Album Rating: 5.0

Saw them last night and man are they as good as ever!



It also occurred to me that the reason KX is so criminally underappreciated is because they just didn't have an image. They didn't have the necessary over-the-top visual image in the '80s, and they weren't aggressively anti-image (an image in and of itself) like bands in the '90s. They just go about their business rocking out unpretentiously, which may have cost them their chance at fame.

Album Rating: 5.0

Great to hear Sitar, yeah, they indeed still kick ass just as they used to. And you def might be right about the image. They cared more about the music itself than marketing and show. It‘s a big part of why I adore them that much. They are so authentic and sincere in what they are doing and are just incredible musicians. They claim a place among the greatest bands ever.

Album Rating: 5.0

It's the complete lack of any kind of posturing whatsoever that's kind of jarring. Not that you'd expect them to, but take a band like the Foo Fighters, or even Alice in Chains and Steven Wilson. AiC and Wilson are supposed to be the poster children of substance over style, and yet they're much more bombastic in their presentation.

KX, on the other hand, just humbly go on stage, grin and rock out. No fuss, just music. And as a consequence they're packing 1000-capacity venues instead of 10,000. It makes me more than a bit sad...even though it also means I don't have to spent a ton of money to get up close and personal with them.

Album Rating: 5.0

Totally agreed on all you said. But to be honest, I don’t know if they ever really wanted to play huge venues. They don’t seem to regret anything and I think the way it is is just what they wanted.

Album Rating: 5.0

I always thought the same thing, but they definitely have a little bit of bitterness over the fact that they never broke out in a big way. Maybe they didn't want it all that bad, but they were definitely still disappointed by it. In fact the failure of Dogman almost broke up the band.

Album Rating: 5.0

You're absolutely right, but I'm still convinced they realize that fame always comes at a price.



However, didn't know about the Dogman issue... I only know very few articles about the band in general and mostly with no deep content. The most interesting article probably was about Doug's coming out and his pondering with his faith due to the threatening and disgusting messages he received by crazy fans at this time.



Do you have any more sources available about the band and the history in general I could look up?

Album Rating: 5.0

This is a great detailed and insightful article I found about their struggles.



https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-x-men-king-s-x

Album Rating: 5.0

What a stirring, sad and just great article... Makes me love the band even more if that’s possible... Thanks a lot for sharing Sitar. It‘s interesting that my favorite records of theirs were created from Dogman onwards, a time where the band went through substantial changes and faced severe struggles.

Album Rating: 5.0

You're very welcome man! And based on now having seen/interacted with them twice, it's really striking how completely down to earth, humble and devoid of any sort of "rockstar persona" they are. Perhaps it's an outcome of the fact that they have struggled so much to make it in the business, but I feel that their reluctance to buy into those shenanigans also hindered their success.

I came to the conclusion some years ago that mainstream rock musicians generally peak by their late-20s (and sometimes are immortalised as such in the "27-club") because they still have both the fire and anger that allows them to relate to their teenage/early-20s fanbase while developing the ability to articulate it as their 20s wear on. However, once they hit their 30s they mature too much to keep relating to younger audiences. You can kind of see this with the way Linkin Park struggled to evolve and stay relevant as they got older, no matter how hard they tried.

I think this relates to KX too because even at the beginning of their careers they were too mature and laidback to appeal to mainstream audiences. They didn't sing about sex and drugs in the '80s and they didn't sing about angst (and drugs) in the '90s. They just wrote songs about deeper topics that were important to them, which sadly youthful audiences don't care about, and they did it without pretension or posturing.

Album Rating: 5.0

Yeah humble and down to earth are exactly the terms I would use to describe them. And totally devoted to their music and fans. Talking to Doug for the first time almost 20 years ago was one of the best experiences in my live, will never forget that moment.



Btw, there is a sentence in the article that totally supports your thesis: "But with no image to speak of, and coming from God-fearing, already happily married backgrounds, King’s X were both unwilling and unequipped to compete with the type of rock bands that MTV liked to make stars of."



Unwilling and unequipped, that’s straight to the point I guess.

Album Rating: 4.5

One of the most underappreciated hard rock bands ever.

Album Rating: 5.0

Holy shit, you and I actually agree about something Cas!?

Album Rating: 5.0

TO BE THE DOOOOGMAAAAAAN



Seriously album fucks hard

Album Rating: 3.5

Pretend is the greatest song ever, agreed

Album Rating: 5.0

Fun fact, I sat down and learned Pretend's solo on day 1 of the quarantine.

Album Rating: 4.5

Just bumpin' this to help people discover this gem. Although you can't go wrong with any King's X album really.

Album Rating: 5.0

Thou art a wise man indeed, gocsa.

Album Rating: 4.0

This is a great record, but now it's time for me to delve into the rest of their discography.



Favorite songs fellas?

Album Rating: 4.0

I’d start with the entirety of Gretchen Goes to Nebraska, which is a masterpiece. But as far as individual songs go:



Summertime

Over My Head

Goldilox

In the New Age

Pleiades

The Difference (my personal favorite King’s X song)

We Are Finding Who We Are

It’s Love

She’s Gone Away



Such an amazing band in general though

Album Rating: 4.0

Im on it dude