King's X Survives Under The Radar
by Chris McKay/concertshots.com
"I don't think
King's X is a mass appeal band. I don't think it ever will be," declares King's X
guitarist Ty Tabor about the Texas power trio's more than two decades together. "We
used to actually think about sales wishing we had that multi-platinum record, but it's
something that doesn't even cross my mind anymore. We're more content than we used to
be." The guitarist and his bandmates Doug Pinnick (bass, vocals) and Jerry Gaskill
(drums, percussion) should be content. While multi-platinum acts Poison, Vanilla Ice, New
Kids On The Block, Alice In Chains, Marilyn Manson, KORN, Ricky Martin and so many others
have come and gone, King's X have survived just under the radar of stardom. Since 1988,
the band has quietly amassed a legacy of ten albums full of Zeppelin style riffs, dense
Beatle-esque harmonies, introspective confessional lyrics and heavy metallic grooves.
Bands like Soundgarden and Pearl Jam acknowledged the trio's sound as a huge influence on
the grunge movement, and yet the group has still remained largely ignored by the public.
That's okay, because King's X is still here and most of their more famous contemporaries
are long gone. Besides, the people who know about the band are crazy about them. Their
club shows are selling out more often than ever. Ty explains, "It's sort of like the
world of the band Phish. It's something that's grown into its own thing. It really
surprises me, but I sure am glad to see it." With the release of their tenth album, Manic
Moonlight, the band hit the road again. This time around they decided to make major
changes to the song list that may surprise their fans. "Sometimes we feel like we're
doing the same tour over and over with the infusion of two or three songs from the new
album," says the guitarist. "This time we got together and said, "What are
the songs that we just always do every tour?" And whatever they are, we just marked
them off the list right away. We've played those songs ten thousand times. It's hard to
conjure up feeling after that many times. We're doing a lot
more obscure tunes, but stuff that I think we'll have more fun playing. " Tabor is
confident that their diehards will be appreciative of the fact that the band is exploring
previously ignored corners of their massive back catalog. "It's not really a matter
of hating the songs or anything. It's just a matter of anything you do in repetition you
start to get numb to. At that point, it's time to make a change so that you could care
about what you're doing a little better and we might just have fun playing different
stuff." Those are the kind of changes that have allowed the band to last for so much
longer than their contemporaries. While they have grown tired of some of their old songs,
they continue to enjoy working together. "We still get pumped up about writing new
music and touring," says the guitarist. When
asked how much longer he sees King's X lasting, Tabor responds, "As long as people
are there and want to hear it, we'll keep doing it. The only thing that really matters is
doing our best. It's such an honor that we still get to do this." (Chris
McKay/concertshots.com)
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