Customer Reviews

Gretchen Goes to Nebraska

5 star:		(73)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If I could give this album 7 stars I would.

What was begun on Out of the Silent Planet kicks up a notch and presents one of the most cohesive, energetic, and must have albums of any decade. From one song to the next, you are left wondering, where did they get all of this from? Who is supplying them with this much talent, and where can I get some of that. Honest. I am a musician, and just generally a music lover anyway, but I bought King's X's second album on day of release (I had bought their first soon after it came out), and I was just a FAN. This band to me, was the band I was waiting for. In the 80's everything seemed geared to earn capital, and then there was this band with a black lead singer (a big ''no-no'' in the Caucasian rock industry) who could outsing most of the singers I hear then & now. A guitarist who just seemed to come up with these solos you wanted to hear again and again, just so you knew what he was doing. Was he being technical? Was he being improvisational? His guitar playing had as much 'soul' as the lead singer sang with. And the drummer just made the two of them sound so good. All 3 could sing to different degrees, but it was the sound they made together that was just making me almost weep.

Gretchen... is the album to buy for any fan of music in general. Though I do not think it is their definitive work, and I think I have yet to see that anyway, Gretchen is such a wonderful introduction to what King's X are/were about that it is indispensable. It was also on this tour that I first saw them live. Everyone in that audience knew all the parts of the songs as if they came just to show King's X they knew their songs. I have never been to a live show that had that kind of effect on people. Never, and I have been to a lot of shows by tons of different artists. King's X had a power that people responded to in droves, but the popular culture seemed to not want to know so quickly about them. I can think of many reasons why that hardly seems fair, but such is Life.

You can hear King's X's influences on their first 4 albums, but its the way they have blended them together that produces something very original, and unto itself. I cannot say there is one song that stands out over any others, they are all that good, and show many different sides to each member of King's X (which is heard better on their solo albums as to who provides what to the band's sound).

I try and point to one song in particular, and have to give up, because not one song on this album defines it. They are all essential, but I know my favourite Ty guitar solo is on ''I'll Never Be The Same'.

Do not let the Christian tag dissuade you. As I said in another review, this band never made me run out to a Church to go and find God. They made me realise quite a few things, but I did not go out and ''find religion'' after hearing a King's X album. This band is about Faith, Hope and Love, and they have'had this in abundance on their first four albums, and that is what carried through beyond any Christian rock tag that they suffered with, and stopped people from actually enjoying a band that is one of American rock's most important bands. The sound of hard rock took a giant swerve when King's X arrived on the scene.

After their first album, Out of the Silent Planet, Kings x regrouped to try and achieve the nearly immpossible, create a better album. They did with ease. "Gretchen.." finds the band still drwing upon their roots to deliver another batch of nearly perfect songs, each one unique and stellar. "Over My Head" received a minimal amount of airplay on television and somehow failed to make an impact on a metal scene filled with hair bands getting plenty of video rotation and writing poor songs. One can see now why, Kings X never catered to the dismal metal scene of sex, dark themes and juvenile lyrical content. They also happen to be Christians, which didn't help matters much in the metal scene. But the music is by far better than ANY other metal in the late 1980s. "Summerland" should still be in heavy rotation on clasic rock radio these days, but it's not. I could write a short novel about each song on the album because their so easy to comprehend because the logic of the lyrics is so pure and unfettered with double and single entendres. The music is incredibly simple with easy-going melodies that hide the complexity of the song structures. It's my vote as the best metal album of the 80's and in the top five of best metal albums of ALL-Time. I really do hate calling it metal, because of all the baggage that comes with "metal". So let it be ROCK. A must have in ANY collection. This album, folks, is the unheard of gem that awaits you by purchasing your music outside the box and outside the conglomerate owned media recomendations.

For the uninitiated King's X has managed to bend the rules of traditional rock by adding the folowing elements: soul, metal, vocal three part harmonies (ala the Beatles), blues, funk and spirituality. This album is uplifting to anyone of any belief. The music reaches inside and grabs you with catchy rythms, beyond excellent musicianship (without being overly technical), and soaring vocals. This is the best album I own and gets better with each listen. The classics: Over my Head, Summerland, Mission, Pleaides

Gretchen Goes to Nebraska is a carefully-engineered album of unparalleled power, beauty, and musicianship. The vocals of Doug Pinnick are truly archival; there is no other vocalist in any rock genre to which one dare compare him, and he's at his finest on tracks like "I'll Never Be the Same" and "Over My Head". Drummer Jerry Gaskill lays down a base for the multi-layered harmonies of voice and string in a style reminiscent of John Bonham without being derivative in any way, and brings a truly distinctive feel to each track. Guitarist Ty Tabor's fantastic tone and tantalizing riffs can make one get lost in the music instantly, and his wonderfully-constructed and executed solos on songs like "The Burning Down" remind you why guitarists did solos to begin with. This album is a testament to the balance of power and control, and the lyrics and music go far beyond reasonable or unreasonable expectations. There is no musician who understands ! why King's X has not become the most popular band on the face of the earth, and no listener who isn't grateful each time they produce another fantastic album. I'd love to give you a band to compare them to, but it just isn't possible. One description I've heard that gets close is a combination of the Beatles, Yes, King Crimson, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. The only description I can use is perfect. Buy this album.

Not much needs to be added to the existing reviews. Only the fact that this is one of the most passionate, most powerful rock albums EVER recorded and I would put it in my top 10 hard rock albums of all time!! Why these guys aren't MUCH bigger than they are is one of commercial music's great mysteries!!! Guess it's a reflection on the sorry state of the modern music business!! And Ty Tabor is one of my favorite guitarists as well, as good as ANYONE out there but (unlike many, MANY others) knows when to hold back!!

