Seltzer

STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK (1974)

• Robert Fripp - Guitar, Mellotron, Electric Piano, Other
• John Wetton - Bass, Vocals
• David Cross - Violin, Viola, Mellotron, Electric Piano
• Bill Bruford – Drums, Percussion
• Richard Palmer-James - Lyrics

PROLOGUE

Starless and Bible Black occupies an interesting position in the discography of King Crimson. In the wake of the great Larks' Tongues In Aspic (no pun intended), it is sometimes criticised a little more harshly than it deserves, and it doesn't help that it happens to be followed up by the greatest album in existence. For the recording of SABB, KC maintained the same lineup from the preceding album, minus Jamie Muir, their percussionist. Despite his monastically inspired departure from the music industry, he left a legacy in the form of his influence imparted upon Bruford and Fripp. Starless and Bible Black is, to some extent, a natural continuation of the proto-metal sound of LTIA. But whereas LTIA was a meticulously constructed album replete with precise composition, SABB was a gutsy endeavour in the improvisational direction. Only two of the eight songs were fully recorded in studio and the other six, four of which were improvised, were recorded live with background audience sounds taken out.

TRACK-BY-TRACK

01 - The Great Deceiver:
SABB dares not dally here and immediately kicks off with an uncompromisingly pummelling guitar/violin riff, the likes of which is to be a trademark for this album. As soon as you hear Wetton acerbically uttering the opening words, "Health food faggot" (which as an aside, are completely unrelated to homosexuality), it's patently obvious just how much Richard Palmer-James' direct lyrics differ from the comparatively chimerical lyrics of Sinfield. This song is also interesting in that it features Fripp's sole lyrical contribution to KC, the chorus line "Cigarettes, ice cream, figurines of the Virgin Mary". "The Great Deceiver", like "King Crimson", is clearly a synonym for the devil, and Fripp's line was instigated by his less than favourable view of the commercialisation of the Vatican. Fantastic song with KC in full assault.

02 - Lament:
In arrant contrast, Lament starts out as a subdued ballad. There are some nice vocals from Wetton who for two verses, plays the part of a washed-up rockstar reminiscing about his glory days. What follows is a sort of bizarro white funk popping segment from Wetton and it soon develops into an embittered tirade against the music industry, following on from the anti-commercialism theme of the previous track (and of Easy Money from LTIA). Wetton rolls out some nice basswork towards the end.

03 - We'll Let You Know:
We'll Let You Know is one of the improv pieces of the album. Like many of KC's jams, it starts out with a load of ambience and everything amalgamates before your very ears, but unlike most of them, this only clocks in at three minutes. I feel I should include a funk warning here: this song gets pretty damn infectious when Wetton and Bruford groove in lockstep underneath Fripp's dissonant soloing and lovely dinosaur noises (at least that's what I call them).

04 - The Night Watch:
The Night Watch offers a pleasant respite from cacophonous Crimson and is somewhat similar to Exiles from LTIA, but (and I'm swallowing my words here), even better. The artists amongst you might recognise that it shares its title with the name of Rembrandt's most famous painting. And indeed, this song was written about said painting, and the Dutch Golden Age in general. It's perhaps an unusual topic but don't let that put you off because this song, in an utterly captivating manner, manages to transport you back in time to 17th century post-war Holland. Wetton's vocals are quite nice and vastly improved from the previous album, but it's Fripp who really shines here with his gorgeous guitar motif. If you really want to know why Robert Fripp is so highly respected, you needn't look further than the ingenuous (and ingenious) solo contained within. Whereas 95% of guitarists go for the blistering in your face pentatonic approach, Fripp is the oddball who sits in the corner and comes up with these supernatural but strangely fluid arrangements of sustained notes. I can't really explain why this solo sounds so good; it almost seems to shift time.

05 - Trio:
Trio is a full improvisation between violin, mellotron and bass. It takes a while to get started (and is annoyingly, practically inaudible for the first minute) but as it gradually adopts a structure, it evolves into something quite splendid. The lush mellotrons are absolutely haunting and it evokes a meditative state of calm. It still dumbfounds me to think that this is an improvised piece.

06 - The Mincer:
The Mincer is actually the result of superimposing a few Wetton vocal lines over a live improv. It sets a creepy and menacing yet enticing mood, not so different to the Devil's Triangle from ITWOP. But unfortunately, it's rather directionless and meandering, and even Fripp's leads (in the style of the Lizard epic) can't save it. Amusingly enough, the recording ends quite abruptly from when the band ran short of tape during the live performance... it's a cool effect in my books.

07 - Starless and Bible Black:
SABB's S/T track opens the second side in amorphous fashion but doesn't really get going until halfway through. A review from the inlay booklet states that this album is at times similar to the "dark satanic mills" Blake talks about and suggests that you don't listen to it if you're depressed or contemplating life after death. It's easy to see what he means when listening to these last two tracks, and the claustrophobic mellotrons, bombastic rhythm work and hell-on-earth Frippisms featured here really give that claim credence.

08 - Fracture:
Fracture bears some similarity to LTIA Part II, both in form and melodic theme, but it manages to reach even greater heights. It's worth noting that sole composition credit goes to Fripp here and he claims it's the hardest piece he has ever played (this is live too). Its neurotic spidery fretboard patterns and colossal build-up make it possibly the most inaccessible KC piece there is. A fantastic way to close the album.

EPILOGUE

Despite its status as a studio album, Starless and Bible Black is, if anything, proof that King Crimson were as skilled as any jazz outfit on the live improvisation front. Even when wedged between Larks' Tongues in Aspic and Red, SABB certainly holds its own. In its best moments (The Great Deceiver, the Night Watch and Fracture), it is in fact better than LTIA although its lack of cohesion in places makes it weaker overall. Starless and Bible Black sets the stage perfectly for Red to blow the prog world away.

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