|
The King Crimson Marathon
Because i'm too lazy to just pick one, i'll review every King Crimson studio album starting with the earliest... The band has gone a long way since opening for groups like Iron Butterfly, Fleetwood Mac, Janis Joplin and The Rolling Stones... IMO the only band who formed in the 60s that is still making challenging music now and beyond.... I won't waste anyones time with a ratings system... So lets start, shall we?
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y283/nyrab/2328.jpg In The Court Of The Crimson King - 1969 Personnel: Robert Fripp - Guitar. Greg Lake - Bass, Lead Vocals. Michael Giles - Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals. Ian McDonald - Reeds, Woodwinds, Vibes, Mellotron, Backing Vocals. Peter Sinfield - Lyrics. After Giles, Giles and Fripp disbanded (thanks to Peter Giles departure) remaining members Robert Fripp and Peter's bro Michael deciding to form a new experiemental band with music illuminist Peter Sinfield (who went on to work with ELP and Roxy Music, among others) that would break new ground in pyschedelic rock, creating what eventually would become progressive rock... With future ELP frontman Lake and former GG&F member McDonald along for the ride, Fripp and co. did much more than accomplish their mission, they indirectly started a musical revolution, resulting in one of the best albums of the 60s... Anyway enough with the history lessions, one of the unique factors about ITCOTCK is that it abandons the standard rock formula completely, no blues influence in sight... Basically redefining what can make a rock band a rock band... KC perfectly married sophisticated medieval-esque melodys and instrumentation with jazzy improvisitions, sometimes with an almost metal like agressiveness, but that is only present on the first track of this album, however the band would develop a more hard rock sound in the future... And of course, the musical virtuososity is more than just a bonus. 1. 21st Century Schizoid Man: If you haven't heard this song before, download it now... One of the best album openers ever... The track starts off with strange car sounds before progressing into a bone crunching riff with strong brass... Every instrument and sound distorted like crazy, with Lake singing like a paranoid android (no pun intended) reciting lyrics that draw the parallel between humanity and materialism (a theme KC would explore throughout their entire career)... The song breaks into a long, frenzied jam (complete with Fripps infamous anti-guitar solo, Lakes frantic/precise bass fills and McDonald beating the holy hell out of his sax) before building up to the climax when all the instruments clash together and roar at another like animals...I can garrantee you that Black Sabbath were writing sh*t down when they heard this. The big surprise is that as it turns out, this is the only "rocking" song on the album, everything that follows is quite soft and mellow in contrast, however, this song introduces the loud-madman noise rock dynamics that King Crimson would experiement with even further on their later albums. 2. I Talk To The Wind: After the 7 minute chaos of Schizoid Man, KC make a drastic change of sound with this one... Beginning with a gorgeous harmony of woodwinds... The song drifts into a smooth soundscape of breathy vocals and somber, muted guitar... The gloomy lyrics complement the lush compositions perfectly, a beautiful piece.... Some wonderful flute work from McDonald too. 3. Epitaph: The first song on the album to feature the bands trademark mellotron... One of the bands more emotional songs, a somber anti war ballad with lyrics that sound like a cry for help... The mellotron owns the show here, providing a larger life than life sound (i call it the wall's of sound) thats just perfect for this piece... Great use of accoustics too. 4. Moonchild: A very soft, ambient piece, while the weakest track on the LP (many are quick to call this a bad song, but i digress) it's a nice companion piece nonetheless... The song begins perfectly, one of the earliest examples of Crimsons medieval music influence... A love song so to speak, but its all in the ambient mood and tone that makes it worthwhile, theres weird (but pretty) noises coming from every direction... A very spacey and dissonant song... The vocal passages are short and the song transforms into a odd 10 minute quiet jam, a bit too long... But nothing unsettling, the instruments provide a windchime like harmony of notes... May be boring to most, but a great song to listen to when you're just kicking back and want to take a nap.... A very soothing piece. 5. In The Court Of The Crimson King: Another mellotron driven piece... With a medieval like quality to it, in both the sound and lyrics that provide the setting of this epic style piece... A wordless chorus of gregorian like chants, and a lot of accoustic guitar and woodwinds... A brillant and climatic closer... Songs like this helped define the style of progressive rock known as symphonic prog. Over all, every song gives the album a very cinematic quality, like you're watching movie.... Something many prog bands would attempt to emulate for years on end... Aside from this albums historical importance, none of that should matter, it's just a fantastic album and one of the most impressive debuts this side of Led Zeppelin I, symphonic rock at its best... More importantly this a look into the bands earliest form, which makes it even more mind blowing to think how much this band has changed over the past 30 years, though of course, a billion or so lineup changes played a part in the bands continuous evolution in sound, from symphonic rock band to free form jazz band to avant garde proto metal band to new wave band to funk metal band to industrial metal band (or whatever the hell you wanna call them), while many bands try to experiement with many genres, only a few have the talent to pull it off, KC is certainly one of those bands... The most important thing about Crimson is that unlike some of their peers and way too many of their so called successors (Cough*Dream Theater*Cough) King Crimson have never forgotten the most important fundamental of being progressive rock, which is being progressive, duh. I'll continue with the next review tommorow, i'm dog tired. :( |
Nicellly written, I may even check it out.
