mixohoytian
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This is from a couple of years ago but its a good read. This is a transcript from Doug Pinnick of King's X speaking at Wheaton College:
Friday, November 30, 2007
Doug Pinnick @ Wheaton College
King's X bassist Doug ("dUg") Pinnick gave a talk moderated by Director of Ethics / Prof. Vince Bacote at Wheaton College's Armerding Hall on Wednesday, 28 Nov 2007. Doug responded candidly to any questions presented. Topics included music business, growing up as rock music evolved, Doug's early career with CCM acts like Morgan Cryer and Phil Keaggy, the victories and challenges of King's X, Doug's influences, life as an artist, and his new solo LP Strum Sum Up.
Doug even revealed that his famous black mohawk was an homage to an almost identical white mohawk worn by Plasmatics bassist Jean Beauvoir. He described turning down a chance to join Kansas, choosing to stick by his own band. He also said that his management once rejected an invitation for him to join Deep Purple - something Doug himself didn't hear about until much later.
Doug said that King's X was fortunate to share Rush's manager for about three years. He didn't name names, but that would be Ray Danniels. Doug said that Ray had the impressive clout to get them out of their unfavorable Atlantic Records deal free and clear. Following Atlantic's barely-supported release of the Ear Candy album, Danniels arranged with an Atlantic exec to have the band dropped and forgiven of $200,000 in debt. This was accomplished over a game of golf.
Doug described how King's X's use of drop-D tuning influenced the early 90s scene in Seattle, After the grunge explosion, many people told him his band "sounded just like Alice in Chains," when in fact, Alice had borrowed a portion of the sound King's X had developed and built their sound upon it. Doug mentioned examples like these with no bitterness, describing members of Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam and many other bands as dear friends.
He even went so far as to say he'd borrowed plenty himself, from grunge bands to classic rock & pop artists alike. He credited Yes bassist Chris Squire as a major inspiration for early King's X basslines. "I could tell you on every song what riffs I stole," he joked. He described the cluster chords on King's X IV's "The Ooh Song" as being inspired by The Andrews Sisters. Doug also named Little Richard and Aretha Franklin as vocal influences. He described the soul music influence on Tape Head, during which he employed a falsetto vocal inspired by Curtis Mayfield. He metnioned that he used to love to play the bass lines to Deep Purple's Machine Head.
Doug did mention that the shift to the ultra-heavy, big-bottomed sound of 1994's Brendan O'Brien-produced Dogman album was a response to the challenge made by those who had found success with the sound King's X pioneered. The band were determined to up the ante. Famous mastering engineer Bob Ludwig promised Doug the heaviest album ever. Doug told a funny story about a fan who christened his new top-notch car stereo system with Dogman, only to have the album blow out the speaker cones.
Doug described some dissatisfaction with the Manic Moonlight album (though he said it contains a few good songs like "Vegetable" and "Believe"), and how the band's live shows redeemed material including "Static," which went from a relatively stale album track to hair-raising intensity in concert. Doug said the song became very cathartic, and he used it to vent frustration on some issues he was working through. He said that the song (among others) has been misunderstood due to its lyrical "Dougisms." Lines like "I don't wanna do it anymore, I really wanna do it" seem to conflict on the surface, but internally to Doug, they make perfect sense - the second line amplifies the first line, rather than contradicting it.
Pinnick was especially enthusiastic describing the freedom and camaraderie he enjoyed (notably with former Galactic Cowboys guitarist Wally Farkas) while making Strum Sum Up. He gave actor Hal Sparks credit for helping him to make an album the way he'd always wanted to. He said that Sparks offered to provide support for studio arrangements. He explained that other people (including players like Mick Mars of Motley Crue) often express interest in working together, but that musicians are typically insecure. As a result, they often don't call each other or follow through - if it's not simply an issue of management getting in the way, as in the Deep Purple example. Doug said that he has decided to try harder to make things happen. Members of Dream Theater expressed interest in having Doug sing, and rather than letting it drop, he called back and said, "When do you want me there?" He was flown to New York to sing on an upcoming DT track. He also decided to call Sparks on his offer, and Sparks did indeed make the arrangements for a studio and engineer in California where Doug and Wally made Strum Sum Up.
Doug described an as-yet unreleased collaborative project with Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament, half of which also features PJ guitarist Mike McCready. Doug said that he wanted to revisit lyrics and melodies before being satisfied with his effort on the project, which he found very creatively satisfying otherwise.
