Because of the Times is the third album by Kings of Leon. Because of the Times was released on March 30, 2007 in Ireland/Australia, April 2, 2007 in the UK and April 3, 2007 in the US. The album has received generally positive reviews and has appeared in numerous Top-10 lists for “Album of the Year. In 2009, Clash named the album number 3 on the “Clash Essential 50”, a list of the most important albums released since the magazine’s inception in 2004.
The album was #6 in NME albums of the year, as well as #31 on Rolling Stone’s Top 50 Albums of 2007. NME said that the album “cements Kings Of Leon as one of the great American bands of our times” and Entertainment Weekly called Because of the Times “an epic wide-screen movie of a CD and the band’s best to date.” Another reviewer described Because of the Times as, “an accomplished album of unbelievable beauty and familiar, loveable grit. Kings of Leon is maturing wonderfully and with patience, not forcing anything musically or lyrically that doesn’t sound natural.” However, some critics found the album inferior to their previous efforts. Dave Hood of Artrocker gave the album one star out of five, finding that “Kings of Leon are experimenting, learning, and getting a bit lost.” Pitchfork Media contended that “Because of the Times sound suspiciously like a counterattack on womankind, launched from somewhere in the mid-1990s, deep inside a bruised, stadium-sized ego.”
Track listing
All songs written and composed by Kings of Leon.
| No. | Title | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | “Knocked Up” | 7:10 | |
| 2. | “Charmer” | 2:57 | |
| 3. | “On Call” | 3:21 | |
| 4. | “McFearless” | 3:09 | |
| 5. | “Black Thumbnail” | 3:59 | |
| 6. | “My Party” | 4:10 | |
| 7. | “True Love Way” | 4:02 | |
| 8. | “Ragoo” | 3:01 | |
| 9. | “Fans” | 3:36 | |
| 10. | “The Runner” | 4:16 | |
| 11. | “Trunk” | 3:57 | |
| 12. | “Camaro” | 3:06 | |
| 13. | “Arizona” | 4:50 |
