King King
Crazy (Single)
(Manhaton Records)
British blues rock four-piece King King are back with new single ‘Crazy’ from their third album ‘Reaching For The Light’ which has received positive reviews from not only the music press (Just Listen To This included) but from the music buying public as well. This has led to the band being nominated for four categories in The British Blues Awards 2015; Alan Nimmo (Male Vocal of the Year & Guitarist of the year), Lindsay Coulson (Bassist of the Year) and Wayne Proctor (Drummer of The Year).
‘Crazy’ isn’t the Gnarls Barkley hit but their own composition which kicks in with fluid Hammond organ courtesy of Bob Fridzema and the rhythm section keep it flowing with Proctor laying down the drum beat whilst Coulson keeps it steady with his funky bassline.
Nimmo’s guitar solo is quite fierce and hypnotic as his vocals have a touch of Paul Rodgers about them (especially the Free era) and it just fits the song perfectly. Another thing to note is that although Alan Nimmo is a phenomenal guitar player he doesn’t come across as ‘Oh look at me. I’m the greatest. I AM the band’ type of musician which is a trap that some people can fall into. On this track in particular, he gives his fellow band members space and just lets them do their thing which is a trait which I rate very highly and can be heard in music by Joe Bonamassa, Jonny Lang, Laurence Jones, and others.
It is easy to see why Planet Rock Radio has placed this song on their playlist and I think it will definitely boost the already large worldwide King King fanbase. This is the type of lively song that will ‘put bums on seats’ as they say when it comes to King King’s live tours (not that they have a problem doing that anyway!) but hopefully younger generations will get into their blues rock sound and keep the genre current and in demand. I mean, the song ‘Rush Hour’ was written by Nimmo when he was fifteen so surely teenagers should somewhat relate to some of King King’s material.
I know from my album review that I might sound a bit like a record on repeat her, but although King King’s albums are extremely well made and really great pieces of work they really are a ‘live act’ because all of the members started out and developed their craft on the live circuit and they put on a fantastic show. Luckily, they are returning for a full UK tour in the Autumn with special guests Ben Poole and Rebecca Downes so you can see for yourself how electric they are in a live setting and go ‘Crazy’ for King King.
Glenn Sargeant
King King’s new single ‘Crazy’ and their third album release ‘Reaching for the Light’ are out now on Manhaton Records. In addition, King King will be embarking on a UK tour in October/November with special guests Ben Poole and Rebecca Downes at the following venues:
* – Ben Poole Support
** – Rebecca Downes Support
Wednesday 21st October – Brewhouse, Burton Upon Trent *
Thursday 22nd October – The Apex, Bury St Edmunds *
Friday 23rd October – Public Halls, Harpenden *
Saturday 24th October – The Wharf, Tavistock *
Sunday 25th October – The Copper Rooms, Coventry *
Tuesday 27th October – The Old Fire Station, Carlisle **
Thursday 29th October – Picturedrome, Holmfirth **
Friday 30th October- The Grand, Clitheroe **
Saturday 31st October- Rothes Hall, Glenrothes **
Sunday 1st November- Fibbers, York **
Tuesday 3rd November- Real Time Live, Chesterfield **
Wednesday 4th November- Fruit, Hull **
Friday 6th November- Cheese and Grain, Frome **
Saturday 7th November- Ropetackle Arts Centre, Shoreham **
Wednesday 11th November- 02 Islington Academy, London *
Thursday 12th November- Artrix, Bromsgrove *
Friday 13th November- Waterside Arts Centre, Sale *
Saturday 14th November- The Platform, Morecambe *
Sunday 15th November- Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury *
Tickets available from thegigcartel.com or 0844 478 0898.
(I would like to dedicate this review to Barrie Dunwell who designed the artwork for the ‘Reaching for the Light’ album and passed away recently. Our thoughts are with Barrie’s family and King King at this time. I would like to thank Kieran White and both Peter Noble and Asher Alexander at Noble PR for help with this review. Both photos credited to Adam Kennedy).