nah ;) |
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y283/nyrab/6539.jpg
In The Wake Of Poseidon - 1970 Personnel: Robert Fripp - Guitar, Mellotron. Greg Lake - Lead Vocals. Michael Giles - Drums. Peter Giles - Bass. Keith Tippett - Piano. Mel Collins - Saxophones, Flute. Peter Sinfield - Lyrics. Gordon Haskell - Additional Vocals On Track #3. After the surprising success of their first single (Schizoid Man) KC were quick to work on a follow up, however, McDonald quickly left the group, he was replaced by Mel Collins and to furthur expand the bands evolving sound jazz pianist/composer Keith Tippet joined as well, Lakes involvement with the band was miminalized when Peter Giles of Giles, Giles & Fripp decided to join up with his former bandmates to play bass on the 2nd Crimson album, Lake however still provides the vocals... ITWOP isn't exactly a real change of direction from Crimsons first album, in many ways, its more of the same... But the quality of the record is strong, it holds out well on its own but it makes a great companion piece with ITCOTCK... And like the colorful album cover suggests, it offers some very drastic changes in tone and mood... An album of epic proportions. 1. Peace - A Beginning: Weird way to open the album, a brief vocal passage with Lakes breathy vocals distorted through reverb.. A simple theme about peace (duh) thats revisited several times on this album. 2. Pictures Of A City: A return to 21st Century Schizoid Man territory... Jazzy song with a lot of distorted guitar... Very similar in formula to Schizoid man, a great brass-dominated riff, passive-agressive lyrics and explosive instrumentals... One could call it 21st Century Schizoid Man Part 2, but a great song in it's own right... Earlier versions of this song have been performed on Crimsons first big tour following the release of ITCOTCK. 3. Cadence And Cascade: In tradition with the first album, another folk ballad with a very medieval feel, though compared to Moonchild the outcome here is much more successful, no 10 minute long quiet jams here... Fripp provides some tasteful accoustic work, with some nice piano work from Tippet and some great flute soloing from Collins, some of Lakes best vocal work too. 4. In The Wake Of Poseidon: Fripp whips out the ol' mellotron for this one, offering another bittersweet symphony of strings and horns to complement the anguished keen of Lakes vocals... Sinfields lyrics provide this song with a lot of imagry remiscent of ITCOTCK (the song), taking you back to a certain place and time... Fripps multi-instrumental talents shine here, with some great neo-classical style accoustic guitar backed by harmonies of strings and horns, all done on that little box called mellotron... One of the albums most defining moments. 5. Peace - A Theme: Wonderful little accoustic guitar solo from Fripp. 6. Cat Food: One of the weirdest songs on this album... Tippet puts his excellent jazz to work here with great, mostly improvised piano work, with Giles providing a great-hi hat drum beat and Fripp churning out strange guitar effects all over.... Though the most defining thing about this song are Sinfields ridiuclously silly, satrical lyrics about consumerism and commercialism with a lot of absurdist humor thrown in, evidenced in lyrics like "Never need to worry with a tin of hurri curri, Poisoned especially for you!" and "Goodies for the table with a fable on the label Drowning in miracle sauce, Dont think I am that rude if I tell you that its cat food, Not even fit for a horse!"... A goofy but likable song. 7. The Devils Triangle: The most inaccessible piece on the album, it is an adapation of Gustav Holst's Mars: The Bringer Of War from his suite The Planets... Its a very faithful rendition of Holsts original composition (which i have, for anyone who wants it) only the strings and horns are all done on mellotron... The mood is dark, purely choatic.... It depicts a war in progress, starting slowly before building up into a total nightmare... Great stuff, though it may be a uncormfortable listen for some... Keep your ears open for the short sample of In The Court Of The Crimson King... It has been a Crimson stage staple before finding its way on this album, it was originally called Mars. 8. Peace - An End: The conclusion to it all, stripped down to just Lake and Fripps guitar... A nice little hymm. Some versions feature a bonus track, a single instrumental edit of Cat Food, a weird Captain Beefheart-ish jam. Again, nothing radically different from ITCOTCK, as Lakes vocals and Sinfields lyrics (which can range from serene to satrical) revisit familiar territory... But the music is just as beautiful and haunting as it ever was... However, this is the last album to feature Lake, as time progressed, so did King Crimson, their music would become increasingly original and avant-garde... This album draws the last breath of Crimsons original carnation... After it was released, Lake left to form his own band with Emerson, Lake And Palmer and yet again Peter Giles went his seperate ways with Fripp and co.... Nonetheless, King Crimson moved on... It certainly wouldn't be the last time. |
Nice review BooBoo..i was listening to that album last night :)
|
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y283/nyrab/6540.jpg
Lizard - 1970 Personnel: Robert Fripp - Guitar, Mellotron, Keyboards. Gordon Haskell - Bass, Lead Vocals. Andy McCulloch - Drums. Mel Collins - Saxophone, Flute. Keith Tippet - Piano, Electric Piano. Robin Miller - Oboe, Cor Anglais. Mark Charig - Cornet. Nick Evans - Trombone. Peter Sinfield - Lyrics, VCS3 Synthesizer. Jon Anderson - Guest Vocals On Track #5. After 2 great albums... The band was already on the verge of coming to an end... Lake had bailed for ELP (Sinfield would eventually join them) and Michael Giles left along with his brother Peter... Leaving Fripp and Sinfield as the only original band members remaining.... Bringing in vocalist/bassist Gordon Haskell (an old classmate of Fripp who also guested on Cadence & Cascade), drummer Andy McCulloch and session musicians Robin Miller, Mark Charig and Nick Evans as the new blood... Fripp, Sinfield and co. set out to make a bold new record... Lizard is a drastic change in sound from ITCOTCK and ITWOP. While the classical and medieval influences are still present, here Crimson take in heavier influences from free form jazz and avant-garde music, resulting in a much more complex, aggressive and radical sound that KC would push even further with their following albums.... As Lakes official replacement, Haskell provided a very different feel to the music, a deep tenor, Haskell sang with conviction and a cynical, evil snarl... Impressive for a guy who openly disliked Sinfields lyrics, and wasn't exactly satisfied with the new direction the band decided to take on this album, hence why he left the band shortly after the albums completion, his contribution however is still a important factor here... Obviously by adding instruments like trombone, cornet, oboe and cor anglais (basically an oboe pitched in F) Crimson were going for an even thicker, lusher sound... This is also one of the first albums to incorporate the VCS3 Synthesizer, which bands like Pink Floyd, The Who, Hawkwind and Roxy Music would popularize in the future... While it's critical reception was mixed at the time and fans today are still devided when concerning the quality of this album... I personally consider it their strongest work after ITCOTCK and Red, they take the everything including the kitchen sink method here, and it works. 