KONGOS (Photo courtesy of band’s website)
Coming to the PNC Pavilion on Sept. 16, opening for Kings of Leon on their Mechanical Bull Tour, are alternative-rock newbies The Kongos, playing through their international smash CD “Lunatic.”
Hot off their single “Come With Me Now,” the band has come a long way from their South African origins. The sons of John Kongos, a singer-songwriter who rocked the airwaves in the ’70s, much of their success is derived from their excessive touring in their home country and around the world.
Much of their support came in the form of promotion off of the BBC1 for their first promotional tour. Since then, they’ve played around the world as frequently as they had from the start of their journey, hitting such foreign festivals as Firefly and Sasquatch and being included in the future list for Lollapalooza. Along with their touring with Kings of Leon, they’ll also be playing with One Republic in the fall. This year alone, their number of shows will total at 140 concerts.
“Come With Me Now” is the first single from the group’s latest album “Lunatic” (Epic Records). The song clinched the No. 1 spot at Alternative Radio for five weeks and enjoyed the quickest ascent to the top of the chart by a new band ever. It was No. 2 at adult album alternative radio and soared up the Top 40 charts as well, where it rose to No. 18. The song is also starting to buzz internationally. It hit No. 1 at modern rock radio and has been certified platinum in Canada while also reaching No. 1 on the Colombian rock charts. BBC1 in the United Kingdom also played the track after the band did their first promotional tour there. Other notable hits off “Lunatic” are “I Want To Know,” applying a soft rhythm and a reggae beat with tings of guitar strung in. “I’m Only Joking,” their next single in the United Kingdom, presents a drum march with an attitude kick that will bat you senseless.
The brothers themselves are multi-instrumentalists, with Dylan and Jesse handling vocals live and playing bass and drums respectively onstage. Eldest brother Johnny plays accordion and piano, while Danny is on slide and regular guitar.
The Kongos will be opening for Kings of Leon along with Young the Giant on Sept. 16 at the PNC Pavilion. Tickets right now for lawn seats into the stadium seating are $35 and up for the moment. Come out and see how they’ve taken the world by storm.
