CONTROVERSIAL
― Jordan, Monday, 22 October 2007 20:43 (sixteen years ago) link
somebody likes live improv
― Davey D, Monday, 22 October 2007 20:44 (sixteen years ago) link
huh? starless is a favorite among music fans.
― chaki, Monday, 22 October 2007 20:44 (sixteen years ago) link
Islands or Lizards would be controversial, not Starless
― Jon Lewis, Monday, 22 October 2007 20:46 (sixteen years ago) link
Me being one of them! The majority of the album's tracks are live improvs though.
xpost
― Davey D, Monday, 22 October 2007 20:46 (sixteen years ago) link
I don't think I have any of the studio albums anymore. I sold them all in college meaning to get the remasters, and then lost interest and never did.
Lizards is a weird fucking record.
― Jordan, Monday, 22 October 2007 20:47 (sixteen years ago) link
"red" but i'm realising i've not listened to this stuff for so long that my mind might have changed.
― grimly fiendish, Monday, 22 October 2007 20:48 (sixteen years ago) link
Lark's Tongues here. Sailor's Tale is one of my favorite songs by them, but I hate the rest of Islands. Red is my 2nd choice, In the Court of the Crimson King is my 3rd.
― rockapads, Monday, 22 October 2007 21:02 (sixteen years ago) link
Lark's Tongue in a photo finish with Starless, Jamie Muir the deciding factor. That guy was wack.
― ellaguru, Monday, 22 October 2007 21:05 (sixteen years ago) link
oh shit. you're right.
― chaki, Monday, 22 October 2007 21:05 (sixteen years ago) link
Can't decide between Larks and Discipline.
― Rock Hardy, Monday, 22 October 2007 21:06 (sixteen years ago) link
I love Muir's work on Lark's Tongue's. Red just kicks ass though.
― Bill Magill, Monday, 22 October 2007 21:08 (sixteen years ago) link
I voted for Discipline as it was a kick in the head for me who was a punk rocker and heard something I never heard before when it came out. At the time no one sang or spoke like Adrian Belew did not even David Byrne. Today it does sound less exciting but at the time it was really oddball. It was not screaming, it was not singing, it was not spoken word. It was not even nervous in the style of Talking Heads or Devo. It was just this voice that bobbed up and down.
I did go back to listen to the 70s records and they are good. I do not get why everyone loves Red. It rocks. I enjoy it. But what does this record do that Black Sabbath or Deep Purple or even Genesis didnt do better years before?
Islands and Starless And Bible Black are more interesting than Red, which is fun the first few times but that is it.
Discipline is the one for me. Three Of A Perfect Pair comes close. If I had to chose a record side, Side B of Three Of A Perfect Pair would get my vote.
― Miza Din II, Monday, 22 October 2007 21:12 (sixteen years ago) link
red is too samey sounding all the way through
― chaki, Monday, 22 October 2007 21:13 (sixteen years ago) link
Jamie Muir ruled. I blew a bunch of money on two of those KCCC live discs that have Muir on them, but it was worth it.
― Jon Lewis, Monday, 22 October 2007 21:16 (sixteen years ago) link
Yeah, Muir was dope. I like those 3 mid-70's albums to such a similar degree that I think it would be impossible for me to pick a favorite.
― Davey D, Monday, 22 October 2007 21:17 (sixteen years ago) link
I bought that "Great Deceiver" set in high school and my friends laughed at me. =(
― Davey D, Monday, 22 October 2007 21:18 (sixteen years ago) link
Starless just ahead of Red. Discipline and Court are great albums too though.
― Herman G. Neuname, Monday, 22 October 2007 21:20 (sixteen years ago) link
Red has great drumming, and sounds great too.
― Jordan, Monday, 22 October 2007 21:21 (sixteen years ago) link
Debut or controversial Islands choice for me.
― Dan Peterson, Monday, 22 October 2007 21:53 (sixteen years ago) link
They never got better than their debut, although "Lizard" comes close.
― Geir Hongro, Monday, 22 October 2007 22:35 (sixteen years ago) link
Argh too difficult. They all have superb material and boring material.
Too many distinct eras too. It's like presenting a car, a novel and a banana, and asking me which of those is my favourite thing.
