Deeper Issues Lurk Behind Kings of Leon Lead Singer Caleb Followill and his Friday Night Dallas Pukefest

Update: Kings of Leon have called off the rest of the band's tour, which was scheduled to hit Phoenix on September 6.Perhaps he started to really listen to what he was singing, perhaps he finally realized that he also sells fancy scarves for a living -- whatever the case may...

By Michael Lopez

August 1, 2011

Audio By Carbonatix

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Update: Kings of Leon have called off the rest of the band's tour, which was scheduled to hit Phoenix on September 6.

Perhaps he started to really listen to what he was singing, perhaps he finally realized that he also sells fancy scarves for a living -- whatever the case may be, Kings of Leon lead singer Caleb Followill cut short last Friday night's show in Dallas due to an unfortunate, self-induced bout of "overheating."

Basically, he had too much to drink, told fans "I'm gonna go backstage and I'm gonna vomit, I'm gonna drink a beer and I'm gonna come back out and play three more songs" and then never came back out. Jared Followill, Caleb's younger brother, profusely apologized to the fans in attendance, saying "It's not us, it's Caleb that can't play. I know you guys fucking hate us...it's not our fault, it's Caleb, he can't play the rest of the show. We will be back as soon as possible."

He also took to Twitter to explain, "I love our fans so much. I know you guys aren't stupid. I can't lie. There are problems in our band bigger than not drinking enough Gatorade."

It seems as though the shit has begun to hit the fan for Kings of Leon. Also, Jared Followill knows we "fucking hate" them? When did the members of Kings of Leon become self-aware?

So what does this mean for Caleb Followill? It's safe to say he's officially become a pussy. That's right, I said it -- a pussy. He's married, he plays mellow, adult contemporary rock music and he has his own clothing line. On top of all that, he can't hold his liquor. Fans in Dallas will get another shot at seeing the band play when they return for a rescheduled show on September 22. To those fans I say: Fuck it and get a refund. If Caleb Followill really cared about his fans, he wouldn't have gone and fucked up like that. If the "heat" is such an issue for him, then don't go schedule summer tours in cities with high heat indexes. KoL fans aren't idiots, though -- they, much like the other members of the band, know the heat wasn't Caleb's biggest problem Friday night.

Jared Followill, Caleb's brother, is rather certain that his brother's problems run a bit deeper than struggling with the weather. To think that Caleb does, in fact, have a drinking problem is rather bewildering. For this problem to surface now -- when the band is at their tamest, if you will, and some three months after Caleb got married -- just doesn't make a whole lot of sense. If 2003 Caleb, with his long hair and scraggly beard, had said drinking problem, most people wouldn't think much of it. After all, he's young and in a popular, new rock band. Nowadays, Caleb is married and plays tepid, boring rock music that scores major airplay on Top 40 radio stations. To have a drinking problem would just be cliché. Yet there he is, puking his guts out and canceling a show.

I stopped trying to figure out Kings of Leon after I first heard "Sex on Fire." It was pretty clear that they knew what they were doing with their careers at that point. I will say this, however -- it isn't going to be any less hot on September 6 in Phoenix than it was on July 29 in Dallas.

Here is video of the whole fiasco from Friday night in Dallas -- see for yourself what went down:

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Michael Lopez

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