1. Cirkus: An opener that rivals Schizoid Man, this is my personal favorite song on the album... Sinfields cirkus themed lyrics along with Haskells hushed verses and Fripps menacing mellotron theme that follows provide the surreal mood to this piece, with rich imagry... The accoustic guitar, saxophone and cornet solos add even more weight to this already overwhelming track, a very complex piece, and its only the first song... A difinete must hear. 2. Indoor Games: A odd, offbeat song with some of the most oblique, deliciously absurd lyrics Sinfield has ever written... Dominated by a thick, groovy riff of brass and a jazzy beat... Haskell (whose voice is distorted into oblivion) snarls like a drunken jester... A truly surreal song, with Fripps fusion style guitar and lots and lots of synth, brass and woodwind... Evans, Charig and Miller really shine here. The songs most memorable moment is at the end, when Haskell breaks down into a demonic laugh drenched in reverb... This was not intentional, the song was suposed to end with just Haskell reciting the final lyric "Hey Ho"... Stupified, he began having a laughing fit, fine example of his distaste for Sinfields lyrics... Oddly enough, this version made the final cut. 3. Happy Family: Kicked off by bizarre synth noises, Haskells voice is even more distorted, like Indoor Games the song is goofy and playfull, but it ventures into more avant-garde territory, with a lot of underwater type effects... A very unusual song in structure, and i use the term structure very loosely here... The instruments practically have a life of their own, clashing at one another at akward moments, creating a kind of off ballance effect, this is somewhat of a look foward to albums likes Larks Tongue In Aspic which would use this method and to great effect... The lyrics tell the tale of a band torn apart by conflicting egos, ironic considering Crimsons state by the time Lizard was finished, the characters Judas, Rufus, Silas and Jonah are obviously based on Paul, Ringo, George and John, their images are even seen surrounding the "I" on the album cover, which consists of the bands name (Crimson on the front, King on the back) written in large letters in medieval style font bearing images that represent certain songs on the album... Anyway, a great track. 4. Lady Of The Dancing Water: Being King Crimson, they gotta have the token medieval love song, no matter what... Lady Of The Dancing Water features some beautiful flute work from Collins... Here, Haskells vocals finally take a rest, singing in a soft breathy tone similar to that of Lake... The lyrics are as sweet as ever (if corny)... The mellowness of this song provides some much needed relief from the 16 minutes of pure mayhem that proceeded it. 5. Lizard: The magnum opus, this is the longest song King Crimson has ever done (over 23 minutes) and its their first truly epic piece of sorts, a prog suite broken down into 4 sections, with the third part being broke down into 3 sub-sections, pretentious?... Sure, why not??... If the vocals sound familar, its no coincidence, Yes man Jon Anderson lended his vocals for this track, though the song has very few spoken lyrics... The song has a very strong concept concerning a young prince who takes part in an epic battle, Yes themselves would explore a similar theme with The Gates Of Delirium, which displayed some noticable Crimson influence... This is a beautifully composed piece, with very little improv. (A)- Prince Rupert Awakes: The story begins here, as the main character prepares for war... This section features the calm vocals of Anderson (his trademark Yes falseto is not to be heard here) and the music alternates between quite, ethereal verses and a upbeat, folksy chorus complete with handclaps... We finally come to the wordless chorale (which could represent the beggining of the battle, maybe?) which leads into the second section of the piece. (B)- Bolero: As Andersons vocals slowly fade out, we're led to an instrumental section with bolero style drum snare lines and a rich harmony of brass and woodwinds, some great passages for cornet, oboe, trombone and piano... A great display of jazz style soloing, its easy to get lost in it... The oboe theme that opens and closes the piece is very powerful. (C)- The Battle Of Glass Tears: The longest and most effective part of the suite, with 3 parts. I - Dawn Song: As Bolero comes to a halt... We are led into a hypnotic theme on cor anglais quickly joined by Haskell's hushed vocals... The opening theme slowly fades back into the picture, now on mellotron, to haunting effect. II - Last Skirmish: After the mellotron and drums kick in, Crimson go into overdrive with a brass leaden instrumental, with multiple solo passages for practically every instrument, flutes flying from one direction, saxes squeeling from another, guitars and basses roaring all over, mellotrons drifting in and out... Pure mayhem. This section represents the bloody battle at hand. III - Prince Rupert's Lament: This section represents the aftermath... The music slows down, with drums and bass giving you the feeling like you're at a funeral, and Fripp churning out a bone chilling solo, which sounds like it was recorded from a freaking mountain top... This section represents death. (D)- Big Top: As Prince Rupert's Lament fades out... We come to the final piece, which consists of a sped up sample of Cirkus, with strange effects added in... Providing a very creepy tone... Gives me goose bumps every time.... Could represent the afterlife maybe?... Dunno. Aside from being a completely brillant piece of work, Lizard started the trend of very long prog epics (you could either love it or hate it for that), paving the way for pieces like Close To The Edge, Suppers Ready, Tarkus, Thick As A Brick, Plague Of Lighthouse Keepers and Shine On You Crazy Diamond. Again, Lizard is a different change of pace for Crimson, those who loved ITCOTCK and ITWOP will have to take their time with this one, but it's well worth it. |
They're all real good reviews. You know what you're talking about and it doesnt hurt that they're good albums.
