All hail the power trio!! (Like Supafuzz above). If you're only a trio I think you (usually) have to be pretty damn good at your instrument (Rush, Jimi Hendrix Experience, ZZ Top, Robin Trower in his glory days, King's X, Mountain, to name a few). To quote Tim Christensen of my favorite trio Dizzy Mizz Lizzy (who I shall discuss at some point), from the song Glory - "One guitar, one bass, and a drummer...that's really all it takes". Of course with that lyric Tim is leaving out the vocalist part of the equation, and I guess is assuming somebody playing one of the three instruments can also contribute that part. If you think about it the trio + vocalist formula has been one of the biggest in rock bands (The Who, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, U2, Free, etc). Not that there is anything wrong with deviating from that format and adding another guitar player (Thin Lizzy, Wishbone Ash) or keyboards (Yes, Deep Purple), but when it gets too big and adds instruments like horns or orchestras that's when it usually loses me. Anyways, here's a trio with a new album out that is a pretty good hard rock/metal opus out this year. The band is considered a hard rock "supergroup" - Doug Pinnick from King's X, George Lynch from Dokken/Lynch Mob, and Ray Luzier from Korn. KXM - KXM (2014) 1. Stars 2. Rescue Me 3. Gun Fight 4. Never Stop 5. Faith Is a Room 6. I'll Be OK 7. Sleep 8. Love 9. Burn 10. Do it Now 11. Human Friction 12. Tranquilize 13. Rescue Me (radio edit) Doug Pinnick - Bass, Vocals George Lynch - Guitar Ray Luzier - Drums I'm already a huge fan of Pinnick for his work with King's X and Lynch from his work in Dokken, but am not into Korn so was totally unfamiliar with Luzier. Luzier's drumming is killer on this though, quite a monster drummer and he's earned my respect. The songs remind me of King's X more than anything else. Heavy vibes with layered melodic backing vocals. Lynch's playing is more Hendrixian (or Trowerian?) than what I am used to from him - actually he sounds very much like KX's Ty Tabor! If this album had been released as a "King's X" album with no band member details I would be none the wiser. The first three tracks are an all out sonic assault without much letup. Found videos for two of them... Gunfight PRESIDENT PINNICK! (LOL) Rescue Me http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cD40-CJljas Third song "Never Stop" however switches gear with a softer melodic pace. Gives us time to catch our breath. But then it is pretty much back to heavier propulsive blues-metal for most of the tracks. I'll Be OK (track 6) is quite an awesome guitar workout and might be my favorite on the album. The rest of the tracks are similar fare - again very much remind of King's X. Track #12 (Tranquilize) is an instrumental. Anything but tranquil comes to mind while listening to it though (Lynch's guitar goes crazy over a heavy rock/blues vibe). If you are already a fan of King's X then you'll probably dig this album. It's similar to Dogman more so than any of their other albums IMO; it's got that heaviness wise. If you've never heard of King's X but you like heavy blues rock with sharp metal edges check it out, and if you like it then run out and get some King's X (I prefer their earlier albums, up through Ear Candy, and would say start with their first one, Out of the Silent Planet).
KXM sounds like they have potential. Before I learned about this band, I never knew Luzier was in Korn (because that band I have no interest in), but I did know he was with David Lee Roth for eight years, including the pretty darn good DLR Band album.
I've had an e.p. called "Still Going....Wrong!" by an obscure Swedish metal band named 'Burn' since the late 80's and have never parted with it because I just love the lead vocal. It's tough to find any information about them but I think the singer's name is Hans Bell and as far as I can tell he never went on to do anything else musically. It's really well worth a listen (if you can get past the pretty dopey lyrics). I'd be curious what you guys think.
I like the song/riff/guitar. The vocalist is OK, a little like the guy in fellow Swedish band Free Fall that I mentioned earlier in this thread (weird). Wtf is a "brown envelope invasion"?? I guess in Sweden that is how they get overdue bills? Pretty funny.
