King's X

[anagramformongo]

King's X were My Other Favorite Band in the early 1990s, but when the band started to lose their Christian faith, the quality of their music also took a nosedive, and subsequently they pretty much fell off my musical radar.  However, I have long thought that the perfect double bill would be Rush and King's X, but sadly, it's too late now for that.

 

My two favorite bands, BTW, had several things in common.

 

1.  Underweight, left-handed, sometimes bald lead singers who have had body parts ridiculed by Beavis and Butthead (and incidentally, are both gay).

2.  Songs titled "Fall On Me" and "[The] Burning Down."

3.  Their bass players have both said on the record that the bands have endured because the band members loved each other like brothers.

4.  Both were trios, eventually.

 

Can you guess who the other band is?  You can't?  Okay, it's another now-defunct band, R.E.M.

 

The songs I've heard so far sound pretty good.  I'm glad they're back, especially because they've had some tumultuous times in their personal lives.

[Rod in Toronto]

https://www.sonicperspectives.com/interviews/interview-with-doug-pinnick/

[Mr. Not]

i've listened through it twice so far. i'm glad to see more of jerry's songs make it into the mix this time, i feel like he's always been the most underrepresented creative force of the band - because he is. there's three jerry songs on here, which is the same amount he's contributed to all the previous albums combined if i'm not mistaken (Six Broken Soldiers, American Cheese, and Julie) - and two of those were 'jokes'. his solo work is really good, i actually decided to listen to his two solo albums after listening to three sides. his songs can have a rough flow to them between sections, and he doesn't have the best voice in the world, but none of that really matters since his sense of harmony makes the material enjoyable. "Holidays" is a great Beatles/Jerry song and is one of my instant favorites from the album.

 

they said this album was very diverse and unlike anything they've done before, and the first part is definitely true, but Ogre Tones and XV were similarly pretty varied in content. this album goes darker/heavier than they ever have before, and it also gets very soft and melodic in a way they haven't done, it kind of caresses you almost like a lullaby. so it's a new and unique king's x album, but they've never put the same album out twice so that in itself isn't special. I'd say this album is among the stronger half of their catalogue :) 

[cygnify]

Old School KX fan here - first saw them on FHL.  So far, I really enjoy the new disc!  I will admit being a little underwhelmed with the first two singles - but really hearing them in the context of the album, they're really good.  As Mr Not stated, it is a very diverse album.  Jerry's songs have their own unique signature and are well represented here.  I really like the heaviness of Doug's  "Swipe Up" and "Flood Pt. 1", and Ty has some great songs too like "Watcher" and "All God's Children"; he's got a few great solos on the disc.  "Nothing But the Truth" is an instant classic for me; very soulful take by Doug.  "Holidays" and "Festival" are also great.  While I like it now, if this is a "grower" I might place it up there with my favorites of theirs.  Certainly, I already like it more than anything since Tapehead.   Definitely benefits from hearing the whole thing in context and given an open mind without unrealistic expectations. It's not going to be "Gretchen" part II nor is it going to totally reinvent their sound.  It's Doug, Ty, and Jerry and it's a really solid effort, with some new sounds, some familiar sounds, and some great hooks.  

[Mr. Not]

been listening to this a lot, so i figured i'll do my track by track take :D

 

Let It Rain - i've listened to this song much more than any of the other tracks, being released about three months before the albums release, and i think it's my favorite from the album, as well as the only track that i consider to be a 'grower'. very unique feel to this track, definitely an original by them and i'd almost dare call it 'genre defining' for... something. it's kind of like their song "out of the silent planet" from gretchen in that it's unlike the rest of their catalogue, and nothing else like it will ever exist elsewhere, probably. 

Flood, Pt. 1 - i think this might have the mysterious "pt. 1" in the title because it was supposed to be a pt 1 to "let it rain" originally, since the lyrical message is very similar according to Dug, but it also could have pt. 1 added in simply because the song does seem to add a bit abruptly. another reviewer commented saying he hopes there's a part 2. i think the addition of the orchestra adds a good amount the song and it works surprisingly well for them, but i'm glad they use it sparingly through the rest of the album. very proggy nu-prog groove to this one with that riff too.

Nothing But The Truth - i heard a lot of comments singling out this track in particular leading up to the release from people who got the album early and reviewed it, and it's one of my favorite too. very sweet sad X song, but with a jazzy feel which is something they don't do often, but this song convinces me that they could never do it enough. it instantly connected with me, dug did a really good job with the feel for this one.

Give It Up - one of the more straightforward songs of the album, i wasn't completely sold on it at first but i like it within the context of the album a lot and think it balances the energy out well, most of the other songs on the album are either very dark/heavy or soft/bright, this one is one of the few "rockers". i also like the song more now that i learned it's about dug's complete refusal of suicide. it's a jam, and they had fun with it. i like all the additions they decided to thrown in with unusual guitar sounds, percussions, laughing/spoken word hidden in the mix, etc. this is something they do throughout the entire album which gives it a nice charm, but here they really go crazy with it.