|
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y283/nyrab/6541.jpg
Islands - 1971 Personnel: Robert Fripp - Guitar, Mellotron, Harmonium. Boz Burrell - Bass, Lead Vocals. Mel Collins - Flute, Saxophone, Backing Vocals. Ian Wallace - Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals. Keith Tippet - Piano. Robin Miller - Oboe. Mark Charig - Cornet. Harry Miller - Double Bass. Paulina Lucas - Additional Vocals. Peter Sinfield - Lyrics. This is a good album, and it often gets way too much undeserved criticism... Nonetheless, for Crimson it is a step down... Haskell and McColloch were disatisfied with the overall result of Lizard, and they quickly bailed... Boz Burrell and Ian Wallace were quickly recruited, as well as double bass player Harry Miller and Paulina Lucas contributing her vocals on some tracks... This is notable for being the LAST Crimson album to feature the lyrics of Peter Sinfield, he would eventually team up with Emerson, Lake and Palmer as well as Italian prog band Premiata Forneria Marconi... Here the band experiement with even stronger elements of classical and chamber music, theres also a noticable amount of Bealtes and Moody Blues influence here, and a lot less guitar, with the drums and bass very low in the mix, a very unique Crimson album... Unfortunately, the production here is quite poor compared to the first 3 Crimson albums... Everything is at a much quieter volume... The bass is barely audible, this is primarly because Boz Burrell was not actually a bass player when production first began, instead, Fripp simply taught him how to play the instrument... Because of his obvious lack of skill, Islands lacks the complex rhythms and fills of Crimsons first 3 studio works, Burrell certainly was no Lake, Giles or Haskell on bass... Nonetheless his vocals (which are a bit similar to Lakes) hold out pretty well... Though they are very low in the mix here, due to the lo-fi production and heavy instrumentation... This is the worst Crimson album from the 70s era, but it still has some very strong pieces of work. 1. Formentera Lady: Opens with some lovely double bass, flute and piano work... Burrells gives his best Greg Lake impersonation here... A strange quiet piece, with Ian Anderson-esque flute and jazzy piano... And Lakes i mean erm Burrells soft spoken vocals contribute to the Moody Blues-like atmosphere... Nice instrumental at the end, with some tasteful sax work and opera singer Luca's eerie theramin-like soprano. 2. Sailor's Tale: A jazzy instrumental piece, with a lot of horns, distorted, arpeggio driven guitar and mellotron.. Some great fusion style improv here. 3. The Letters: A very complex piece that starts out extremely quietly with just Burrells vocals before building up into a brass and guitar driven metal workout, then it gets quiet again, with a Sax solo from Collins, then it gets all heavy again... Eventually leading to Burrells cries of love gone sour... A heavly improvised piece with rapidly changing dymanics and no consistant structure to speak of... A glimpse into Crimsons next album... Larks Tongue's In Aspic. 4. Ladies Of The Road: My favorite song on the album, a funky song that sounds like it could have very well been an outtake from The White Album... Great blues howling vocals from Burrell... A parody of standard blues rock, which tells of the relationship between a band and their groupies... Some really dirty saxophone playing here. 5. Prelude: Song Of The Gulls: A harmony of strings and flutes, this sounds like a geniune piece of Bach.... Wonderful track... Instead of a mellotron/sampler, a real symphony orchestra was brought in to record this one. 6. Islands: One of the albums strongest tracks, it's beautifully done... Some of Burrells best vocal work is here, his vocals here are a bit more distinct from his Lake-risms earlier on the album... Great calm piece with piano, flute and cornet among other things... A very medieval like piece, like Cadence & Cascade and Lady Of The Dancing Water. The album ends with a minute of silence and two minutes of band members screwing around in the studio while the recorder was still on. Again, a good album, not a great one... But it's worth checking out if you have already heard the rest of Crimsons 60s/70s output. |
One question...is this all from your head?
|
Hurry up so I can read your review of Red.
|
Well i do make sure i have my history right, release years, session musicians, etc...
