One of the most unique-sounding bands in rock, King’s X are known as one of the forebears of grunge. This trio from Missouri pioneered the use of drop D tuning, thereby introducing rock lovers to a thicker, heavier sound.
King’s X’s riffs were powerful and resonant but also had clarity thanks to guitarist Ty Tabor’s individual single-coil tone. His guitar was supported by singer-bassist Doug Pinnick’s huge, bi-amped tone, like Chris Squire on steroids.
Add to this progressive arrangements, tight funk grooves, blues and gospel-style vocals, and Beatles-inspired harmonies, and you get the picture. Indeed, they once described their sound as ‘Heavy Melody’.
Ty Tabor, Doug Pinnick, and drummer-vocalist Jerry Gaskill came together in the late ’70s, in their hometown of Springfield. Going by the name of The Edge, and later Sneak Preview, the trio paid their dues as a covers band, later adding their own songs and touring between states playing seven nights a week.
They were eventually offered the opportunity to relocate to Houston, Texas by a Christian rock label to work with one of their artists. The agreement was that the label would clear their debts, pay them a wage, and secure a record deal by the end of the term.
Unfortunately their efforts failed, and instead they introduced the group to Sam Taylor, who had worked with ZZ Top. Taylor took on the band as manager and producer, as well as suggesting a new name, King’s X. Taylor helped secure them a deal and oversaw the release of their debut album, 1988’s Out of the Silent Planet.
Three more albums followed: Gretchen Goes to Nebraska, Faith Hope Love, and King’s X. When the relationship with Taylor ended, the band embarked on a new era and sound. Working with producer Brendan O’Brien, they released Dogman in 1994, which still stands as one of the finest albums of the ’90s. And it goes on, as King’s X recently released their 13th studio album, Three Sides Of One.
Ty Tabor has an unmistakable voice on the guitar. His playing is a blend of heavy, riff-orientated rhythms, intricate solos, and melodic sensibilities. Ty pioneered drop D tuning in rock, using it exclusively on the group’s debut album. He has also used drop C, as well as other unorthodox low-slung tones. His use of open strings and extended chords contributes to the band’s signature sound, making their music both heavy and harmonically complex.
Tabor’s emphasis is on melody, featuring lyrical phrases that complement the song’s structure and mood. Firmly rooted in progressive and hard rock, Tabor’s guitar influences include Jimi Hendrix, Brian May, Alex Lifeson, Ace Frehley and Phil Keaggy.
On a personal note, other than Eddie Van Halen, Ty Tabor has had the biggest impact on my own playing. King’s X is the most important band to me for many reasons, and I have listened to them constantly since I first discovered their music in 1989.
Their output is melodic and deep, but heavy, and Ty’s playing fills so much space in creative and unique ways. Lyrically, the content is also different, often talking about spiritual and personal subjects.
So, since King’s X was everything I had looked for in a band, I was thrilled to put this feature together. We have five pieces, three of which focus on Ty’s rhythm work, plus two lead guitar examples. I hope you enjoy!
Get the tone
Amp Settings: Gain 6, Bass 7, Middle 6, Treble 7, Reverb 4
Ty Tabor played a mid 80s Stratocaster Elite with active circuitry, into a Gibson Lab Series L5 transistor guitar amp paired with a MESA/Boogie power amp. He used stereo chorus, pitch detune and a flanger pedal. Single-coils will work best, and try experimenting with mid or treble boost, and add stereo chorus. For the grunge example bring in more gain but don’t overdo it.
Example 1. Double-Stop Chords and Droning Riffs
[Bars 1-9] Our first example draws influence from Ty’s early drop D riffs. This one is based around a D Mixolydian melodic figure that pedals off an open D drone. We also see some double-stop chord figures, implying extended harmony playing small chord fragments. Take care with the nod to Ty’s early bluegrass influence with the fast hammer-on and-pull off figure in bar 8.
[Bars 17-25] This section focuses more on double-stop chords and extended harmony, illustrating how Ty produces melodic interest in his progressions using these double-stop (two-string or diad) chord shapes. Take care with the open fifth-string pedal tone, making sure you keep your pickling hand relaxed, and also watch the timing as it’s easy to rush these parts.
Example 2. Open-String Chord Arpeggios
[Bars 1-16] This section llustrates another signature Ty Tabor rhythm approach, which is the use of chord arpeggio picking. Open strings also feature heavily in Ty’s playing, and are used through out this example. Be sure to let all of the notes ring when changing between chords, and forming the more complex shapes.
[Bars 17-25] We conclude this example with some examples of interesting chord harmony, utilising open strings and chord arpeggio picking. Once again we see a little nod to Ty’s bluegrass background during the final two bars of the progression, over the Dadd11 chord.
Example 3. Groove and Grunge
[Bars 1-8] We launch into this ’90s inspired riff with some heavy drop D tuning riffage and tight funk grooves performed around the D7#9 chord. Watch the alternating figures that follow the chord, as each one is different.
[Bars 9-11] Here’s a simple yet incredibly effective heavy riff idea. Pay attention to the position of the chord changes, with the emphasis on the off beat.
[Bars 13-21] We conclude our ’90s grunge examples with an examination of Ty’s use of lush chord voicings and harmony against a heavy riff backdrop. Pay attention to the stretches when playing the Dsus2/F#-G6sus2 chords, and let the top portion of the chord picking ring. This example concludes with a tight D7 riff, once again demonstrating Ty’s chord fragment approach.
Example 4. Melodic Major and Mixolydian Soloing
[Bars 1-4] Our solo is based predominantly around the A Mixolydian mode, although on occasions we dip our toe into both the A major and minor pentatonic scales for a bluesy classic rock vibe. This opening section demonstrates Ty’s string bending prowess.
[Bars 5-7] There’s a chance to check out Ty’s beautiful melodic lines here as we negotiate the A Mixolydian mode, kicking off with some A major arpeggios. This figure includes a lick that pedals off of the 10th fret, second string while the melody shifts on the third string. Make sure all of the notes blend into each other. The final bar of this section swaps between some cool A major pentatonic and A minor pentatonic bending licks.
[Bars 8] We start with a fast descending blues-based legato lick that includes notes from both the A minor pentatonic scale and A Dorian mode.
[Bars 9-15] More classic Ty licks here, kicking off with a melodic figure where you must barre across the top two strings. To finish, here’s a favourite lick of Ty’s that makes use of two-handed tapping and shifts between two positions before concluding with the final triumphal string bend.
Example 5. Blues-Rock Soloing
[Bars 1-4] Here’s our look at Ty’s approach to uptempo blues-rock soloing. As mentioned before, Ty crosses over classic rock and blues influences against a backdrop of drop-tuned riffs.
This example kicks off with a few of Ty’s string bending licks with some double-stop bends plus a tricky unison bend, where we bend up a tone and a half on the second string. Also notice how Ty uses target notes to negotiate the unorthodox chord progressions found in King’s X’s music. In this example also watch out for the Hendrix-inspired F7#9.
[Bars 5-8] More unison bends with a fusion of D minor pentatonic and the D Dorian mode for some fiery licks running towards the final target note.
[Bars 9-13] Notice the feel of this mini piece shifts with a Ty-style funky accompaniment based around D7#9, E7#9 and C#7#9. For this section, we kick off with a fast string bending repetition lick that concludes with more Dorian and blues scale fast legato phrasing. A fast D blues scale/D Dorian three-notes-per-string run climaxes the piece with some signature Ty double tapping.
