Hanson have long been the standard bearer as to how to take huge success, substitute for the life's of a working rock band, and maintain your sanity.
After "Mmmm-bop" and hit album Middle Of Nowhere made them the Jonas Brothers of the 1990s, Hanson couldn't follow it up. So they regrouped. Reaching out to their fanbase, they went from Arena to clubs, released pretty good rock albums (2009's This Time Round isn't bad at all), I should have written about it) and have managed to maintain their careers and their lives with integrity and ability.
So when Isaac Hanson (that's him in the pix with his wife and son) warns Kings Of Leon, one family act to another, KOL might wanna listen. According to contactmusic.com, this is what Isaac said to WENN: "I have a hard time with musicians who act like pricks because it just makes me mad. I just sit there and I go, 'You know what, dude, no matter whether you're in a band just surviving or you're in a bus playing stadiums, one way or another you're still among the rare breed of people that are actually getting paid to do it.'
"If you're actually making a living doing it, man, pinch yourself every day, because it goes if you don't lobr it… and people will eventually get pissed off.
"And I'm gonna call somebody out on it – the Kings of Leon guys are running some risks. They're irritating people; you can't do that too much. Eventually the bad boy image affects fans' willingness to show up. Their fans will get bummed out.
"Everybody has their demons, everyone has their challenges… I'm a bit of a hothead in certain circumstances, but you gotta temper it because your fans are there and they've paid good money to see a show, and you gotta bring it. I don't wash my dirty laundry in public, I do my dirty laundry backstage… I have flipped the bird at a few people that deserved it and told them to go 'f' themselves."
Hanson has a point but he is also missing the point. Say the pigeons crapping in the bassist mouth stuff, that was a real bad move. But the cancelling of the tour? That was because their lead singer couldn't perform because he is an alcoholic.