Review Summary: Forever is a mountain we've yet to climb...
The third album from King’s X, Faith Hope Love is the culmination of what I like to call the Megaforce trilogy. Just as Gretchen Goes to Nebraska was an extension of Out of the Silent Planet, this album pushes their formula to its furthest extents yet with thirteen songs totaling to a little over an hour. This is also said to be their best-selling effort to date, which is certainly commendable though perhaps bittersweet in hindsight considering their hopes that it could be a foundation for even greater exposure.
While the bulk of the album continues down the same psychedelic funk rock of the past two albums, the production is at its fullest and the musicianship is as tight as ever. “We Are Finding Who We Are” and “It’s Love” may be the strongest one-two punch of their discography, the former bursting in with an upbeat marching rhythm and triumphant vocal layers while the latter sees guitarist/vocalist Ty Tabor stand out with a dreamy chorus set to a solid mid-tempo stomp. Subsequent tracks like “I’ll Never Get Tired of You” and “Everywhere I Go” fill out the quota for softer songs with simple, gentler refrains.
There’s also room for the band’s more ambitious side to shine. “Moanjam” plays like a successor to “Over My Head;” placing greater priority on its locomotive rhythm over the vocal lines may make it less infectiously catchy in comparison, but it features a similar gospel-tinged attitude with a loose structure that allowed it to be an almost “Freebird”-esque live staple. “Talk To You” sees another whirlwind of speed come through with a strong but inevitably lesser effect while the nine-minute title track is an appropriately trippy venture with gradually intensifying effects that should’ve been the closer.
Speaking of which, an album running at this length with so much going on inevitably leads to a higher risk of fatigue than the others. The second half sees some songs like “Six Broken Soldiers” and “We Were Born to be Loved” that are still very enjoyable but could’ve been shaved off for a more cohesive listening experience. The band has also essentially disowned the closing “Legal Kill” so the less said about that one the better…
Overall, Faith Hope Love is another winner in the King’s X canon. While it is somewhat marred by its excesses, the top songs are some of the brightest highlights of their entire career and the performances are among the strongest of their early run. Gretchen may have executed this formula with more balance, but the heightened ambition here makes it easy to see why many fans count this one as their personal favorite. Either way, it’s another essential piece in understanding the love of King’s X.
