After a long absence from a local concert stage, dynamic, three-piece power outfit King’s X reminded fans exactly what makes the band stand out from its contemporaries. Active since the mid-’80s, and considered pioneers in so many hard rock sub-genres, King’s X has long held the distinction of being able to mix a slew of styles into the sounds they create, while still remaining fiercely original. Additionally, the band, which originally hails from Springfield, Missouri, also has had the good fortune of never sounding like any of their peers or competitors, which is not an easy feat to pull off.
Supported by a fiercely loyal fanbase since its debut album Out of the Silent Planet dropped in 1988, the band has benefitted from a legion of followers that are extremely familiar with the secret sauce the trio adds to its music, its sound and, most especially, its potent and positive live performance skills.
Featuring the same three vastly talented members since formation, it’s the meshing of harmonies, musical prowess, and infectious grooves that has allowed this highly underrated and sometimes overlooked group to stand out and stand tall among all the bands who have come and gone throughout four decades since they’ve been active.
For the eager fans who filled all the seats at downtown Clearwater’s Nancy and David Bilheimer Capitol Theatre last Thursday night, the group’s return was a welcomed and long overdue event. Taking the stage just after 9 p.m., and following an opening set from Nashville, Tennessee’s hard rock outfit Sound & Shape, the group made its way to the sparsely-decorated stage and wasted no time in getting into the hard-to-describe, yet utterly pleasing mix of prog, blues, rock, metal, and funk overtones, and didn’t let up for the next 90 minutes.
Kicking off with “Groove Machine,” the opening cut from its 1998 album Tape Head, King’s X sounded sharp, tight, and well-oiled. Powerhouse bassist and singer Doug Pinnick, donning a tank top and ballcap, looked geared and primed to lead the band and its rabid fans through a barrage of tunes and highlights from the band’s lengthy catalog. Eternally ageless and always lean and lanky, Pinnick recently celebrated his 74th birthday, but one would never guess that, based on his youthful look and his spryness.
Showing off his versatile vocal chops throughout the night, which include elements of gospel influences, blues overtones, and a touch of Hendrix-inspired wails, Pinnick is as inspiring as he is engaging and enthralling to observe and listen to. With his low-hanging bass guitar slung over his shoulders and while offering plenty of messages of positivity and hope through his sung lyrics and his sporadic between-song addresses to the adoring crowd, Pinnick himself is worth every cent of admission to observe and soak in.
Not far behind is longtime guitarist and vocalist Ty Tabor who added plenty of grit to the night’s selections too. Sporting a knit cap and shades, Tabor made the sparkling riffs he cranked out of his amped-up Gibson Les Paul guitar look easy. His chugging riffs electrified the entire hall throughout the potent and forceful reading of “The World Around Me,” one of the standout cuts from the band’s self-titled, fourth album from 1992. Still sounding fresh and every bit as equally complex and incredibly catchy, the band was able to blow the dust off a gem like this one from the early-’90s and make it sound as fresh and contemporary as when it was originally released.
Showing off its uncanny ability to meld their voices and weave flawless three-part harmonies throughout the night, never was this awesome secret weapon the band wields more passionate and fiery than on its delivery of “Pillow,” another one of the group’s ‘90’s-era songs.
The deep, funk-inspired groove of “Vegetable” helped to show off the band’s vastness and penchant for being unafraid to experiment with a variety of genres successfully. Equally impressive was the band’s superb rendition of “Let it Rain,” a cut from the group’s most recent studio release, 2022’s Three Sides of One. The song, and its soaring vocals and the powerful groove it relies on, only proves that, after so many years, King’s X is still more than capable of turning out its own brand of hard-hitting, inspiring, and sturdy rock and roll.
Closing its main set with “We Were Born,” which featured solid, dizzying drumwork from the band’s source of rock-solid foundation, drummer Jerry Gaskill, audience members were left spellbound and rapt, and only made them crave more of that unique King’s X mojo for an encore.
Plagued by some minor sound issues throughout the performance, both Tabor and Pinnick made a few references to strange sounds and hums they were hearing and experiencing from the stage. Never missing a beat, it was difficult to detect any issues or deterrents to the sound the group continued to pump out all night long.
Coming back with a power-packed four-song encore, the band unleashed even more firepower for its final act. Starting out with “Dogman,” a rock-radio staple the band scored in 1994 from the album of the same name, the grunge-like crunch of the pulsing tune did plenty to raise the performance to another level.
But it was the night’s final number that successfully showed off, not only the loyalty the band’s fans so fiercely possess for King’s X, but the true majesty the group is able to conjure and douse their fans with. Closing with “Goldilox,” one of the band’s most-requested tunes originally hailing from its very first album, the entirety of the song’s lyrics were sung, loudly and passionately, by audience members. As Pinnick,, Tabor, and Gaskill played the musical portion, it was the patrons in the seats only that took over the singing portion of the tune.
The perpetual smile on Pinnick’s face while audience members handled all the singing parts said plenty, and only helped prove that King’s X is still a viable force and it has plenty of believers and followers who still vehemently support them and rally around them.
UPDATED 12/11/24 4:10 a.m. Updated to correct that Kings X’s debut album ‘Out of the Silent Planet’ dropped in 1988.
Subscribe to Creative Loafing newsletters.
Follow us: Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | BlueSky
This article appears in Dec 5-11, 2024.
