Sunday, February 22, 2009

On the Radio: Kings of Leon "Sex on Fire"

This single from kick-ass rockers Kings of Leon is a great one. It features all the elements that make the band so much fun: The off-kilter but compelling vocals, the captivating modern blend of alternative/Southern rock styles, and the passionate sense of urgency that makes the tune just sound like it means something.

Sparse as it is, that's about all I have to say about the song itself. What concerns me is that I have heard this song about a dozen times on one particular radio station lately. Now, I'm happy that DC101 has it in rotation. Kings of Leon is huge in England and other countries but not nearly where it deserves to be here, so any kind of exposure they get is appreciated. But those dozen or so times I heard the song lately occurred in the span of a dozen or so times tuning in the station.

In other words, according to my unscientific survey, "Sex on Fire" is on all the damn time on DC101. I turn the station when I hear it now because I don't want to get sick of this great song.

Mind you, I'm not talking about leaving the station on all day and hearing the song in rotation a few times a day. I'm talking about flipping the dial now and then to see what's on and encountering this song every day that I listen to the radio. It's not even exclusively at the same time. Usually I listen to the radio on my way to work, but one time I was getting my daughter from day care a few hours after my normal radio zone, and I heard it AGAIN.

It's just so tough to listen to commercial radio these days, and DC101 in particular is aggravating. Most songs on the playlist at a given time are ones that were alternative-ish but mainstream hits when I was in college. I don't even like all of them. Then when it adds a new tune, the station plays it to death.

It's a good song, though. If you haven't heard it yet, just go to DC101 and wait about 10 minutes.

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