All God's Children - this song is in the realm along with pleiades and the jelly jam's "profit" album, one of ty's epic clean rock songs that reflect on the existential. the acoustic guitar intro is great and i love dug's bass noodling during the outro, and the joint harmony between jerry/ty for the chorus is ethereal. beautiful song from front to back, i can't help but feel like there should have been a little bit of sitar thrown into the mix though.

Take The Time - i commented on jerry's contributions for this album in my last post, but i'll repeat that it's great to finally hear his songs make it onto a king's x record. of the three he contributed, this one and holiday are tied for my favorite contribution from him.

Festival - i love this song way too much, it gets me amped each time i listen to it so i've been playing it over a lot. at first it seems a little more repetitious than it really is. great riff and hooks, the song has a very sarcastic attitude to it, but ty use of his typical fashion of being very dr. suess with the lyrics. 

Swipe Up - another song with very prog rhythms thrown in, this reminds me of dug's writing for the fourth album with works like "ooh song" or "world around me", it's a darker groove with vocals that are fittingly sinister. i think the songs message, being implicitly played out with an anti-tech/social media angle, is excusably original in its approach. i love the abrupt "destroy", and the association of violent destruction with social media isn't something you hear portrayed like this too often, usually the criticism is more about vanity, which is of course mentioned as well.. 

Holiday - this is the most beatles song they've ever done, it very easily could have been done by the beatles themselves. it's very funny to me because i imagine dug felt 'forced' into singing like a beatle for this one, but this song is another standout in being a very unique one among their larger catalogue. great guitar solo from ty here, quirky. 

Watcher - another song of theirs which is a bit of a throwback to classic X, Ty's riffing here is impressive and why people fall in love with his work in general. personally i'm not as grabbed by this one as other seem to be, i do like it but consider it to be of the weaker half of the album. probably the one single most contrarian opinion i'll have on this album.

She Called Me Home - this is the only weaker song on the album, and though that's the case it does earn it's keep with the outro guitar solo half of the song, which i especially like because, though i don't have it on any sort of authority, i'm 100% sure jerry gaskill brought that guitar solo's melody to ty and then ty expanded on it a bit from there. jerry's songwriting approach is a little unique, his songs can seem a little messy because he'll come up with contradicting melodies, but since they're good he'll decide to keep them and it can lead to songs which feel mixed and strange.

Every Everywhere - since they all sing this song jointly throughout, i can't tell who wrote it, i'm guessing it was either ty or a joint effort. in any case it feels like they're ending things off with a peace/love message, on album which is otherwise a little dark by their standards (which is to say not very dark at all) and i like the song, but i'd appreciate it a lot more if i didn't get the impression that they phoned it in.

 

:) great album and one of my top 5 favorite from them

[rocket ignites]

I got the cd in my greedy little hands on release day.  3 listens so far.  The good news is I have strong urges to keep spinning it.  Some strong material here.  Good variety of songs.  Cool to have 3 Jerry songs, not sure yet which is my favorite.  Watcher is by far my favorite song overall...g-damn I love this track.  Give it Up, ...Children, Swipe Up...top shalf for me.  Overall some dark and moody vibes.  Festival might be the oddball miss smack dab middle of album.  Seems like a bonus track out of place.

 

Mr. Not's and cygnify's write up is much appreciated.  I can't read it all until after 1-2 listens to keep my mind free and open about this album!

Edited September 6, 2022 by rocket ignites

[Segue Myles]

Okay so I played this today...

 

...what a wonderful surprise! Didn't enjoy the singles, but they really work on this album! This could be the moment Kings X and me rekindle an old love affair!

[bluefox4000]

I thought this album was complete dulls-ville.  therein lies my problem most times with KX.  Talented out the ass but they have trouble writing a memorable hook to save their lives.  maybe i need ,ore spins?  But This just sounds like typical late KX.  Impressive playing not a single memorable hook.

 

Also.......Dug's voice is kinda shot.

 

Mick

 

 

[stoopid]

Looking at the varied and sometimes contrary replies/reviews since release doesn't speak the positive things fans think it does.

[Segue Myles]

Replayed it. This is seriously good...why did it have to come out the same time as Megadeth, Blind Guardian and Machine Head? It's got serious competition for my attention!

[rocket ignites]

As Segue and others have mentioned. ..the singles work in the total of the album.  That was a nice surprise to my ears.  I'd have Give it Up as the opener though.  Some tasty hooks everywhere throughout the album.  Those Jerry songs are in my head.

Edited September 7, 2022 by rocket ignites

[Mr. Not]

they're not touring anywhere near me so i figured i'll tune into this stream tomorrow instead. i gave a quick peek to the setlist and it's a good set, 17 songs, a lot of them from the new album. i didn't memorize the setlist or anything but glanced at it just long enough to get excited. there are a couple songs here which i didn't think they'd be playing live, awesome. 

 

King’s X Live From Brooklyn Bowl Nashville | SUN, OCT 23 – FANS

[Mr. Not]

that was a great show, their tones were insane and Ty used the same Fender for the entire night.

all the guys voices were a bit shot though, and that was a little sad but it's inevitable. i hope i do get to see them in person before they retire, which might mean i'll have to take a road trip.