Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
Never give in, never surrender to the beat of another’s heart, not unless you love them without boundaries or without restrictions, for in the soul and existence of this Maverick acceptance of life, our senses are awakened to the tune of blossoming expertise and the belief that there are no limitations when you see life has no borders, that you can colour in past the margins and confines of someone else’s imposed restrictions.
To be a maverick does not always imply that you have taken risks that endanger the belief of other’s opinion of you, that you have played with the unconventional and declared everything that went before null and void, it just means you have seen there is a path beyond what you have done before and where you might have been content, comfortable to stay within; that this new view is original, fun, and worth exploring to its fullest potential.
That is exactly the thought that comes across as the listener is bowled over by King King’s latest album, Maverick, a full throttle experience which doesn’t relax or drop a note and which tracks on offer showcase grit, authority and the pleasure of acknowledging the classic approach, whilst all the time making each track seem gloriously unfamiliar and exciting to open.
The band, Alan Nimmo, Steve Nimmo, Johnny Dyke, Andrew Scott and Zander Greenshields, take the metaphorical stage by force, but with a keen understanding that their music has evolved, urging on the rebellious, taking rightful pleasure in discovery, and through tracks such as Fire In My Soul, Whatever It Takes To Survive, Everything Will Be Alright, When My Winter Comes and End Of The Line, the contribution to the genre is appreciated, prized, treasured as if it had been encased in a locked box to which was awaiting a golden key to let the obviously fantastic out and revel to its heart’s content.
To be a maverick does not mean to be individual, it just means that you have found a way through the bruises and glories of past endeavours to be more free, and there is no doubting that King King, through their latest release, have found that freedom to be bold, spectacular and a willing partner. Absolutely invigorating.
King King release Maverick on Friday 6th November.
Ian D. Hall