Rockin' out

Few gay rock stars can say they came out in Contemporary Christian Music magazine and then came out again four years later in The Advocate.
That is, unless you're King's X bassist and vocalist Doug Pinnick.
King's X, called everything from a "prog rock" to a metal to a rock band, was an unlikely group to have a gay frontman when Pinnick came out in 1998. After all, they began ten years earlier as a Christian metal band, and many of those Christian fans weren't especially happy when Pinnick came out. One minute King's X were the reigning spiritual metal band, the next they were banned in Christian bookstores and getting hate mail.
Pinnick's band mates, drummer Jerry Gaskill and guitarist Ty Tabor, both Christians, stood by him and continued to support him, even after his transition away from Christianity.
"Ty and Jerry have always been there, and they paid the same price I did for my coming-out. They were treated the same way I was. That was hard for them," Pinnick told The Advocate in Oct. 2002.
Pinnick has no regrets, however.
"If God is true, then he wanted me to be gay," Pinnick said in a March 2003 interview with California's OC Weekly. "I feel I'm spiritually stronger since coming out. I just got away from my fears and insecurities. I used to have these vivid spiritual dreams where I'd wake up screaming. I don't have those anymore."
King's X has had plenty of turbulence during their twenty-plus years together as a band: management problems, record label troubles, an evolving musical style, and various industry pratfalls were just a few of the obstacles keeping the band from the big time. Despite – or perhaps in spite – of it all, King's X have developed a loyal following of fans and accolades of critics with their original and multi-genre style. As a testament to the band, King's X was recently voted one of the "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock" on VH1.
King's X's latest record, a double live CD entitled "Live All Over The Place," is out now. See them live yourself as they stop by the Magic Bag on Thursday, Nov. 11 as part of their special small club tour.
Don't expect Pinnick's sexuality to take front and center on stage, however. "Our personal lives are our personal lives. At the end of the day, we're just a rock & roll band," Pinnick said in the March 2003 OC article.
It's the music that matters, after all.