Kings of Leon: Live at the O2 London Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		4.0

Kings of Leon: Live at the O2 London Blu-ray Movie Review

Kings of Leon is an American rock band that was formed in Nashville, Tennessee in 1999. The band consists of Calleb Followill (Vocals/Guitar), Jared Followill (Bass), Matthew Followill, (Guitar) and Nathan Followill (Drums).

Initially, the music of Kings of Leon was a mixture of blues, Southern and classic rock, but nowadays it gravitates closer to alternative rock and neo-punk. The band has released a total of four albums - Youth and Young Manhood (2003), Aha Shake Heartbreak (2004), Because of the Times (2007) and Only by the Night (2008). Earlier this year, Kings of Leon won the prestigious Grammy for Record of the Year for "Use Somebody".

Filmed at London's popular O2 Arena on June 30 2009, Live at the O2 London, England was initially released on SDVD only (November 10, 2009). Now the entire show, consisting of a total of 22 songs, most of which come from the band’s last two albums, is available on Blu-ray.

Fans of Kings of Leon should be delighted with Live at the O2, London, England. The Southern quartet looks and sounds outstanding live, and the atmosphere in the venue is fantastic. The audience is in a terrific mood and during a number of songs - "Sex on Fire", "Taper Jean Girl", "Black Thumbnail", "Molly's Chambers" and "Use Somebody" - could be seen and heard singing together with the band. Also, despite the large stage and impressive pyrotechnics, Live at the O2, London, England certainly has that marquee "intimate" flavor great shows are known for.

From a purely technical point of view, the show does not disappoint either. Multiple strategically positioned cameras follow the musicians on the stage as well as the audience enjoying their performance. The editing is particularly strong. There are multiple close-ups, zoom-in-and-out effects and wide panoramic shots focusing on the elaborate stage lighting and pyrotechnics.

Sex on Fire

Kings of Leon: Live at the O2 London Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Kings of Leon: Live at the 02, London, England arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of RCA.

The entire show has been filmed with a variety of strategically positioned cameras. Some are very close to the stage, following the musicians as they sing and interact with the audience. Other are positioned high over and around the audience. As a result, one could really get a feel of what the atmosphere in the venue was during the show.

Clarity and detail are very good. There are some minor fluctuations that are noticeable from time to time, but I feel that the rougher looking footage serves a specific purpose (some of it coincides with harder guitar solos). Contrast is pleasing, though, again, the footage from each camera is not identical. For example, some extremely mild noise is noticeable on footage from two cameras that are following almost exclusively the lead singer of Kings of Leon. Macroblocking is not an issue of concern. There are absolutely no shadow issues. I also did not detect any transfer-specific anomalies. All in all, this is a strong presentation of a terrific show. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location).

Kings of Leon: Live at the O2 London Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are three audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 (96kHz/24-bit), LPCM 2.0 (96kHz/24-bit) and Dolby Digital 5.1 (640kbps). For the record, optional subtitles have not been provided.

The audio treatment is fantastic! I watched the entire show with the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track (96kHz/24-bit) and could not be any more pleased with the sound quality. First of all, the dynamic amplitude of the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track is outstanding. The bass is deep and powerful, the rear channels very effective and the high-frequencies not overdone. Second, the separation between the vocals and the guitars is simply outstanding. There are absolutely no problematic overlappings whatsoever. Third, the crowd noise is handled exceptionally well - it is prominent but never overpowering the music.

The LPCM 2.0 (96kHz/24-bit) track is also excellent. It does not immerse one into the show as well as the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track does (compare "California Waiting" and "Sex on Fire"), but it sill sounds terrific. For the record, I did not detect any disturbing pops, cracks, or hissings to report in this review. To sum it all up, as far as the audio treatment is concerned, Kings of Leon: Live at the 02, London, England certainly ranks as one of the very best music shows to be released on Blu-ray thus far. In my opinion, it is very much on par with Eagle Rock Entertainment's The Cure: Trilogy.

Kings of Leon: Live at the O2 London Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Most unfortunately, there are absolutely no supplemental features on this disc whatsoever.

Kings of Leon: Live at the O2 London Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Kings of Leon are a band with a very unique style, one that is constantly evolving. Additionally, not only is their music quite unconventional but so are the texts of their songs. These guys have plenty to say and they surely know how to do it right. Live at the O2, London, England looks very good and sounds phenomenal. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.