Scooter Chronicles

This is an album review, not part of the “Favorite Albums” posts I have been making. I got this as an EARLY CHRISTMAS present from my parents.

Tracks:

1. Alone
2. Stay
3. Hurricane
4. Fly
5. If
6. Bebop
7. Honesty
8. Open My Eyes
9. Freedom
10. Get Away
11. Sooner or Later
12. Mudd
13. Goldilox (Reprise)
14. Bam

I have been a big fan of King’s X now for years. A good 15 years to be exact. I jumped on the bandwagon with the release of “Faith Hope Love” back in late 1990. And I have MTV to really thank for it.

With the first listen I was disappointed with this album. It just didn’t seem they were “going for it” anymore. (They really haven’t for years.) Most of the songs came off as quaint rock tunes just to fill the album. And to top it off they did a re-recording of fan favorite “Goldilox” from their first album “Out of the Silent Planet”. Why? There is really little different at all. Quite honest other then a few changes in Doug’s singing cadence, it’s the same damn song just recorded 18 years after the original.

(From left): Jerry Gaskill (drums), Doug Pinnick (bass), and Ty Tabor (guitar)

But now I have listened to the album a few more times. There is more to it. It is still not up to the standards they set with their albums “Gretchen Goes to Nebraska” and “Dogman”, but it isn’t the junk that I originally thought it was.

“Alone”, regardless of where my thoughts are about the album, is an excellent tune. Doug’s punk rock scream at the beginning of the song is a GREAT way to open the album. “Stay” keeps moving is a good direction. “Bebop” moves forward as well, almost hinting at “FHL” type material, rather dissonant and staccato at times, with a great chorus (“Bebop – be alive y’all!”) and then quotes “A whomp bompa baloo bop, a whomp bam boom!” (can’t remember who originally came up with that).

“Honesty” is a very good acoustic tune. Again, I didn’t like it at first, but it is growing on me. “Open My Eyes” musically is pretty cool. Would not sound out of place on “GGtN” at all. Vocally and lyrically though it’s a let down. “Freedom” is growing on me, with some poignant lyrics. “Sooner or Later” is a really long ballad (clocks in at 6:58). Did not like it at first. But this too is growing on me. Ty’s solo in the middle is rather long and spacey, and very cool with closer listening.

After “Mudd” it should have ended. I have already mentioned how lame it seemed to redo “Goldilox”. Then there is “Bam”. It starts with a “bam” of music, then turns into just letting the guitar wind down, while they play an old radio advertisement for Edison (?) phonographs. Weird.

As I said, this is not their best effort, though better then “Manic Moonlight” and “Please Come Home … Mr. Bulbous” and still growing on me. Added note, it was the first album in a while too that they brought in someone else to produce it. Michael Wagener got the call this time around.