Gig Of The Month: KINGS OF LEON, Manchester Arena

I DIED AND WENT TO MUSICAL HEAVEN! Yes, you are reading correctly. I have just witnessed one of the greatest gigs EVER! Tuesday night I have been lucky enough to see one of the greatest bands in the world to perform LIVE. The absolutely incredible KINGS OF LEON! 

Me and Andy had the genius idea couple months ago. Hungry for some great music I have been looking through various websites selling concert tickets. And somehow (With a great luck I must say!) I have stumbled upon tickets to see Kings Of Leon in Manchester! I have always wanted to see them live. I remember the first time I heard USE SOMEBODY and it stuck with me. 





Yes, I am one of those people who discovered KINGS OF LEON only when they become commercial (Stop laughing Andy). Anyways, because I know that Andy likes music as much as I do, I asked if he would like to go with me. And he said yes! So we purchased the tickets and waited for the set day to come. There were some frustrating times as the ticket company distributed the tickets quite late but about two weeks ago they arrived in the post. EXCITING TIMES! Now, we've started to count the days till the much anticipated event. 

And on Tuesday the day has come! 25th June 2013. Tuesday. 7.30PM. Me and Andy made our way to Manchester, checked into a lovely hotel (which I picked - what a great pick I must say!), ate some delicious italian food and were all set to enjoy these amazing musicians live.

At first there was a little bit of a disappointment with the supporting act. THE WEEKS. As Andy found out the band is from Jackson, Mississippi. They play similar music to the main act, but OH MY GOD, the main singer has no stage presence. Actually, all he does is move around in a triangle. Me and Andy had various ideas of why this might be. Maybe he was nervous? Maybe he was pissed off his face and they were the only movements he could manage? Maybe he had previously have too much of a presence on stage and was told to tone it down and took it to the extreme? God knows. But unfortunately, it did not work out for him and I felt very disappointed. Actually from the ten songs they played I only enjoyed 2 max 3. The only reason why I laughed at lot throughout the band's performance were the dance creations. Well the none existing dance creation and no stage presence. But that was over within 25 minutes and we got to a well deserved break. If you asked me, I think It was a great recovery break to take from the painful performance I have witnessed. 

But at 9.00PM London time the KINGS OF LEON took the stage and from the start I was blown away. 

They started off with Closer and what a great choice that was. The Lower Tier of audience was their feet straight away. Unfortunately, our seats were on the Upper Tier were people didn't know how to enjoy great music and were sat the whole time. But that didn't stop me and Andy to enjoy this once in lifetime opportunity.

The Kings were amazing! Flawless. Fantastic. Every tune they played was perfect without any mistakes. Caleb's voice pulled through the whole time. He was unbelievable. I think he has a very unique voice with the ability to bring up emotions in my heart which I buried long time ago ( I pretend to be a stone cold bitch most of the times !)







We had the privilege to listen to one amazing set list : Closer, Taper Jean Girl, My Party, Molly's Chambers, The Immortals, Fans, Back Down South, Pyro, On Call, Holy Roller Novocaine, Crawl, Four Kicks, Be Somebody, Milk, Ragoo, Arizona, The Bucket, Radioactive, Notion & Sex On Fire.

When Sex On Fire came on the whole arena exploded. Everyone was on their feet. And they were singing their hearts out.  And of course the audience wouldn't let them go just that easily after that..

So as usual, The Kings disappeared dramatically from the stage and the whole audience went sad and demanded more. We all started clapping and chanting more and more as each minute passed. They were really milking it! We must have been waiting for about 5 mins when they came back with a BOOM!! And not only with one song. They played another three tracks - Knocked Up, Use Somebody and Black Thumbnail...



After that it was time to say our goodbyes. Sadly, the evening was over and it was time for us to go home. 

I went on a journey through the whole time they were on. Their music touched me deeply in my heart and soul and I was very emotional. So much that I have nearly cried when they came back on and I heard first cords of Use Somebody!!! 

All the way through the sound was perfect. Sharp. You could actually enjoy the music. 

But One BIG WELL DONE goes to the person who design the stage. It was mind-blowing. Every single track was set in a different mood. They were streaming live footage in a vintage filter . That is a big STAR from my side. And there were so many screens which show some incredible moments. Whoever design that stage was a pure genius. I was impressed to the point when it took over me completely. 

Even when they finished, I was buzzing for hours. Me and Andy could not stop talking about it for hours and only LONG ISLAND ICED TEAS calmed us down. I felt drunk from the experience I have just gained. I was sweaty from dancing. My voice was gone from singing out loud but I was incredibly happy. Satisfied. High on the excitement. 

So I will just tell you this. GO SEE THEM LIVE. THE KINGS were AMAZING! Absolutely mind-blowing. Experience of a lifetime. I will definitely go see them again if the opportunity arises.!!