Review
RAINBOW BALL
Kings of Leon rock Glasgow crowd as they blow the roof off OVO Hydro – and reveal they’re ‘half Scottish’
The rockers revealed some surprising Scottish heritage while on stage
AS a band whose upbringing was seeped in the gospel church, Kings of Leon added a new choir to their ensemble last night - the Glasgow crowd.
Blistering through a 28-song, three-hour-long setlist, the American rock icons hardly paused for breath as the adoring packed Hydro sang every word and guitar riff back to them.
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Taking to the stage first were English indie rockers The Vaccines, who put on a high-energy set to amp up the Tuesday night crowd as the support.
Then the Tennessee rockers, made up of brothers Caleb, Jared and Nathan Followill and their cousin Matthew, saunter on stage nonchalantly - very rock n' roll.
Opening with the swelling 'Ballerina Radio' from their new ninth studio album 'Can We Please Have Fun', Kings of Leon burst onto the stage with a spider-like chandelier of lights cascading from the Hydro roof.
The simple but effective set-up of the stage around them suits them, they are a no-nonsense band that was about to treat the crowd to a spectacular performance - they don't need the bells and whistles some other arena rock bands rely on to put on a show.
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They launch into older material with 'On Call' leading a five-song helping into their first few albums before we next hear another new song - a treat for hardcore fans.
The set continues in this fashion and weaves through decades of their eclectic back catalogue as they play hits and fan favourites from across every one of their nine albums.
In the rare pause for breath, frontman Caleb surprises the Glasgow crowd with details about the band's heritage, he said: "We had some blood work done recently and it turns out we have more Scottish blood in us than we thought - 47 per cent - we're half Scottish!
"So, it's good to be here with our family tonight. We had a big show down south, but we were excited to play here."
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Caleb turns back to the band before unleashing yet another rock anthem while the crowd laps up every line and song - screaming along to top hit 'Sex on Fire' and swaying adoringly along to softer, newer hits like 'Don't Stop the Bleeding'.
The older stalwarts still have the best response from the sold-out crowd such as 'Closer', 'Cold Desert' and 'Fans' - which had the Clydeside choir in full voice.
The band have spoken openly about losing themselves' in the industry but have said they have a 'renewed passion and kind of fire', which is evident from their blistering energy.
The new songs have an in-your-face attitude that supports their passion for re-invigorating their previous tenacity and the more raucous numbers are accompanied by retro video cameras shoved in the band's faces, a nice addition to the stage show which brings the crowd even closer.
Masterfully utilising the space in their songs, the band have curated a setlist which does the same, so well in fact that the encore happened seamlessly.
As the feedback and crowd's chorus finally dissipated at the end of fan favourite 'Use Somebody', the band walked off as calmly as they did onto the stage - a confidence only a group of their capabilities can muster.
The show almost had a 'greatest hits' energy to it, but the new tunes slotted easily into the set alongside the crowd-pleasers.
Absolute proof that, if it was in any doubt, Kings of Leon are back... and here to stay.
Next time they're in town, I won't 'Waste A Moment' before grabbing a ticket to see them again.
ON SONG
KINGS of Leon set list in full:
1. Ballerina Radio
2. On Call
3. The Bucket
4. King of the Rodeo
5. Manhattan
6. Revelry
7. Nothing to Do
8. My Party
9. Sex on Fire
10. Don’t Stop the Bleeding
11. Comeback Story
12. Pyro
13. Mustang
14. Molly's Chambers
15. Milk
16. Fans
17. Back Down South
18. Nowhere to Run
19. Wait for Me
20. Split Screen
21. The Bandit
22. Find Me
23. Closer
24. Seen
25. Rainbow Ball
26. Waste a Moment
27. Cold Desert
28. Use Somebody