But yes, i just sit staring at the userbox until i start coming up with a good way to discribe the music. |
Quote:
|
Thats rad man...you've got a wack load of Prog knowledge in that head of yours
|
Yes, so you better get on with it.
|
Bleh... Sorry for such a long delay, gonna try to finish the rest as quickly as i can.
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y283/nyrab/6544.jpg Larks Tongues In Aspic - 1973 Personnel: Robert Fripp - Guitar, Mellotron. John Wetton - Bass, Vocals. Bill Bruford - Drums. David Cross - Violin, Viola, Flute, Mellotron. Jamie Muir - Percussion. Richard Palmer-James - Lyrics. After the release of Islands, Sinfields collaboration with the group had ended.... And Crimsons curse of never having a bass player to last for 2 albums lived on, Boz Burrell left the band to join *Gasp* Bad Company... Of course this wasn't the first time a member of the group left for another band, Lake had left to form ELP and Sinfield would later join him, McDonald left to form Foreigner, and of course, everyone else left after Islands, leaving Fripp as the only original band member remaining... Here Crimsons curse had finally come to an end when Fripp recruited bass virtuoso John Wetton, who was the best bassist Crimson ever had at this point and former Yes drummer Bill Bruford, who left Yes shortly after completition of Close To The Edge, fearing that because the album was so good that it would be impossible for Yes to be able to live up to it and surpass it with a better record, so instead he decided to join a band who were reaching the peak of their career, rather than going past it, he made a good decision. Bruford would become the longest lasting member in the band second only to Fripp... KC also had an amazing talent in virtuoso violinist David Cross, who had just joined the band... The Fripp/Wetton/Bruford/Cross lineup would last for two more studio albums, and a few live albums. After Islands, Fripp was left alone to figure out the fate of his musical career, eventually he decided that Crimson could be reborn and visualised a more agressive and radical approach to progressive rock music... The result was this album... Here Crimson go for a similar kind of lo-fi production that was used on Islands, but the musical approach is radically different... Because Fripp had a new and improved rhythm section to back him, he decided that Crimsons 5th would put more emphasis on rhythmic complexity than tonality and even melody... Larks expands on avant garde ideas first exeriemented with by the likes of Zappa and Beefheart in the 60s... Featuring the heaviest, darkest, weirdest and most complex music Crimson had ever done at that point... Though the following two albums were even better, Larks is notable for being Crimsons first true crossover into hard rock and proto metal. 1. Larks Tongues In Aspic Part One: The opening track here is an instrumental which begins with several chimes and bells before progressing into a neo classical symphony of frantic strings and hissing metal guitar riffs... The instruments begin to clash together as if they are following a mathematical code... Following this is a much softer section, with a great three minute Violin solo from Cross, which is eventually followed by surreal guitar harmonics and incoherent ramblings and whispers, and then the song ends the same way it began. 2. Book Of Saturday: A mellow little ballad with accoustic guitar and strange string and backwards guitar harmonies... First Crimson song to feature Wettons completely recognisable vocals and RPJ's satrical lyrics, which would become a Crimson trademark. 3. Exiles: This track starts off as a ambient piece consisting of haunting noises before suddenly bursting into yet another moody epic from Crimson... A very mellow piece with some great flute and string harmonies from Cross... And yet as side one of this album closes, we find that the next half is a frantic contrast to the first side. 4. Easy Money: This track begins the heavier second half of Larks, the comforting ethereal vibe of the first half is nowhere to be seen, with more distorted guitar and a series of weird chants... Wetton's muddy bass style is well demonstrated here... The song begins as a chilling satire of greed, materialism and rock star excess... Something Crimson would continue to explore... The song then transforms into a avant jazz jam. 5. Talking Drums: Like on Larks I and Exiles, Crimson use ambience to set the mood here... This track starts out very quietly, with faint sounds of drum, bass, guitar and violin which get louder and louder over a trance inducing rhythm before exploding into a screaming collision of strings.. Quickly leading to the closing track of the album. 6. Larks Tongues In Aspic Part Two: Dispite what the title suggests, there is no melodic theme from part one that is being repeated here... Instead part two begins with a grungy metal riff that repeats repetitvely throughout most of the entire song... Breaks and chord changes come out of nowhere several times... And the song takes many unexpected turns... Including the infamous "duh duh duh duhduh duhduh" distorted guitar break in the middle followed by Cross's "boiling teapot" Violin effects... A very metal song and for me it's even heavier than most metal i have heard, still one of my favorite Crimson pieces. Larks is the most inaccessible album not only from King Crimson, but it's a top canidate for most inaccessible album of all time... Certainly one of the most challenging, and my discription so far has been a very vague one, you don't know what you're in for until you hear it for yourself. |
Great review...Larks Tongues In Aspic Part One is one of my favourite KC songs...i love how like half way in you can hear the guitar work...you can tell KC must have been a huge influence on TMV...it sounds like omar
|
I'm gonna try and get this back on track.
