Kings of Leon

US indie/alt rock; Sex on Fire and Use Somebody are the late-2000s crossover singles.

Formed 1999. Early albums (Youth & Young Manhood, Aha Shake Heartbreak) pushed rawer riffs and Caleb Followill’s strained vocal; Because of the Times expanded dynamics. Sex on Fire (2008) is the chart object. They matter here as a US path into the same stadium-indie space Coldplay/Killers occupied in the UK/US charts—Southern rock DNA under delay-guitar polish.