Good to Be Kings

One of the first things I did after I bought my new TV and added the HD channels to my cable package was to set my DVR to record Austin City Limits. ACL has always had this legendary reputation, but it’s always been sort of a mystery to me. Despite the fact that some of my favorite artists have done incredible shows, I never remembered to watch it unless I happened to pass an episode while flipping channels. But thanks to my DVR, now I can see every new episode, and this season has definitely been worth it. For many years, ACL focused mainly on country and blues, giving the nod to local Austin acts whenever possible. But recently, they’ve begun to change their focus, booking younger and hipper indie bands. So far this year, I’ve seen sets from Wilco, Arcade Fire, Bloc Party, Explosions in the Sky, Paolo Nutini, and Ghostland Observatory. But the best so far was the band pictured above, Kings of Leon, who in just a few songs reminded me what an amazing live band they are.

I’ve seen the Kings live twice—a couple of years ago in Indianapolis at a small club, and last summer here at Red Rocks as part of the Monolith Festival—and both times, they’ve been fantastic. The Kings are pretty unassuming onstage. They don’t go for a lot a lot of banter or big fancy light shows; they just get up and play their songs (and play them well). Their music is a perfect blend of indie and Southern rock (think the Strokes meet Skynyrd), and it lends itself very well to a live show. When I saw them in Indy, they were there because they had a night off from a 3-night stint opening for U2 in Chicago and wanted to play somewhere that wasn’t a cavernous arena. They had the crowd of 500 rocking, and they sounded great, but I’m willing to bet their music sounded just as good in the United Center. It certainly sounded good at Red Rocks, where in my opinion, they were the highlight of the festival. If you’ve never heard their stuff, their ACL performance is a great place to start. PBS tends to rerun episodes fairly frequently, so check your local listings... or just set your DVR.

Other stuff I’ve been into lately:
There Will Be Blood. I had some issues with the story itself (I thought it was a little choppy and unfocused), but the combo of Daniel Day-Lewis and the score by Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood made this movie an incredibly intense experience.

Lost: Season 3. This season seemed a lot better when taken in a just couple of chunks, rather than spread out over seven months. I’m definitely looking forward to the new episodes, even if we’re only getting 8 of them.

GarageBand. I’m not a DJ, but I play one at home.

Salem’s Lot, Stephen King. The first time I read this book, I was 13 years old and it scared me so bad, I wouldn’t go down in the basement by myself for a month afterwards. It wasn’t quite as scary this time, but then again, I don’t live in a big house in the woods anymore with the wind blowing tree branches against my window all night. Even so, it’s still a terrific read, and it made me remember why I got so into King in the first place.

In Rainbows, Radiohead. Still amazing every time I listen to it. I’m just as excited by it as I was when I wrote this.