The nucleus of King James comes from the ashes of 80's white rockers White Cross when guitarist Rex Carroll joined with ex-Sacred Fire/Viktor vocalist Jimi Bennett.

Back in 1997, after the release of their debut album in 1993, King James, which included Stryper alumni Robert Sweet and Tim Gaines, regrouped to record their sophomore album 'The Fall', of which this collector's edition has been remastered by J Powell, the original having been out of print for many years.

Taking their cue from Alice In Chains, 'The Fall' is an album of its time - the 90's. This band have clearly been reading the 90's grunge book of ideas and made a complete album from it even down to the effect laden on/off vocals! The guitar shredding on this album does sound out of place in some songs, the mega riffs that Rex delivers with pinpoint accuracy are something air guitarists will no doubt love. And this for me is the best part of the album - the guitar sound not only shreds but flattens whole cities with one riff - that's how great the guitar is here.

There are hints of other bands in there as well, such as the prog of Queensryche and the sludge of Black Sabbath, but with none of the inspiring originality of either! The album tends to blend into one and that's my problem with King James in that they're good but nothing stands out to me. It's honestly like a walking on a desert - the same thing again and again. Basically this album is for fans of towering grunge and nasty, hateful guitars!

www.myspace.com/kingjamesthefall