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We really didn't set out to conquer the world. We're just trying to conquer one city at a time, and I think we've got about 13 cities now. We're on our way. -Nathan |
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You've worked with Ethan and Angelo on all three records. Tell me a little bit about their roles, how they differ and how you guys interact with them.
Nathan in the Studio |
Caleb: From a production standpoint, Ethan is like the stern father and Angelo's like the mother. You can always pull the wool over your mom's eyes. So, they compliment each other well. Ethan's more behind the board and Angelo's out there with us, strapping on the guitars and saying, "That doesn't work but maybe if you try this." Or, he'll just sit there, watch you and say, "You're on the right track. That's the way to go." Angelo is the voice of reason and the shoulder to lean on for us. He's been there from the very beginning, man. We're like his kids. He believes in us and he fights for us. It was always kind of a stiff situation between them until now. Now they're buddy-buddy. They have turned into one of the great production duos. Whether or not they know it, they just compliment each other so well.
Nathan: It's almost like they HAD to work together in the past. On this record, they were both looking forward to it.
You talked a bit about your history with Angelo. How did that relationship start?
Nathan: Nashville. We wanted to do some songwriting for pot money and called this number. They thought Angelo would work well with us, so we went and met with him.
Caleb: Before we ever wrote with Angelo, we hung out with him and got to know him some. From the very beginning, he got it. He used to be religious just like us. He was a Holy Ghost guy. Instead of trying to chug out some bullshit song for some bullshit country artist, we sat there and listened to records and hit it off so well. Angelo is a big part of what we do. He's a sweetheart, just a helluva guy.
Nathan, tell me about Caleb as a frontman and singer.
Caleb |
Nathan: He's great. He's cool. He's open to pretty much anything. He has a lot of responsibility. I couldn't keep it up all day, every day like he does. The crowd wasn't that big last night and it was the best show we played on the whole tour so far. A lot of that has to do with Caleb. He's got the right amount of cockiness, the right amount of friendliness. He's not a big talker, likes to let you do the talking. It's kind of weird to talk about him as a lead singer 'cause he's my brother. All those things I hate about him as a brother might be the things I like about him as a singer.
Caleb, tell me about Matthew as a guitarist.
Caleb: Well, as a person he's pretty shy. He's not as confident as he should be. He's one of the better musicians in the band. He can fucking rip on the guitar. The thing is, he'll play something really cool but think it's stupid. So, he'll come up with something else and something else again. He just doesn't have the confidence. But man, when he gets onstage, wow. Have you ever seen his legs? When both his knees bend, he's fixin' to wail, man. He's fixin’ to get into it.
He's the outsider - we're three brothers, he's the cousin. He's quiet and stays in the background but when he goes up there and plays he takes it to another level. Matthew has always had great opinions. We'll end up leaving a song off the record that later on we looked back and regretted and Matthew was the one pulling for it. He's got a great sense of style as far as music goes.
I had the sense his addition to the band upped the ante as far as the music you guys were going to be playing. Is that a pretty fair assessment?
Kings of Leon |
Caleb: Absolutely, absolutely. Matthew and Jared don't have great timing. Me and Nathan do. Of course, Nathan's a drummer and when my dad was a preacher, I was the backup drummer, so I'm a drummer too. Nathan and me keep the beats and the rhythms. Jared solos on the bass and Matthew, he solos and makes sounds. Because of that Nathan and me get to have a ball with them. We get to play around. They'll start playing something and me and Nathan will flip the beat. Jared and Matthew will get confused and we're just like, "Trust us." That's how a lot of the songs come together. We're playing beats against them.
Tell me a little bit about Jared as a bass player. He's not your typical bass player. He plays more like a lead guitarist.
Nathan: He's 19 years old and is already this good.
Caleb: He's a fucking madman. You better not print this shit 'cause he's already cocky as hell [laughs].
Nathan: He could go down as one of the baddest bass players [ever].
Jared by Jeremy Jones |
Caleb: He doesn't love being on the road. He doesn't love what he does. He loves having a vehicle, a house and a pretty girlfriend. But, that little motherfucker, man, if he keeps at it, if we don't drive him crazy or if he doesn't get too big for his britches, he'll end up going down as one of the great ones.
Since I put Nathan on the spot, I've got to put you on the spot, too. Tell me about Nathan as a drummer.
Caleb: I call myself a drummer but Nathan's a fuckin' drummer. We go on the road with a lot of drummers who can play a lot of hard stuff and Nathan's right up there with them. For this record especially, he brought the songs such a new life. Me and Nathan have the most fun together. We watch each other. If one of us wants to get fucked up before a show, we both get fucked up. There is no him or me with us. If he knows I'm doing something without him, he just gets pissed, and likewise with me.
You opened for Bob Dylan on this past tour. That's a long road between your first gig in England at a strip club in High Wickleman to opening for Dylan. What were your thoughts when you found out you were gonna open for him?
Kings of Leon |
Caleb: I was and am a huge Dylan fan. For me, it used to be like, "How do you try to learn to do what he does? How do you try to beat that?" Then, the other night, it really hit me. He was up there and every line was insane. He's a fucking poet, whether or not he can still hit those notes or sing it the same. He knows the words he writes down should be heard. It's an honor to play with him. I got to meet him a few nights ago. I was walking up to my bus and he was walking in front of me. I didn't think nothing about it. He went to his bus. A few minutes later, I came off our bus and I was singing, "Christmas time is coming, Christmas time is coming." I looked up and he was standing there with his bodyguard looking at me. "Hey," he said, so I said hey back. He was just like, "Good to see you" and held out his hand to shake mine. Softest hands on any person I've ever met [laughs].
What's the significance of the album title?
Caleb: It's kind of an excuse. No matter the success, no matter the failure, whatever. Because of the Times. It was actually a church conference that we used to go to every year as kids.
Nathan: Aren't they gonna sue us or something?
Caleb: Oh, we'll be all right. If they're real Christians, they won't sue us [laughs]. Anyway, this conference was only for preachers and their kids. No common folk. But, [the title is] an excuse more than anything. Why did it work? Why didn't it work? Why did you change your look? Because of the times.
JamBase | California
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