It hasnt been long since Kings of Leon struck us with Because of the Times, with its elegant radio-friendly guitar-led tunes, which saw them soar in popularity, and this album will only help them maintain the limelight. This is Kings of Leon, reinvented.

The Kings gave us a taste of what was to come by releasing Crawl, second track on the new album. It was very clear to see that the band were looking in a different direction, branching out into darker sounds, which is by no means a bad thing. In Kings of Leons case, this was a very good thing. Crawl is an epic song song, with Calebs now trademark sound giving the song more personality than most bands can muster. After listening to it a few times, you would imagine that the song would get repetitive, but the growling bass and Calebs sensational vocal performance drags you back for more. The opener, Closer, is eerily sinful sounding, but again, Caleb puts his own twist on it to make it an enjoyable experience. The albums lead song, Sex on Fire, is one of their finest songs to date, and cements the bands status as one of the best of this century. Use Somebody shows that the band can produce a ballad indie song without difficulty and goes down well as a stand-out from the darker songs.  But, like most albums, this album isnt without its flaws.

Manhattan, as good as the vocals are, it just seems to sink a bit, it sounds more of a filler to a sub-par album, as if they had writers block about half way through the song, but thankfully they get back on trackquickly. Revelry is a heartfelt epic song, the lyrics touching every heart and soul of whoever listens to it, but its a very relaxed song, and the bass and guitar complementing each other perfectly. 17 shows a bit of creativity changes in the band, and although they do their best efforts, theres no escaping that the song doesnt work all too well. Its not that the song is bad, its a mixed bag, out-of-sorts in places, then suddenly rise to the occasion that is Kings of Leons brilliance. The album finishes off with Notion, a strumming great songs and powerful vocals, the sub par, almost grunge-like guitar, I Want You, the speedy Be Somebody, and the closer, Cold Desert, which is a fitting ending.

Only By the Night will meet fans expectations, and theres no doubt, this is a great album, but a bit more polish and consideration into a few of the songs, and this could have been one of THE greats. But for now, Kings of Leon should hold their heads high and pat each other on the back for a well made, and well executed album. Recommended for anyone.