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y283/nyrab/11514.jpg Starless And Bible Black - 1974 Personnel: Rober Fripp - Guitar, Mellotron. John Wetton - Bass, Vocals. Bill Bruford - Drums, Percussion. David Cross - Violin, Viola, Keyboards. Richard Palmer-James - Lyrics. George Chkiantz - Acoustic Coordinator. Peter Henderson - Assistant Engineer. 1974 was a rough year for prog, most critics opinions on the genre shifted towards the negative side, and punk rock was already on the rise as important punk bands such as The Ramones began to form. However, the kings of prog were not gonna give up without a fight, especially now that Fripp has finally found himself a suitable (and consistant) lineup to progress even further into unexplored musical territory, with a bulletproof ensemble of virtuoso musicians and Richard Palmer-James (who previously was one of the founding members of Supertramp, only to leave shortly after) whose lyrical skills greatly surpass that of his predecessor Peter Sinfield, the band had become an unstopable force... Even today Starless And Bible Black is considered by critics to be the most abrasive, vicious and darkly funny album of the bands career, and one of the most innovative works in progressive rock, thanks in most part to Wettons trademark smug vocals and Fripps mad guitar skillz... It's a shame that most prog bands today don't follow Crimsons example and instead choose to immitate bands like Marillion and Starcastle, which is counterproductive for bands who prefer to be called "progressive". It should be noted that while this is considered a studio effort, only three songs were done in studio (Great Deceiver, Lament and Night Watch), all the other tracks were recorded live, with sounds of the audience edited out, But enough ranting... 1. The Great Deceiver: Amazing opener, and it's one of the bands most memorable songs... Unusual song for Crimson in that it actually features what could classify as a "riff"... Though it's a violin riff... Here the violin and guitars are oddly tuned and distorted while sharing a very similar tone, and Fripps violin like techniques (or Frippertonics, as they are often known) makes it even harder to tell what is violin and what is guitar... While the riffs and guitars are fast, the bass is slow and melodic... Yet another Crimson trademark.... As it should be noted, this is the second Crimson album to not feature their original lyricist and conceptionist Peter Sinfield, and it's noticable here... Palmers lyrics do away with Sinfields upbeat fantasticism and instead offer a satrical observation of the bleakness and confusion of middle class society and "enough is never enough" consumerism and culture... And the music itself reflects that, in fact... All but 3 songs on this album are instrumentals, but the 3 lyrical/vocal pieces that make such a powerful statement it sets the mood for the whole album... Here, Palmer references materialism, greed, exploitation and religion... Almost all in a single instance... Lyrics like "Sing hymns make love get high fall dead, Hell bring his perfume to your bed, Hell charm your life til the cold winds blow, Then hell sell your dreams to a picture show" show improvement for the band, Sinfields departure was just what the band needed at this point... Finally Crimsons lyrical and thematic ideas were beginning to catch up with their actual music. 2. Lament: One of my favorite songs off this album, the song starts with a repetive chord while Wetton sings about the dreams of becoming a rock star, once the song kicks off into a metal-funk jam the lyrics become a stinging satire of rock n roll excess... The song itself is somewhat of a parody of Zeppelin-esque hard rock. 3. We'll Let You Know: Nice little bass heavy instrumental here... This one was recorded in Glasgow, Scotland. 4. The Night Watch: A King Crimson album wouldn't be complete without the token medieval-ish ballad now would it?... This song was inspired by the Rembrandt painting of the same name... This song at first dosen't seem to fit in with the other tracks, but it's a great track on it's own, with some of Fripps amazing guitar work stealing the spotlight... This song is actually two recordings spliced together, the intro was recorded live, the rest recorded in the studio. 5. Trio: While KC at this point are venturing further into more rock and jazz based teritory, their classical influences are still intact, evidenced here... This lovely little improv was recorded in Zürich, Switzerland and features what may very well be some of the best use of Mellotron ever put on record... It suggests many instruments that simply aren't there, very unreal... Oddly enough, Bruford was giving writing credit for this track dispite not actually playing on it. 6. The Mincer: Weird psychedelic little song, weird mix of KC style layers of guitar and bass with Beatles-esque vocal harmonies during the closer. 7. Starless And Bible Black: The final two tracks are pure chaos, this one mixes fusion with the combo of avant noise and ambience that King Crimson specialize in, like most of the songs off Larks, this one just builds and builds. 8. Fracture: Probably my favorite of all of KC's instrumentals, an extremely heavy, monsterious jam with complex guitar structures that would define Crimson's later work. |
Right on, wicked review. The S/t Track is my favourite on this album. Its nice to see you're back with doing these.
|
Awesome review, I still don't have this album:(
|
And 8 months later.
