Well it is summer 2017 and British blues rock outfit King King have returned with their brand new single ‘(She Don’t) Gimme No Lovin’ which is taken from the band’s fourth studio album ‘Exile & Grace’ out on Friday 6th October 2017.

We at JLTT have followed King King’s rise for several years now with album reviews, single reviews, live reviews and detailed interviews and it must be said that they are extremely friendly and very fan-orientated (meeting fans after the show, having photos taken, signing merchandise) and this was especially true at their show at The Hawth Theatre, Crawley with South African guitarist Dan Patlansky in May 2016.

Anyway, back to the single which has been written by the band, produced by Alan Nimmo and Wayne Proctor and mixed by Chris Sheldon whose past credits include Foo Fighters, Feeder and Therapy? This group has created a successful attempt at an outdoor festival favourite track.

The keyboard intro courtesy of Bob Fridzema feels very Eighties in particular Whitesnake and it is clear that after a few listens, King King are opting for a more classic rock sound in the vein of Bad Company and Thunder (interestingly, King King toured UK arenas in 2016 as Thunder’s special guests so it isn’t overly surprising that the new material has a similar sound).

It sounds a bit cynical but the keyword connected to this track is airplay. Past singles such as ‘Crazy’ and ‘Hurricane’ have been met with open arms from radio stations all over Europe and the UK as the songs’ lyrics combined with the slick production connected with listeners on quite a high level. With ‘(She Don’t) Gimme No Lovin’ I would conclude that radio playlists will enjoy Alan Nimmo’s vocals and crisp guitar as well as the band’s strong musicianship.

As a band, King King’s constant world touring has helped them hone their craft whilst forming a loyal fanbase who attend live gigs, buy the merch and play the records. As a touring act you can’t really ask for more than that. I look forward to hearing the new album in full because as ‘You Stopped The Rain’ from ‘Reaching For The Light’ has proven, King King are very good at developing a balance of light and shade with all of their albums.

However, they do seem to set the template for so many blues rock acts in the UK but few have a singer as good as Alan Nimmo.

Glenn Sargeant