Kings of Leon: 'Notion'

When Kings of Leon were announced as headliners for last year's Glastonbury, a few eyebrows were raised. "You don't mean the main stage?!" people asked. However, by the time the festival came around, the momentum of 2007's Because Of The Times album had built to the point where the slot seemed entirely appropriate. The subsequent success of number one single 'Sex On Fire' then cemented the band's status as one of the world's premiere rock bands, commercially at least.

The problem is - and there's no better example than 'Notion' - that in their transition from shaggy-haired redneck thrashers to a slick arena operation, the group have lost much of the edge and charm that made them so attractive in the first place. Their lyrics here are laughably banal and, though Caleb Followill's voice is as gruff and gorgeous as ever, it's completely wasted on such plodding, painfully dull fare as this.


> Click here for our review of Only By The Night