Doug was asked about life as an artist, and described society's limited understanding of the creative mind. He mentioned the faux pas that made him swear to himself never to interfere with how parents raised their children. He then said that he'd broken this promise just once, when a mother complained to him that her son was failing at school and devoting all of his time to music. Doug replied to the mother that her child in particular had music pouring out of him, and that he was on his way to being what he was supposed to be. Doug also mentioned not doing well in school at anything except art and music.
Later, however, Doug questioned whether music should even be a profession. He gave an example of the days when people from all walks of life would gather in the town square to make music together. The blacksmith might bring his fiddle and play while people danced, and then return to blacksmithing on Monday. This idea seemed to conflict with the idea of the pure artist that would require society's tolerance and patronage.
Doug described experiences when playing with Servant during which they would watch a room empty as soon as Jesus was mentioned. He said that King's X was determined to not be pigeonholed as a "Christian band." He remembered the band's interview with David Fricke (now lead editor) of Rolling Stone, and how the band members had made a pact to leave God out of the interview. He said that individually, they held their ground, even though Fricke was pushing for the band's spiritual point of view. Then, after everything was apparently wrapped up, the group and Fricke went to dinner. Fricke, apparently with his recorder switched off, told Doug about his own Pentecostal upbringing, and Pinnick engaged the conversation. Then ("of course," he said), that conversation became the sole basis for the article. The band were tagged as a "God band," a desigination which dogs them to this day, although Doug noted that times have changed and it's a vastly different climate in the mainstream for professing Christians. He cited bands like Thursday as examples of those who could profess and sing about their faith without emptying a room.
Doug talked about finding himself through his music, or at least searching for himself in the process of making music. He described the Dogman album in particular as a turbulent time when he was examining his relationships, himself, his faith, etc. He said that "Black the Sky" was the last "I hate myself" song that he's written. He also remembered weeping while recording the bass part to "Sunshine Rain."
Doug talked about "having to play the hits," and how burned out on songs like "Over My Head" and "Goldilox" the group could become. He said they'd deliberately retired "Goldilox" for a while, and then tentatively brought it back to the set, but let fans come sing the song, which made it okay for the band. Then, however, Doug felt he was shortchanging the fans and decided he should sing "Goldilox" again on the band's last tour. He described going to see his own heroes in concert, admitting that he'd be disappointed if his favorite song wasn't played. He also mentioned a show at which his own mother shouted for "Over My Head."
Doug talked about the frustration over the King's X's standing within the music business. Though the band was (and still is) consistently respected among peers, industry and the press, and knocked audiences cold at high-profile TV appearances and shows like their Woodstock set in 1994, King's X never managed to convert that acclaim into major league record sales. He described the confusion over what the band could have been doing wrong with an example, saying, "your mama loves you, but your daddy hates you - how do you know who you are?"
Doug frankly confronted missteps as well. He referred to the tour that produced the Live All Over the Place double album as "The Drunk Tour," wherein crew and band alike occasionally took revelry too far, compromising their work. He said that it made selecting the material for the live album difficult. Doug mentioned that he had wanted to record a live record in response to fan demand for years, and when he'd finally convinced the others of the idea, they didn't play their best. He described getting excited at the beginning of tapes for what promised to be a hot show, and then being disappointed as performances got sloppy.
He said that in recent years, King's X has renewed its focus, and is taking work seriously. Hiring respected producer Michael Wagener to create Ogre Tones was evidence of this commitment. Pinnick believes the album is solid with several high points, but imperfect. The band has worked with Wagener again for its album to be released in March '08.
After the talk, Doug spent almost 90 minutes informally answering questions about anything people wanted to ask. He spoke about health on the road, the band's bus fire in Schaumburg, IL, hearing protection, questionable conceptual choices for King's X's "Alone" video from its most recent album Ogre Tones (though apparently guitarist Ty Tabor approved of the bikini-clad dancers for each band member, proclaiming them to be "hawt!"), influences on songs ("Moanjam" was originally referred to as "the Motorhead song" for its rhythmic similarity to metal classic "Ace of Spades"). He described friends including the late Layne Staley of Alice in Chains (a man with many friends who clearly wanted to pull him back from the brink) and Dimebag Darrell Abbott of Pantera (a generous and loving friend who insisted all of his houseguests launch a spitwad at the back of his bedroom door).
Back in the Farewell to Juliet days, we used to cover "Fall on Me" and "World Around Me" by King's X. I always wanted to do "Prisoner," too.
