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Kings of Leon music biography continued...

formed by brothers The Followill boys — Nathan, Caleb and Jared Followill, who were sons of a Pentecostal preacher, Leon Followill. After the elder Followill divorced his wife and left the church in 1997, the brothers added cousin Matthew Followill and moved to Nashville, intent on pursuing a path in rock music. They quickly ran into Nashville songwriter and former new waver Angelo Petraglia, who turned the brothers on to the secular music of the Rolling Stones and Johnny Cash. In 2000, the two met a singer who helped them find a manager, and they began performing. They had interest from several labels and ultimately decided to sign with RCA Records in 2001. The group's debut EP, Holy Roller Novocaine, and album, Youth and Young Manhood — both produced by Petraglia and Ethan Johns (son of Led Zeppelin and Who producer Glyn Johns) — came out in 2003. The band's retro-chic look — long hair, mustaches, Seventies-style clothing—went over better in Great Britain than the United States, where reviews were generally lukewarm and the modern rock audience generally disinterested. The band's sophomore album, 2004's Aha Shake Heartbreak, made them European stars, with three songs cracking the U.K. singles charts. The album saw an American release in February 2005, and Kings of Leon toured the country alongside U2, decidedly announcing their presence in their own homeland.



In 2007, Kings of Leon released their third album—Because of the Times--, which critics deemed "darker" and "more expansive." The album proved to be the band's biggest release, debuting at number 25 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and topping the album charts in the U.K., Ireland, and New Zealand. The song, "Sex on Fire," was released as a single for download in the UK in September 2008. The song became the band's first top 10 hit and first British number 1 and it also reached the top spot in Ireland. When Only by the Night was released it reached number one on the UK album chart and underscored KOL's secular fame.