Unfortunately, in my opinion, they have never equaled it though they are still one of the most talented bands out there. If you listen to rock at all, in ANY form, buy this CD...but it NOW!!

I can remember picking up a copy of the "End of year" Rolling Stone magazine and reading a small review on this album, which sounded very interesting to say the least and the cover actually seemed as intriguing! Marillion were "my 80's" band at the time who I enjoyed immensely together with Simple Minds, Big Country, Waterboys and U2. My 70's favorites were largely Genesis and Rush and for some reason I was looking for something a little different and bought this in late 1989.

It is certainly a classic to my ears. It's very melodic and reasonably "riffy" at the same time (check out "Everybody knows a little bit" - The lead vocals, backing vocals, "big" guitar riffs and bass lines, great drumming... a real reflection of the excitement the whole album has. On the other extreme "The Difference" - a beautiful acoustic number.

The music has a lot of depth in terms of its construction (it is very "layered"). At the end of the day it is very passionate, very well played, very well thought out and with the multi layered vocals, big guitar and bass riffs and free flowing drumming I find myself discovering new sounds on each listen.

Doug Pinnink (Lead and backing vocals, Bass), Ty Tabor (Lead and backing vocals, Guitar and Sitar), Jerry Gaskill (Backing vocals, Drums) do make a great sound together and there a lot of passion in the playing and singing. Producer Sam Taylor I think also works well with them in getting that sound. (A bit like, in my opinion, Rush with Terry Brown (it just feels complimentary - Band and producer).

I would suggest not passing this one up. Check out a few tracks, I believe you'll be keen to hear the whole thing and won't be disappointed - perhaps start with a few of the rockers ("Over my head", "Everybody knows a little bit", "Fall on me") and then a couple of more acoustic tracks ("Summerland", "The Difference", "Pleiades"), there is just so much superb music here.

The 90's and what was to become known as "Grunge" was just around the corner. For me this album was "the new sound" it really blew me away, never heard anything like it up to that point. It was a different style of music than I would normally have listened to and this album and the follow up "Faith, Hope, Love" (1990) were two of my favorite albums of the early 90's. Certainly a change in the type of music I'd experienced up till 1989, but one that just left me going "Wow!" from the first note to the last.

I hope you enjoy this album as much as I do, it's a classic.

Gretchen Goes to Nebraska stands as the pinnacle of the King's X canon. Each song coheres to the underlying tone of the album while still possessing its own identity. "Over My Head" has perhaps the broadest appeal of any King's X song, featuring memorable guitar work by Ty Tabor and catchy exuberance from vocalist Doug Pinnick ("Grandma used to sing..every night, while she was praying"). "Mission" is musically muscular and lyrically provocative, as Pinnick's accusations hold true both for the televangelist and the modern phenomenon of (some) churches using The Bible less and less frequently. "Pleiades" finds the ensemble in fine form, while rockers "Fall on Me" and "Don't Believe It" leave emphatic impressions, but the choice cut here is the album opener "Out of the Silent Planet". Soaring vocals, unique instrumentation, graceful lyrics; much of the appeal of the song is intangible. Despite its unusual format, this cut remains the most memorable from the album, an undeniably gorgeous moment in the history of music.

Gretchen Goes To Nebraska is King's X's best album and one of the best hard rock albums ever created. This was released in 1989 when bands like Slaughter and Warrant were selling in the millions with their brand of pop-metal. Aerosmith and Motley Crue also released very good albums that year. That being said, this album blew every other hard rock album released that year out of the water. The fact that King's X didn't become huge with this album is a perfect example that success in the music industry is based more on marketing than on talent.

Every track here is great with the best being "Fall On Me", "Pleiades", "Summerland", and arguably their most popular song "Over My Head", which show Doug Pinnick's gospel-tinged vocals in fine form. The band's excellent harmonies are on full display on the strong tracks "Don't Believe It", "Everybody Knows A Little Bit Of Something", and "Send A Message." The band also show their diversity on the psychedelic "Out Of The Silent Planet" and the acoustic ballad "Difference." Finally, "The Burning Down" with its march beat and atmospheric outro might be the perfect album closer. Although they would release strong albums after this, particularly Dogman, this album is clearly their master work. Highly recommended.

No real need to pile on additional praise on this masterwork. It's just that King's X fans tend to be a joyously rabid bunch (I'm a card-carrying member), and it's sometimes tough for non-devotees to know where to start.

Let me reassure you, paradise is here in Nebraska. Future albums show flashes of brilliance, but this CD is not only their Sgt. Pepper's...it defined a genre of progressive rock.

Where else are you going to find throaty, Motown-inspired vocals seamlessly matched up with killer hard rock riffing like this? Nowhere. Give Amazon your order right now and thank us zealots later. Doug, Ty and Jerry create one for the ages here.

Man oh man what can I say about this album. I got this a while back on cd at a half price bookstore and man I absolutley fell in love with it and thought this was definetly there best album. I had Faith, Hope & Love and King's X on cassette before I got this on cd and man so far this takes the Cake. The album is so hard edge opening with a celestial sound on the intro to Out of the silent planet then crunching in with a head bobing rock song. Over my head is so dynamic you'll want to get into it. I still can't stop singing it. Doug's voice is so amazing. Summerland is a hard edge trancey rock song that you'll totaly want to paint pictures in your mind too. There really isn't enough I can say about this album. Send a message is another one of my favorites. Make sure you crank that one when the cd gets to that track. Every song on this album is fantastic and the album cover is really wonderful too. It sets the mood for the album. Most King's X fans will tell you this is the best album. They are absolutely right. If you haven't heard King's X yet or want to start a collection, then you definetly should get this one first. Other masterpieces you need to own are Faith, Hope Love, and King's X