𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐑𝐘𝐏𝐓𝐒 - 𝐂𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐁𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐏𝐀𝐒𝐓 𝐀𝐋𝐁𝐔𝐌 𝐑𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄𝐒 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐃 𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐊 & 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐕𝐘 𝐌𝐄𝐓𝐀𝐋…
34 years ago today, Gretchen took a trip to Nebraska!
On this day (June 27) 1989, King's X released their second full-length studio album, “Gretchen Goes to Nebraska” via Megaforce Records.
It is a concept album based on a short story written by drummer Jerry Gaskill. Having received strong critical praise and fan support, “Gretchen Goes to Nebraska” is considered among the best work of King's X, and a seminal record within the Progressive Metal genre.
Background:
Characteristic of the band's early material, “Gretchen Goes to Nebraska” features various lyrical Christian themes in tracks such as "Over My Head" but also criticism of televangelism in "Mission." It further questions religion with reference to the burning of Giordano Bruno in "Pleiades." Musically, the album covers various styles; it emphasizes tight melodies and grooves while incorporating elements of gospel and psychedelia.
When asked about the truth behind the album's title, drummer Jerry Gaskill responded in a 1990 interview; "It actually started as a joke. Six or seven years ago we were unloading the truck, and we were throwing out these silly album titles and one of our roadies just came out with that off the top of his head. So we just said 'Yeah, someday we're going to call an album that'. We just saw him on our last tour, and we told him, 'we named the album because you said that'; he didn't even remember it."
Touring & Album Promotion:
King's X toured considerably in promotion of their second album. The band's second London, England performance at the Astoria was filmed via camcorder. In 2008, nearly twenty years after its recording, the sold-out concert would be released on a DVD: “Gretchen Goes to London”. According to frontman dUg Pinnick, after the concert, a distressed Jerry Gaskill locked himself in a room, thinking he may have ruined the band's career. Despite this, Pinnick described the show as "real encouraging."
In keeping with current concert trends, in late 2009, the band expressed interest in performing “Gretchen Goes to Nebraska” in its entirety on tour. Pinnick elaborated, "We like the idea of doing the whole of that record with a great light show, as part of something we’d call “An Evening With King’s X”. It wouldn’t be a full-blown tour, playing every hell-hole for three months. But we’d select specific, quality venues, make it special for the fans."
The song "Over My Head," a soulful, Metal groove, and the power ballad "Summerland" both had promotional music videos. The album's cover artwork is seen at the end of the latter video.
Critical Reception & Legacy:
“Gretchen Goes to Nebraska” received virtually universal critical praise for its uniquely progressive musical approach and varied styles. Allmusic's Eduardo Rivadavia named it an AMG Album Pick, noting that it tops its "brilliant" predecessor by "taking their unique sound to unprecedented heights of invention and inspiration."
Major publications such as Rolling Stone and Q also offered strong praise.
“Gretchen Goes to Nebraska” also achieved high slots on various Albums of the Year lists, including No. 4 in Kerrang!.
Original Faith No More guitarist Jim Martin praised “Gretchen Goes to Nebraska” while speaking to MTV saying "That was one of the only records of the so-called new bands that I really liked for quite a while.
Heavy Metal stalwart Devin Townsend called the album "One of The Five Albums That Made Me".
Links to Artists, Albums, and Music Videos:
Click this link to listen to “Gretchen Goes to Nebraska” via Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/gretchen-goes-to-nebraska/300950719
Click this link to listen to “Gretchen Goes to Nebraska” via Spotify: Gretchen Goes To Nebraska https://open.spotify.com/album/6ARDkQ9znc4tjNyQm9Z9cM
Click this link to watch the official music video for “Over My Head”: https://youtu.be/J2SYPzKzD94
Click this link to watch the official music video for “Summerland”: https://youtu.be/ZPF_re3oHOk
Click this link to follow the King’s X on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KingsXofficial
Note: The reviews shared here are for historical reference. The views and opinions expressed within are not always supported (in full or in part) by Into the Wells. — E.N. Wells
Follow Us:
To read more about this release and more, subscribe to Into the Wells at: https://intothewellsabyss.wixsite.com/intothewells
Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Intothewells.abyss
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/into_the_wells
You can also follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/into_the_wells?s=21&t=ISh9VpVYRrOy70MsZZVXTQ
Commentaires