Reelased by: Rat Pak Records
Release: 17 March 2017
Links: https://www.facebook.com/KXMofficial/
Line Up:
dUg Pinnick: vocals/bass
George Lynch: guitars
Ray Luzier: drums
Tracklist:
01. Scatterbrain
02. Breakout
03. Big Sky Country
04. Calypso
05. Not a Single Word
06. Obsession
07. Noises In The Sky
08. Panic Attack
09. It’s Never Enough
10. True Deceivers
11. Stand
12. Together
13. Angel
I’ve been a huge…I mean HUGE fan of King’s X a long time now. I also have loved Dokken a long time too. Never been a fan of Korn (Nu Metal just never appealed to me.) Who would’ve ever imagined those three bands crossing paths in any way imaginable, but in 2013 that alignment happened? dUg Pinnick of King’s X, George Lynch of Dokken and Lynch Mob, and Ray Luzier of Korn united in 2013 for the KXM project. After a chance meeting at Luzier’s sons Birthday party and a tour of his home studio and the mention of doing something together, this super group of sorts was born. In 2014 their debut came out and at the time I was terribly underwhelmed by it. Frankly, it was the first time I was disappointed by a project with Pinnick attached to it (and trust me, he’s done a ton of side projects over the years.)
I’ve been touch and go with some of Lynch’s other releases (solo as well as the Dysfunctional and Shadow Life albums from Dokken) that another “bad album” wasn’t shocking, but not once with dUg have I not been able to at least like it. I was skeptical when I heard there was a follow-up coming, but I spun the s/t debut again and found that I liked it a bit more, so I decided to give the new one a shot too.
Entitled Scatterbrain, it follows pretty much the same formula as the first one with alternative/experimental guitar work, hard hitting and grooving tunes, and that distinctive vocal power of Pinnick. Unlike the first one, I found that I liked this one a bit more on the first couple of listens, still not entirely sold on the concept, but certainly appreciating what they’re trying to do here. One thing that is absolutely undeniable: dUg Pinnick has still got it, even doing screams that seemed a long time gone with his main band. The unit feels a little more cohesive than before, and the songs still push the envelope between hard-hitting metallic rock veering into a metal realm yet with a strong connection to the alt-metal world they were dipping their feet into with KXM from the onset.
If you enjoyed KXM, then Scatterbrain will likely continue to please you. If you didn’t care for it (like myself,) it’s a crap shoot whether this one will change your mind about the band. I will say this, after disliking them from the jump and going back and giving them another chance, this album is a vast improvement with better songs, a little more accessible and personally, Pinnick could sing the phone book and I’d give it a chance. And opposed to my feelings about them with their debut, I can envision me actually listening to this one again, and perhaps even approaching the s/t album a time or two more.
Rating: 7/10
Written by: Chris Martin
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