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y283/nyrab/6543.jpg Red - 1974 Personnel: Robert Fripp - Guitar, Mellotron. John Wetton - Bass, Vocals. Bill Bruford - Drums, Percussion. David Cross - Violin. Mel Collins - Soprano Saxophone. Ian McDonald - Alto Saxophone. Robin Miller - Oboe. Marc Charig - Cornet. Richard Palmer-James - Lyrics. 1974 is a special year because KC didn't just make one awesome album that year, they made two. Because both of these albums were made only 9 or so months apart and features the same lineup of Fripp-Wetton-Bruford, they come off with very similar vibes. However while SABB was a very heavy, dark record, Red while heavy and dark itself, is like SABBs cooler, slicker younger brother, with a jazzier, space rock sound that recalls their earlier album Lizard. Because he felt that his role in the band was being downsized, Cross left the band, and only appears on two tracks, Providence and Starless. To fill in Cross's absense, Fripp called some of his old buddies to perform on this record. Mel Collins returns on Sax after a 3 year absense, and Saxophonist Ian McDonald makes a grand return on his first KC album since ITCOTCK, the first KC album. While KC were working on this album, they were also rehearsing for a sequel to this album, which would have been titled Blue. Unfortunately, it never happened, and only 2 months before Red was released. Fripp announced that King Crimson, the band that revolutionized progressive rock, was ka-put. Red was to be the last King Crimson album, or at least until they reunited 8 years later. When you think about it, Red was (or would have been) the ultimate swan song for one of the most innovative rock bands of all time. If you were to ask me, Red is argubly the best Crimson album. And its also their most influencial. If you want to listen to the blueprints for The Mars Volta and Tool. You will find it here. 1. Red: The intro to this amazing album opener begins bluntly, with great force and an excellent synth-like guitar line, before kicking off into what I consider to be one of the coolest guitar riffs ever. Wettons bass has an almost cello quality to it. The way this instrumental track subtly evolves is hard to discribe. Just listen to it. 2. Fallen Angel: If you were to ask, why? Why, am I so obsessed with prog? All I would have to do is name drop this song, it's my favorite King Crimson song, so therefor, It's my favorite prog song. Its a beautiful song with accoustic guitar (last time Fripp would ever play one on record), oboe and cornet. Some of Fripps finest guitar work can be found here. This song uses a brilliant soft/loud verse/chorus dynamic that was unusual at the time, but is oh so common now. This song shows that even at their freakiest and most expermental, King Crimson could still be melodic. 3. One More Red Nightmare: I love this song. The only thing that gets me is, could they have found something better to write about than falling asleep on a Greyhound bus and dreaming about a plane crash? No matter, it's King Crimson, and guitars speak louder than words. This is a very intense, groovy song, with hypotizing bass, weird effects with hands clapping and two amazing saxophone solos by McDonald. You almost get a feeling like you're seasick when you listen to it. But in a cool way. 4. Providence: One of the weirdest Crimson jams since Moonchild. This one starts off with some really f*cked up violin playing by Cross. Later on accomplied by guitar, bass, oboe and percussion. For those want to know just how crazy Crimsons jams can get, this is a good start. 5. Starless: What is odd about this track is that it sounds more like two different compositions glued together, the first is a gorgous ballad, with smooth guitars and mellotron by Fripp and soprano sax by Collins. Indeed this song gives the impression that King Crimson took a time warp back to 1969. However thats just the first 4 minutes, afterwards KC switch it back to jam mode. With Cross's mental violin sneaking in, eventually kicking off a big noisy jam before finally calming down to make a much awaited return to melodic mode, with the opening guitar melody being revisited on sax, sounding off a gorgous outro to such a powerful song, like the rainbow after a storm. |
Nice work, I'll have to check this band out at some point, your description sounds very appealing....
|
Red is a good one to start with.
|
I'm a little iffy about getting into a band via the pinnacle of their work....
|
Thing with KC, They have had many line up changes, and through their lineup changes their sound has changed drasticly. 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s/00s Crimson all sound like completely different bands. And since Fripp has been the only consistant member, they pretty much were different bands. So if you are turned off by a certain period of their career, don't let it turn you off from the whole bands. Every album is different.
Starless and Bible Black is another good starter. For their earlier stuff I certainly recommend In The Court of The Crimson King. Discipline is one of my favorite Crimson albums and its the next one up to review. |
Fallen Angel is an absolutely amazing song... personally ITCOTCK is my favorite, but if you want to start at the bottom and work up... Three of a Perfect Pair was a bit of a flop. I'm pretty ambivalent about their newest output... it's cool but I never really get into it.
|
"Larks' Tongues In Aspic" is my love
|
Quote:
A better choice for worst KC album would be Beat, Islands or ConstruKction of Light. Though those are all good albums, just not great. |
It struck me as very... eighties.
|
Discipline sounds more 80s to me. Mainly because of Adrian Belew's David Byrnisms.
|
I'm not even sure if I've heard anything off Discipline. For the most part I avoid their 80's output.
Have you heard Giles, Giles & Fripp, btw? |
Yeah, and their version of I Talk to the Wind. Though I prefer the KC version.
|
I haven't heard that, seems too serious for something GG&F would write. Cat Food, on the other hand, seems like it could have been a GG&F song.
|
Its from KCs first album, In The Court of the Crimson King.
|
I meant I haven't heard the Giles, Giles & Fripp version. I've heard the KC version, though it's probably my least favorite song on ITCOTCK. Still a great tune, though.
|
ITTTW is one of my favorite KC songs from the Lake period.
