Kings of Leon have foregone their alt/indie-country roots for something more reminiscent of U2. Some might say this is a bad thing and I cannot disagree. But the radio hits are still as lovely as anything they’ve put out. The edge is gone, but they’re still making beautiful pop music.

I’ve been a fan of KOL since Youth & Young Manhood and have loved every album – until OBTN. I don’t even have words for how disappointed I was with this effort. I’m loathe to use the term sellout but that’s the perception I get from OBTN. There are only two songs on the album that really feel like Kings songs (“Manhattan” & “Cold Dessert”). The rest of the tracks sound like desperate attempts at gaining mainstream popularity. And they certainly succeeded, particularly with “Sex On Fire”. But they did so by compromising their sound and musical growth. If this were their first effort, I would think it wasn’t that bad. But taking in their entire repertoire, it’s a massive step back and heartbreaking for a longtime fan.