Friday, November 30, 2007
Doug Pinnick @ Wheaton College
King's X bassist Doug ("dUg") Pinnick gave a talk moderated by Director of Ethics / Prof. Vince Bacote at Wheaton College's Armerding Hall on Wednesday, 28 Nov 2007. Doug responded candidly to any questions presented. Topics included music business, growing up as rock music evolved, Doug's early career with CCM acts like Morgan Cryer and Phil Keaggy, the victories and challenges of King's X, Doug's influences, life as an artist, and his new solo LP Strum Sum Up.
Doug even revealed that his famous black mohawk was an homage to an almost identical white mohawk worn by Plasmatics bassist Jean Beauvoir. He described turning down a chance to join Kansas, choosing to stick by his own band. He also said that his management once rejected an invitation for him to join Deep Purple - something Doug himself didn't hear about until much later.
Doug said that King's X was fortunate to share Rush's manager for about three years. He didn't name names, but that would be Ray Danniels. Doug said that Ray had the impressive clout to get them out of their unfavorable Atlantic Records deal free and clear. Following Atlantic's barely-supported release of the Ear Candy album, Danniels arranged with an Atlantic exec to have the band dropped and forgiven of $200,000 in debt. This was accomplished over a game of golf.
Doug described how King's X's use of drop-D tuning influenced the early 90s scene in Seattle, After the grunge explosion, many people told him his band "sounded just like Alice in Chains," when in fact, Alice had borrowed a portion of the sound King's X had developed and built their sound upon it. Doug mentioned examples like these with no bitterness, describing members of Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam and many other bands as dear friends.
He even went so far as to say he'd borrowed plenty himself, from grunge bands to classic rock & pop artists alike. He credited Yes bassist Chris Squire as a major inspiration for early King's X basslines. "I could tell you on every song what riffs I stole," he joked. He described the cluster chords on King's X IV's "The Ooh Song" as being inspired by The Andrews Sisters. Doug also named Little Richard and Aretha Franklin as vocal influences. He described the soul music influence on Tape Head, during which he employed a falsetto vocal inspired by Curtis Mayfield. He metnioned that he used to love to play the bass lines to Deep Purple's Machine Head.
Doug did mention that the shift to the ultra-heavy, big-bottomed sound of 1994's Brendan O'Brien-produced Dogman album was a response to the challenge made by those who had found success with the sound King's X pioneered. The band were determined to up the ante. Famous mastering engineer Bob Ludwig promised Doug the heaviest album ever. Doug told a funny story about a fan who christened his new top-notch car stereo system with Dogman, only to have the album blow out the speaker cones.
Doug described some dissatisfaction with the Manic Moonlight album (though he said it contains a few good songs like "Vegetable" and "Believe"), and how the band's live shows redeemed material including "Static," which went from a relatively stale album track to hair-raising intensity in concert. Doug said the song became very cathartic, and he used it to vent frustration on some issues he was working through. He said that the song (among others) has been misunderstood due to its lyrical "Dougisms." Lines like "I don't wanna do it anymore, I really wanna do it" seem to conflict on the surface, but internally to Doug, they make perfect sense - the second line amplifies the first line, rather than contradicting it.
Pinnick was especially enthusiastic describing the freedom and camaraderie he enjoyed (notably with former Galactic Cowboys guitarist Wally Farkas) while making Strum Sum Up. He gave actor Hal Sparks credit for helping him to make an album the way he'd always wanted to. He said that Sparks offered to provide support for studio arrangements. He explained that other people (including players like Mick Mars of Motley Crue) often express interest in working together, but that musicians are typically insecure. As a result, they often don't call each other or follow through - if it's not simply an issue of management getting in the way, as in the Deep Purple example. Doug said that he has decided to try harder to make things happen. Members of Dream Theater expressed interest in having Doug sing, and rather than letting it drop, he called back and said, "When do you want me there?" He was flown to New York to sing on an upcoming DT track. He also decided to call Sparks on his offer, and Sparks did indeed make the arrangements for a studio and engineer in California where Doug and Wally made Strum Sum Up.
Doug described an as-yet unreleased collaborative project with Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament, half of which also features PJ guitarist Mike McCready. Doug said that he wanted to revisit lyrics and melodies before being satisfied with his effort on the project, which he found very creatively satisfying otherwise.
