Fred Armisen & Amex Present: Kings of Leon - "Supersoaker" (RCA Records)
Sonically, Mechanical Bull should have a little somethin' for everyone; swooning 18-year-olds and die-hard Kings of Leon purists alike. Just a few mere hours after unveiling their slow-burning new single, "Wait for Me," Kings of Leon uploaded a fairly stripped down music video for lead-off single, "Supersoaker." Director W.I.Z. somehow managed to implement some sort of Instagram-tinged video filter, which he describes as "an imagined hybrid of Pop-Art screenprint, hand tinting, and Technicolor film." "Supersoaker" kinda reminds me of a Southern-fried version of The Strokes or some other popular, dirty-looking early 2000's Garage Rock band(s). Throughout, Kings of Leon can be seen fiercely executing the track, surrounded by beautiful women that weirdly enough... they never really seem to fully acknowledge over the course of it's 4-minute run-time!
W.I.Z. & Kings of Leon have quite cleverly crafted a bare-bones Rock "N" Roll video, which more so casts the band in the same light as The Black Keys, rather than The Strokes. I mean, we're talkin' about "SENTIMENTAL GIRLS," ice cream and soda jerks, bubble gum, white T-shirts, jean jackets, and light-hearted general debauchery. Not unlike Steve Buscemi before him, Former SNL allum and Portlandia mastermind Fred Armisen filmed Kings of Leon's recent concert at London's own Shepherd's Bush this past Friday night for Amex's now infamous UNSTAGED online web-series. The [previously recorded] live-streaming hour-long performance included blistering versions of a few Mechanical Bull (available September 24th) tracks, as well as choice selections meticulously plucked from all across Kings of Leon's lengthy back catalog.