her car while in the desert. Then she's off to school. Check it out! It's a good track, I promise.
It's no surprise that over the past few years Tennessee royalty, Kings of Leon, have gained incredible mainstream success. They went from that cool indie-blues band that people knew of, but didn't, to a massive arena rock band, with Grammy nominated anthems and constant radio play. A drastic change we can thank North America for. The Followill boys recognize they have become sellouts, as their fans put it, getting offers to appear in this and have music featured in that. One of those offers being from the teenage musical hit, Glee. According to Spin, bassist Jared Followill says the group turns down tons of offers and haven't sold-out nearly as much as people think.
It seems Glee creator, Ryan Murphy, doesn't take rejection too well. “F*ck you, Kings of Leon,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “They're self-centered assholes.” He continued to say that his popular show has helped raise awareness of different artists, and boosted sales, while introducing a younger audience to a variety of music which he believes to be educational. He went on about how KOL should take advantage of this and how they could inspire so many of Glee's younger viewers.
The band's frontman, Caleb Followill, replied to Murphy's harsh comments by stating that none of them have even watched Glee and denied the request, not because they hate the show, but because they were asked for the rights to use the song, “Use Somebody,” at the end of a long, tiring tour promoting it. “We're not sure where the anger is coming from,” he added.
Drummer, Nathan Followill took a different route. Today he charmingly tweeted: “Dear Ryan Murphy, let it go. See a therapist, get a manicure, buy a new bra. Zip your lip and focus on educating 7yr olds how to say f*ck.”
I'm sure he got the message and probably won't bug KOL for song rights again any time soon.
Best Album of the year: Arcade Fire – The Suburbs: From start to finish, this album is fantastic. The Canuk group of eight put together a wonderfully crafted third album that is intense in both it's musicality as well as it's lyrics. Win Butler croons throughout the record about how heartless and hopeless we have all become, while assisted by pulsating bass lines, bursts of folk guitar and calming piano. The statement-making album tells an honest story leading us to believe that we have indeed forgotten where we come from. Therefore, a drive through the suburbs is exactly what we need.
Best Break Out Act: Florence and the Machine: 2010 was certainly the year for Florence Welch and her backing band. Although the group was formed in 2007, it was last year when the London based band fully embraced mainstream success. Sold out tours, numerous television performances, songs featured in successful films, tons of radio play and of course, lots more fans. Her theatrical debut album, Lungs (and one of my personal favourites), sold over 100, 000 copies, which is pretty damn good, considering the state of sales in the music industry. Her awe-inspiring voice, which probably has the ability to crack a glass with one of her sweet, yet powerful croons, is what makes her such an outstanding artist. It's rare to come across singers who can sing as well as they have been recorded, which is why Welch deserves much applause.
Biggest Surprise: It's a tie between the Klaxons and Foals.
Klaxons – Surfing the Void: The new rave, alternative band was forced by their label to return to the studio and rerecord their sophomore album after deeming previous efforts as “too experimental.” This made fans a little antsy, having to wait nearly 3 years since the release of their Mercury Prize winning album, Myths of the Near Future. Were they going to maintain their synthy-experimental sound or were they going to drastically reinvent themselves? It had me worried, but in truth, it was worth the wait and turned out to be amazing.
Foals – Total Life Forever: The quintet from Oxford, England returned last year with a completely different sound, which was a little hard to get accustomed to at first. Yet after a couple listens, I had the album on a continuous loop. Yes, TLF isn't nearly as dancey as Antitodes, but it's a gem nonetheless.
Biggest Letdown: Kings of Leon – Come Around Sundown: Kings of Leon were once a small band from Nashville who didn't care whatsoever about what anyone thought of their music. Their initial upbeat, southern blues sound generated a cult of devoted fans who would eventually see the group of brothers, plus cousin, transform into their polar opposite; a mainstream, arena rock band. With the more alternative-sounding Only By the Night, released in 2008, they gained North American success and prepared themselves for world domination. It was a different kind of KOL, one that even some of the band members didn't necessarily enjoy. In numerous interviews they mentioned how they wanted to return to their southern-indie sound with their fifth record. Sadly, I don't think they quite did that. CAS isn't a horrible album. I taught myself to enjoy it overtime, yet I was disappointed that despite how the band felt about their previous effort, they chose to maintain a more mainstream sound. I'll get over it someday.
Most Over-hyped: Drake – Thank Me Later. Don't get me wrong, I love Drake. Homegrown talent who rose to fame having only released an EP and partaking in collaborations with some of hip-hop's best. But his first full length album did not live up to the intense hype it received. There were definitely some stellar tracks; all the singles plus another song or two are certainly worth the listen. However, the majority of the album was much too slow a pace and lacked the power he entered the game with.
Best Track: Kanye West – “Power”: Only Kanye could get away with a teaser for the first single on an upcoming album and have absolutely everyone intrigued. Although he spends the song telling us how awesome he is and crediting himself for being gifted and almighty powerful, he reclaims who he is as an artist after the controversial VMA moment that left a sour taste in people's mouths. If anything, he created a track that sounds like nothing found in most modern hip-hop.
Worst Track: Angelina Pivarnick – “I'm Hot.” Seriously? Her winning personality couldn't cut it on Jersey Shore, why even attempt to record a song about herself, and think people would actually like it? With the rapping help of some guy who I'm sure is the most awesome guido-gorilla-juicehead in town, Pivarnick's constant nasal tone is auto-tuned to add to the track's pop factor. “I take a shot. It hits the spot. Then dance a lot. Until I drop. I shop. I just can't stop.” These lyrics put all songwriters to shame.
Best Album Cover: Klaxons – Surfing the Void. Who can seriously beat an astronaut cat?! Exactly.
Worst Album Cover: Interpol – Interpol. I felt somewhat ripped off by these New York City boys as they obviously put next to zero effort into the album cover. The black theme with jumbled, cement-styled letters spelling the band's name flowed throughout the rest of the artwork. A total bore. Album is great, artwork not so much.
Honorable Mentions
Awesome Albums of 2010 I Couldn't/Can't Get Enough of:
Best Coast – Crazy For You
Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Vampire Weekend – Contra
Sleigh Bells – Treats
Marina and the Diamonds – The Family Jewels
The Black Keys – Brothers
Surfer Blood – Astro Coast