|
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y283/nyrab/5168.jpg
Discipline - 1981 Personnel: Robert Fripp - Guitar, Devices. Adrian Belew - Lead Vocals, Guitar. Tony Levin - Bass, Chapman Stick, Backing Vocals. Bill Bruford - Drums, Percussion. In 1974, Fripp decided to disband King Crimson and has since spent the next 8 years persuing other venues, such as collaborations with Brian Eno, David Bowie, Blondie, Peter Gabriel, Talking Heads, Peter Hammill of Van Der Graaf Generator and Daryl Hall of Hall & Oates, as well as developing his unique Frippertronics tape delay system. However in 1981, Fripp met up with his old bandmate Bruford with plans to start a new group. They soon recruited a fellow by the name of Tony Levin. Levin was an incredibly prolific session bass player who had worked with John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Alice Cooper, Lou Reed, Paul Simon, Burt Bacharach, Peter Gabriel, Buddy Rich, Ringo Starr, Carly Simon, Karen Carpenter, Art Garfunkel, Don McLean, Peter, Paul & Mary and many many others. And has since went on to work with many more. Levin has appeared on more hit records by more artists than any other bass player in history except maybe James Jamerson, earning him a reputation as the human bass machine. In addition to bass, Levin also plays a curious and obscure instrument known as the Chapman Stick (see weird instruments thread) which he would soon popularise. This instrument would help shape the new sound of King Crimson. Also on board was Adrian Belew, a guitarist who had previously worked with Talking Heads, David Bowie and Frank Zappa. In addition to being a second guitarist, he would also take on the role of the bands lead singer, as well as its primary lyricist. The group teamed up in spring 1981 and played live under the name Discipline, with The Lounge Lizards as their opening act. By october, they decided that this band would become the newest incarnation of King Crimson, so they went back to using that name and as a result their working band name Discipline became the title of this album. Perhaps influenced by Belews previous work with Bowie and Heads. The new King Crimson sound was not like anything before it. The classical music elements were abandoned for a more New Wave sound, though the music was still progressive at its core. Belews vocal style had more than a passing resemblence to his former collaborater David Byrne. He also introduced the synthesizer guitar to King Crimson, which both Belew and Fripp use on this album, becoming a defining part of their new sound. Levins more Fusion/Funk oriented style, his thirst for experimentation as well as his skills on the Chapman Stick made him a far more flexible bass player than Greg Lake or John Wetton ever were. Together with Bruford, they would provide more exotic, World Music rhythms. In addition to this, Fripps own guitar playing has become noticibly more refined and complex. This is a period that devides the hardcore Crimson fans. Many prefered the more classical/jazzy refinement of the Lake era, or the avant garde experimentation of the Wetton era, while others (me) think of Fripp/Belew/Levin/Bruford as the the best KC ensemble yet. At a time when prog was declared dead and bands like Yes, Genesis, Jehtro Tull and Gentle Giant abandoned their prog roots for a more modern New Wave/Pop sound. King Crimson managed to reinvent themselves for the New Wave crowd but without cheesing out, and without selling out their genre. A more accessible King Crimson, but still King Crimson, and therefor still the kings of all that is prog. Overall this album is right up there with ITCOTCK and Red for me, and its their best post Red album. Elephant Talk: This song opens with an awesome line on Levin's Chapman Stick before kicking off into a funky pop song (thats right, a pop song) that is as catchy as it is awkward. Belews erratic Byrnisms (and even more erratic guitar solos) may leave you with a raised eyebrow at first, but you (like me) may eventually find yourself loving every minute of it. Frame By Frame: Beginning with a nice riff by Belew and some incredibly fast licks by Fripp as Levin and Bruford manage to keep up splendidly. This is a pure example of just how tight of an ensemble this really is. Some of KCs most complex instrumental work since Larks Tongues In Aspic. Matte Kudasai: Anyone will tell you that no King Crimson album is complete without at least one ballad to balance out all the crazy stuff. And Kudasai proves to be one of Crimsons strongest. Opening with some gorgeous slide work by Belew, which sounds remarkibly like a lap steel. And some great Jazz Fusion esque guitar and bass by Fripp and Levin respectively. Indiscipline: The weirdest song on the album, and the heaviest. With lyrics that were taken from a letter by Belews wife. A throw back to Wetton era Crimson. One of my faves just for its pure weirdness. I repeat myself when under stress. I repeat myself when under stress. I repeat myself when under stress. I repeat myself when under stress. Thela Hun Ginjeet: Argubly the best song on the album. With frentic guitars by Belew and Fripp (Belews is in 4/4, while Fripps is in 7/8) and some funky basswork by Levin. Some truly psychedelic guitar work here. This song is notable for featuring a taped recording of Belew talking to the police after being mugged in the streets, setting the grim, urban atmosphere for this song. Oh yeah, Thela Hun Ginjeet is an anagram for "Heat in the Jungle". The Sheltering Sky: This is an instrumental, with tribal percussion by Bruford and some AMAZING guitar synthesizer work by Fripp. One of KCs most psychedelic songs. Discipline: Also an instrumental, and the final track on the album, and mainly a showcase for Belew and Fripps dueling guitars. This album could have had a better closer, because this one only leaves you wanting more. If you dont think this review is insightful enough, you can always check out the laughably horrible reviews of it at prog archives by 12 year old snot nose punks who hate everything that dosen't sound like Dream Theater. Don |
Quote:
|
thx dear (Y)
|
Can someon please send me the album court of the Crimson King? I can't find it anywhere.
|
I'm interested to see what you have to say about Thrak, and the song Neal And Jack And Me.
|
brilliant reviews, reminded me how criminally understocked I am on Crimson. can you imagine I still don't have 'Lark's...' or 'Red'???
|
| All times are GMT -6. The time now is 04:50 AM. |
© 2003-2024 Advameg, Inc.