King's X - Out of the Silent Planet

I love this album. I bought this as a new release back in 1988. They were my favorite band for a while. I like all their stuff, but I think this one remains as my favorite to this day.

What are your thoughts on this album? Favorite songs?

Let's discuss this album - and band.

I thought it was a good start, but its the last one I would listen to if I were to choose. I like the mid period the best. Tape Head is my favorite album from King's X. Don't get me wrong I like OOTSP, but they have much better albums, IMO.

I like all their albums to varying degrees, but I find that their debut, OotSP is quite underrated.

There is something about it that I just love. I guess it's the atmospherics.

Plus, my favorite song by King's X is on here, "Goldilox".

Everyone seems to have their own favorite King's X album. Haha. I personally think Manic Moonlight is my favorite, though it's hard to choose. I've also not heard Black Like Sunday or Ogre Tones (so, anyone, feel free to send me copies). Haha.

Awesome band, though. I just paid $20 for their Building Blox promo, which basically means I paid $20 for the acoustic version of "Shot Of Love" (exclusive to this promo). So they're definitely a favorite of mine! Haha.

I'm curious, if you had your collection separated by general genres—rock, metal, prog-metal/rock, rap, etc.—which section would you put them in?

cant go wrong with any of their first 3 albums IMO. Even their 4th was good, but Dogman was hit and miss IMO and I didnt much care for anything they did after that.

Oh yeah great album, i love the song Wonder the best. Its i don't know ethereal could be the word. Also Shot Of Love is great but the acoustic version is way better, its got an acoustic Zeppelin stomp to it but with those high floating Beatles harmonies. I'd love to see King's X do an acoustic album. As for categorization their too good to be pigeon holed into a genre, their a creative force up their with fellow genre benders the Beatles, Led Zeppelin & Queen.

stepcousin wrote:

cant go wrong with any of their first 3 albums IMO. Even their 4th was good, but Dogman was hit and miss IMO and I didnt much care for anything they did after that.

I think around the Dogman time their music became more demanding of the listener. I remember there was a time when I had all but given up on them. This was when Ear Candy came out. At the time I just didn't get it, I was too impatient of a listener. Now I love that album!

rattpoison wrote:

Oh yeah great album, i love the song Wonder the best. Its i don't know ethereal could be the word. Also Shot Of Love is great but the acoustic version is way better, its got an acoustic Zeppelin stomp to it but with those high floating Beatles harmonies. I'd love to see King's X do an acoustic album. As for categorization their too good to be pigeon holed into a genre, their a creative force up their with fellow genre benders the Beatles, Led Zeppelin & Queen.

Well, that's the problem. I don't want to pigeonhole them. I want to categorize them on my shelves! Haha. Right now they're with my rock albums, but on my PC, all my King's X albums and their side-projects are in my prog folder. I'm so confoozled! Haha.

I would think prog would be the most accurate, on the rock end of the style.

Yeah prog is an accurate description but alot of their songs are 4-5 minute 'pop' songs which is unlike prog but then prog shouldn't have rules right cause its progressive (the mind boggles). But alternative metal is just as fitting. King's X and a handful of others in the late 80's pioneered Alternative Metal and set up the 90's for that dominant genre which branched off into others.

Personally I don't see King's X as 'alternative' at all. Just me.

Stuff like Jane's Addiction is alterative metal.

To me, King's X is simply progressive hard rock. Nothing more - but I do think this describes them. There is really nothing alternative about them IMO.

But back to the subject at hand - my favorite songs on this album are:

1. Goldilox
2. In the New Age
3. Shot of Love
4. Power of Love
5. King
6. Wonder

How about yall?

Great album! The first King's X CD I bought, when it first came out! I;ve been following them ever since!

thejokeriv wrote:

Great album! The first King's X CD I bought, when it first came out! I;ve been following them ever since!

Me too! Although I still have quite a few holes in my collection.

Maybe it's just me, but King's X was just one of those bands I never seemed to "get." I had everything thru DOGMAN on cassette at one point and though there were two or three excellent songs on each album, there was a lot of stuff that was just "meh" to my ears. DOGMAN is the only one I've ever upgraded to CD.

Fat Freddy wrote:

Maybe it's just me, but King's X was just one of those bands I never seemed to "get." I had everything thru DOGMAN on cassette at one point and though there were two or three excellent songs on each album, there was a lot of stuff that was just "meh" to my ears. DOGMAN is the only one I've ever upgraded to CD.

