It’s been over 13 years since Kings of Leon performed in front of a crowd of Kiwis, but last night at Spark Arena, they didn’t seem overly excited to be back.
Granted, as lead singer Caleb Followill pointed out a few songs into the set, he was running on “about four hours of sleep”.
But that couldn’t dampen the spirits of over 10,000 Kiwis who have waited for years amid cancelled shows, Covid-19 restrictions and gathering limits to rock the night away with the Grammy-winning band. And rock they did - plaid shirts, leather jackets and all. For many of them, this was the highlight of their long weekend.
“Tomorrow is a holiday, right?” Caleb asked at one point. “So no f***ing excuses.”
It’s still hard to believe such a large gathering of music fans is possible in 2022, but looking around a packed Spark Arena last night, it was clear that international gigs are well and truly back.
Opening act The Temper Trap, who feature Kiwi guitarist Joseph Greer, warmed up the house with “their first gig in about three years”, as frontman Dougy Mandagi joked - but it did not disappoint.
Mandagi is the one responsible for the unforgettable high notes in their 2008 hit Sweet Disposition, which closed the set. It’s easy to see why the song has recently gone viral again on TikTok, though we haven’t heard much else from the Aussie alt-rock band since their 2016 album Thick as Thieves.
The Kings of Leon need no introduction, and we got none after they opened with When You See Yourself, Are You Far Away from their latest album When You See Yourself, released in March 2021.
Matthew Followill (left) and Caleb Followill perform with Kings of Leon at Spark Arena. Photo / Garry Brandon / Spark Arena
(The album name also provided a fun gimmick in the form of a kiss cam which kept the crowd entertained while waiting for the band to appear. At least, that’s what it turned into when audience members saw themselves on the huge screens either side of the stage).
The band, made up of brothers Caleb, Jared and Nathan Followill and cousin Matthew Followill, along with Ethan Luck and Timothy Deaux, aren’t the only band to have made a pandemic album that doesn’t particularly lend itself to touring.
Instead, they drew on their seven previous albums for this setlist, a formula that was sure to please their fans. The only other songs from the newest album to feature were The Bandit and Time in Disguise.
Crowd interaction isn’t their strong suit, and there was little to no stage banter among the band members. For them - and the fans - it’s all about the music.
“We’re so happy to be here with you ... we’re ready to have a good time with you,” Caleb said at one point, occasionally checking in with a “How y’all doing?” in his Tennessee twang.
They saved some of their biggest hits like Use Somebody until the end of the show, returning for an encore with Bucket, Knocked Up, and Sex on Fire, a combo that left the audience on a high.
Let’s just put it this way: If you weren’t already a diehard Kings of Leon fan, this show probably didn’t do much for you.
They’re still delivering exactly what we expect to hear from them, 23 years into making music.
But as Caleb told the crowd near the end of the show, “We hope you guys had a good time tonight. If you didn’t have a good time, come back tomorrow night. It’ll be better.”