Kadavar Abra Kadavar ( 2013 ) 01. Come Back Life 02. Doomsday Machine 03. Eye Of The Storm 04. Black Snake 05. Dust 06. Fire 07. Liquid Dream 08. Rhythm For Endless Minds 09. Abra Kadabra Kadavar are a trio in the retro hard rock vein from Berlin Germany. The band is... Lupus Lindemann ...Vocals/ Guitar Mammut ...Bass Tiger ...Drums There sound is "Warm, intense, authentic , doubtlessly a gift from bygone times," Kadavar's been elevated to one of today's most sought after and exciting acts. The Berlin trio, have worked quickly to become one of the most prominent acts in the European heavy underground with their growing fan base starving for more material. This new release has us entering the realms of "Abra Kadavar" , down-to-earth handmade classic rock from a time when music still used to be true art!
This is a pretty cool stoner comp from the late '90s, but then again I am old and like more mainstream acts like QOTSA and Masters of Reality, so I may be way out of my league in this thread.
A heavy drummer from back in my day was Carmine Appice, who was in a couple of groups, the first proggish and psychedelic, and the other harder and boogie-based:
I have that comp. It's great. You're definitely not out of your league here. I expect we'll get to a lot of the bands on that one. I like the same kind of stuff you do. Trust me.
But I also just ordered a Dean Martin comp based on a recommendation in another thread, so go figure. There's no accounting for taste or lack therof. Speaking of Texas, I am going to see Johnny and Edgar Winter live in a few weeks and am psyched.
Ha, well, Dean Martin isn't my speed, but whatever I love Johnny Winter, though... Look forward to talking music with you.
Huh! I am listening to Rumblin' Man on You Tube. It appears to be an outake from the self-titled Cactus album, but is completely new to me. Thanks for the heads-up.
Though I haven't listened to this (yet), I can't help, but think how much stuff Doug Pinnick has done in terms of collaborations. Off the top of my head, there's Gales Pinnick Pridgen, KXM, Supershine, The Mob, Tres Mts. and, jeez, his solo stuff is staggering in terms of Poundhound, "Dug" Pinnick and, lord, whatever else besides his main band, King's X. I think he's also a member of Tribe After Tribe (or was). I mean, how does the dude have the time for all this stuff and still have a life? Perhaps he doesn't have a life. I believe Pinnick is now in his early 60's (he's significantly older than either of his King's X bandmates), so he's either got a ton of energy or a lot of bills to pay. He's a great musician, but there's something to be said for spreading yourself too thin and/or releasing stuff that sounds too similar to other stuff you've done. Let's face it, a lot of his projects, solo and otherwise, sound a lot like King's X and, yeah, that's partly because of his vocals, but the music (guitar tones, feel, vibe) is pretty similar, too. Too much of a good thing can, sometimes, be exactly that.
I am ashamed to say I have not heard of Omar Sykes, but I see that he's attached to Omar & the Howlers who I've heard of, but have not heard. I'll check into them.
Yeah, both Doug & Ty (guitarist) have done a lot of things outside of KX over the years; many side bands, solo albums, album projects, guest appearances, etc. I'm afraid that KX may have suffered as a result (many of their songs wind up elsewhere instead of on KX albums) but like you say, they got bills to pay, and KX never made it big enough to pay the bills (I guess).
EGYPT by EGYPT 1. Valley of the Kings 07:35 2. Queen of all Time ( Red Giant ) 09:24 3. Dirty Witch 07:19 4. Touch Ground 07:30 Aaron Esterby - Electric Bass, Vocals Ryan Grahn - Electric Guitar Chad Heille - Percussion EGYPT is a Acid/ Psych Doom band from Fargo N. Dakota. This is there EP from 2009. They have a full CD out called ' Become The Sun' that came out in 2013. Egypt is a very solid group with a promising future. Check out this clip from there EP.