Doug was asked about life as an artist, and described society's limited understanding of the creative mind. He mentioned the faux pas that made him swear to himself never to interfere with how parents raised their children. He then said that he'd broken this promise just once, when a mother complained to him that her son was failing at school and devoting all of his time to music. Doug replied to the mother that her child in particular had music pouring out of him, and that he was on his way to being what he was supposed to be. Doug also mentioned not doing well in school at anything except art and music.
Later, however, Doug questioned whether music should even be a profession. He gave an example of the days when people from all walks of life would gather in the town square to make music together. The blacksmith might bring his fiddle and play while people danced, and then return to blacksmithing on Monday. This idea seemed to conflict with the idea of the pure artist that would require society's tolerance and patronage.
Doug described experiences when playing with Servant during which they would watch a room empty as soon as Jesus was mentioned. He said that King's X was determined to not be pigeonholed as a "Christian band." He remembered the band's interview with David Fricke (now lead editor) of Rolling Stone, and how the band members had made a pact to leave God out of the interview. He said that individually, they held their ground, even though Fricke was pushing for the band's spiritual point of view. Then, after everything was apparently wrapped up, the group and Fricke went to dinner. Fricke, apparently with his recorder switched off, told Doug about his own Pentecostal upbringing, and Pinnick engaged the conversation. Then ("of course," he said), that conversation became the sole basis for the article. The band were tagged as a "God band," a desigination which dogs them to this day, although Doug noted that times have changed and it's a vastly different climate in the mainstream for professing Christians. He cited bands like Thursday as examples of those who could profess and sing about their faith without emptying a room.
Doug talked about finding himself through his music, or at least searching for himself in the process of making music. He described the Dogman album in particular as a turbulent time when he was examining his relationships, himself, his faith, etc. He said that "Black the Sky" was the last "I hate myself" song that he's written. He also remembered weeping while recording the bass part to "Sunshine Rain."
Doug talked about "having to play the hits," and how burned out on songs like "Over My Head" and "Goldilox" the group could become. He said they'd deliberately retired "Goldilox" for a while, and then tentatively brought it back to the set, but let fans come sing the song, which made it okay for the band. Then, however, Doug felt he was shortchanging the fans and decided he should sing "Goldilox" again on the band's last tour. He described going to see his own heroes in concert, admitting that he'd be disappointed if his favorite song wasn't played. He also mentioned a show at which his own mother shouted for "Over My Head."
Doug talked about the frustration over the King's X's standing within the music business. Though the band was (and still is) consistently respected among peers, industry and the press, and knocked audiences cold at high-profile TV appearances and shows like their Woodstock set in 1994, King's X never managed to convert that acclaim into major league record sales. He described the confusion over what the band could have been doing wrong with an example, saying, "your mama loves you, but your daddy hates you - how do you know who you are?"
Doug frankly confronted missteps as well. He referred to the tour that produced the Live All Over the Place double album as "The Drunk Tour," wherein crew and band alike occasionally took revelry too far, compromising their work. He said that it made selecting the material for the live album difficult. Doug mentioned that he had wanted to record a live record in response to fan demand for years, and when he'd finally convinced the others of the idea, they didn't play their best. He described getting excited at the beginning of tapes for what promised to be a hot show, and then being disappointed as performances got sloppy.
He said that in recent years, King's X has renewed its focus, and is taking work seriously. Hiring respected producer Michael Wagener to create Ogre Tones was evidence of this commitment. Pinnick believes the album is solid with several high points, but imperfect. The band has worked with Wagener again for its album to be released in March '08.
After the talk, Doug spent almost 90 minutes informally answering questions about anything people wanted to ask. He spoke about health on the road, the band's bus fire in Schaumburg, IL, hearing protection, questionable conceptual choices for King's X's "Alone" video from its most recent album Ogre Tones (though apparently guitarist Ty Tabor approved of the bikini-clad dancers for each band member, proclaiming them to be "hawt!"), influences on songs ("Moanjam" was originally referred to as "the Motorhead song" for its rhythmic similarity to metal classic "Ace of Spades"). He described friends including the late Layne Staley of Alice in Chains (a man with many friends who clearly wanted to pull him back from the brink) and Dimebag Darrell Abbott of Pantera (a generous and loving friend who insisted all of his houseguests launch a spitwad at the back of his bedroom door).
Back in the Farewell to Juliet days, we used to cover "Fall on Me" and "World Around Me" by King's X. I always wanted to do "Prisoner," too.
