My iPod #139: Kings of Leon - The Bucket

There are creepy people out there. There I was going down the escalator in Stratford's Westfields so we could wait for a mate who needed to go to the loo, when these two guys came over to us asking if we were born again Christians. They then directed their attention to me, and told me to 'talk to them privately' to say the 'prayer' and I was like "FUCK THIS, I HAVE GOT TO GET OUT OF HERE". So I told them a wrong phone number and made up a name for myself, and proceeded to leave the mall with my friends.

It was very scary. I've never wanted to be anywhere else in the world like I did during those moments. I'm really glad to be home. Typing to you.

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Right. Kings of Leon. I've probably said as much as I can on what I think about them in other posts. Thinking about it now, I'm positive that I've only done one post. But in short, from Youth & Young Manhood to Because of the Times = good stuff, Only by the Night onwards = the bad stuff. Except "Supersoaker" and "Wait for Me" which depicts "Mechanical Bull" as something that will be a return to form. We can only hope. Well, I can only hope.

"The Bucket" was the first song to be released from the band's second album "Aha Shake Heartbreak" in 2004, which is my favourite album they've done. I can't remember when I first heard it. I'll just say it was on MTV2. Yes, it was on MTV2.

I wonder who yells "Wooooooo!"at the start. It sounds like someone fucked up and didn't know they were recording, but I can't imagine the song without that exclamation. I'm just used to it after listening to the track for all these years.

The subject matter of "The Bucket" is the band's bassist Jared Followill, who was having problems dealing with the fame of being in the band.

The thing that I've always liked about older Kings of Leon songs, especially those on the Aha Shake and Times albums, is Caleb's vocals. Now he's older he actually sings from the stomach, but I preferred those when his voice was breaking almost every time he tried to reach the high notes. There's a bit of this in "The Bucket".

Have fun listening to it.

Jamie,