King's X is one of those bands that many people love, many people hate, and many people are lukewarm about. I was really into them from the get go.

However, "Dogman" was a bit of a disappointment to me, as was the one before it, the "S/T". My favorite album are their first 3: "Out of the Silent Planet", "Gretchen Goes to Nebraska", and "Faith, Hope, Love".

I actually got rid of "Dogman" and never purchased another album since then. However, I've really changed a lot since then and I think nowadays I'd really like that album - as well as their newer stuff. Within the year I plan on having every last studio album they have put out.

King's X is a very subtle band. They have very few big hooks to really attract a listener that's not willing to really immerse themselves in the music. I had a hard time getting into a lot of their albums because of this.

Eyesore wrote:

King's X is a very subtle band. They have very few big hooks to really attract a listener that's not willing to really immerse themselves in the music. I had a hard time getting into a lot of their albums because of this.

Yeah, I can see what you are saying here. Stuff like this either grows on me, or I end up not liking it. In King's X' case - I really have grown to like them. Their first 3 albums were pretty easy to get into. But like you said, their later stuff just doesn't have the hooks of their early stuff. I think I'm ready for their later stuff nowadays. There was a time in my life though where I just wasn't ready for much stuff like this.

Same with stuff like Queen. I never really got into Queen, but for some reason this year I am. Weird.

Yeah this could be why they were always on the verge of breaking into the mainstream but never did. They are definately growers. I like them because of the atmosphere and feel of the music. Plus i'm a big fan of rock and metal music that has that Beatles influence running through them (harmonies, melodies etc.), you know the bands from Jellyfish to Saigon Kick to Redd Kross to Trouble.

I remember seeing the video for King on mtv and was hooked. Bought OOTSP and been following the band ever since.

It's my fav KX record also. My fav song's are (what is this?) and (in the new age). It's a great record along with the next three releases.

I think this should actually be in the rock section.

I think of King's X as metal. Hard rock to me is still under the banner of metal. Just me.

blackieboy wrote:

I think of King's X as metal. Hard rock to me is still under the banner of metal. Just me.

Yeah, but you have to break it down, especially when you've got a lot of CDs. If I'm in a prog-rock mood, I want to see all similar styles grouped. When they're all just grouped from A to Z it's hard to find CDs. For instance, say I'm in the mood to listen to some chicks playing piano, like Sarah McLachlan. I don't have a lot of those kinds of CDs, may a hundred. Now, trying to find those 100 out of 5,000 plus is a pain in the balls. So I group them together. It's much easier.

I just hate bands that blur the lines! Haha. I also hate bands like Suicidal Tendencies that start out punk, go metal, go punk again! Haha. Do I split up their discography to the appropriate sections? What a pain!

This is one of those bands that I just can't seem to get into. On paper, they sound like they would be right up my alley, but then I listen to them and it just doesn't jive with me. I picked up Faith, Hope & Love awhile back on a friend's recommendation. It's ok, but I wasn't hooked. Just recently I found Ear Candy for a dollar at a flea market. I thought maybe I'd give them another shot, but nothing.

Talented guys and their fans adore 'em, but I'm not getting it. What's odd is that I have cdr's of Ty Tabor's solo stuff and all but 1 of the Galatic Cowboys cd's, (which allot of people say are similiar) which I do enjoy. Weird.

MetalGuy71 wrote:

This is one of those bands that I just can't seem to get into. On paper, they sound like they would be right up my alley, but then I listen to them and it just doesn't jive with me. I picked up Faith, Hope & Love awhile back on a friend's recommendation. It's ok, but I wasn't hooked. Just recently I found Ear Candy for a dollar at a flea market. I thought maybe I'd give them another shot, but nothing.

Talented guys and their fans adore 'em, but I'm not getting it. What's odd is that I have cdr's of Ty Tabor's solo stuff and all but 1 of the Galatic Cowboys cd's, (which allot of people say are similiar) which I do enjoy. Weird.

Metalguy, I hear you. I love King's X, but on the other hand, I never could get into Galactic Cowboys.

Very similar to King's X, but with this strange style of prog/hard rock/weird stuff - it's easy to not like certain bands - yet like other bands who sound quite similar.

I don't hate Galactic Cowboys - just not a fan. Perhaps I'll give them another chance someday.

King's X are one of my favorite groups. The first album I got was Gretchen Goes To Nebraska. I then picked up Out Of The Silent Planet. My favorite track is Goldilox.