Kings X - Kings X
Top five three-pieces with singing bass players, anyone?
King’s X’ sound is one which you might not like. If Queen were a) American and b) good, this is how they’d sound. Please...keep reading
King’s X’ self titled fourth album from 1992 was by no means their most successful or popular, but that is no guide to its relative quality. It mixes dropped D guitar riffs with the sprightly bent which typified its predecessors and was entirely gone by its successor, along with long term producer and ‘fourth member’ Sam Taylor. The band fell out with Taylor during the production of this album, but in doing so created a much darker affair with one of my favourite ever guitar and bass production sounds.
Their songs mix arrangement and progression with a popular vocal style of the day. By the end of the opening track, ‘The Big Picture’ you will know whether you‘re going to like this band. When you first listen to the beginning of a song you’ll often be surprised by what happens next. When the album starts you might think you’re listening to a David McAlmont album, but give it time. The riffs, man, the riffs. ‘The World Around Me’ for instance at just under three minutes is pretty damn lovely.
You have to like widdly guitars too. Still can’t decide which my favourite solo is. Those in ‘The Prisoner’ and the aforementioned opening track are both brilliant, but the one in ‘What I Know About Love’ might be a tad over indulgent. Ty Tabor is like a Joe Mascis combined with Alex Lifeson who has listened to a lot of Black Sabbath. By the end of ‘Chariot Song’ you’ll appreciate what i mean by this. This song epitomises their sound; showcasing the menacing guitar feel with their signature melody and harmony, lead by Doug Pinnik’s powerful and soulful vocal. The dynamics really work with nice stops and use of space.
The first seven songs are very strong (although ‘Junior’s gone Wild’ was omitted on the US release) Maybe they were worried about inciting kids to ‘trash their rooms’. After those you have to love the Sitar in ‘Not just for the Dead’ and the bass/guitar interplay in ‘What I know about love’. The only single, ‘Black Flag’ is a pretty compact, uncompromising affair.
The last two songs are the weakest and probably best not listened to. Perhaps they knew that and that’s why the put them there. But the fact that I’ve put this album up for close scrutiny, despite these two songs should reflect how much I like the rest.