Poseidon and Discipline are the only ones I can listen to without skipping much. Red's got 12 minutes of tuning, Crimson King's got 12 minutes of tuning, ConstruKction is excellent gym workout music but annoying in any other environment, and Larks' Tongues lacks something crucial but I can't pinpoint what it is.
If this were an Adrian Belew poll it'd be easy.
― Autumn Almanac, Monday, 22 October 2007 23:09 (sixteen years ago) link
Oh, this poll is soooo Larks' Tongues, baby.
― Joe, Monday, 22 October 2007 23:10 (sixteen years ago) link
Okay Red it is, pretending Providence never existed.
― Autumn Almanac, Monday, 22 October 2007 23:10 (sixteen years ago) link
G-Bflat-C-C#-Bflat-C G-Bflat-C-C#-Bflat-C G-Bflat-C....C#...C... [clamoring Bruford snare/cymbal fill] F-F# etc.
― Joe, Monday, 22 October 2007 23:13 (sixteen years ago) link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrT2jEv_Yws
― Joe, Monday, 22 October 2007 23:15 (sixteen years ago) link
sadly i voted for ItCotCK, when I know RED or Starless are just as good
― CaptainLorax, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 00:00 (sixteen years ago) link
itcock
― Autumn Almanac, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 01:03 (sixteen years ago) link
disciplin
― gman, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 01:37 (sixteen years ago) link
in the wop
― Autumn Almanac, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 01:43 (sixteen years ago) link
construkction. simply because it's the only KC album I listen to from start to finish.
there's certainly some great stuff on the other albums, but they're not very consistent, and much skipping is required. I don't think KC have ever really worked in soft balladeering mode.
― m the g, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 08:00 (sixteen years ago) link
Matte Kudasai? Inner Garden I & II? One Time? Cadence and Cascade? I Talk to the Wind?
― Autumn Almanac, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 11:51 (sixteen years ago) link
I'm nitpicking, I know.
Oh they haven't worked, not they haven't worked. I see what you mean now.
― Autumn Almanac, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 11:53 (sixteen years ago) link
Court or Discipline, just to be a cunt.
― King Boy Pato, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 13:15 (sixteen years ago) link
I picked "Starless & Bible Black", I like a load of their records about equally, I just went on which one would I want to listen to now if I had them all in front of me.
― Pashmina, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 13:33 (sixteen years ago) link
Going with Three of a Perfect Pair, but might've easily gone with In the Court Of.. or Discipline or Earthbound.
― Alex in NYC, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 13:49 (sixteen years ago) link
wait, Earthbound is live, never mind that one.
― Alex in NYC, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 13:50 (sixteen years ago) link
I really like Providence, I don't think, it's just "tuning"
― Bill Magill, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 14:01 (sixteen years ago) link
thank you, thank you, thank you, dear kc thread! you've given me a fab new word -- itcockin'!
and as i'm 'ready here, might as well vote. as well.
done it. i'm all for starless. ('tleast today)
― t**t, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 14:26 (sixteen years ago) link
almost impossible to do one overall. i chose lark's because i'm boring but it could just as easily have been red, discipline, or beat
― akm, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 16:44 (sixteen years ago) link
lizard
― kamerad, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 17:16 (sixteen years ago) link
Wow, thanks for that youtube link up thread. Now I'm watching all these different performances. You could almost do a poll on which live version of Larks' Tongues in Aspic pt.2 is the best.
― rockapads, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 18:33 (sixteen years ago) link
I finally picked up that McDonald and Giles album from 1971... damn, it's good.
― Davey D, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 18:42 (sixteen years ago) link
Fracture vs Fractured vs FraKctured vs PhRacTuReD vs FhreacKctuKrceKcd
― Autumn Almanac, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 23:15 (sixteen years ago) link
vs some thing about shaving chickens
― Autumn Almanac, Tuesday, 23 October 2007 23:16 (sixteen years ago) link
Oh god, I appear to only have the wrong ones. In The Court, Poseidon, Lizard, Starless, Beat and Thrak. I have the odd comp too. I really like Poseidon even though it's "Court Pt 2" basically. "Lizard" I quite like too surprisingly.
― the next grozart, Wednesday, 24 October 2007 00:30 (sixteen years ago) link
Oh wait, no I have Islands and Lark's Tongues too. Well I never..
― the next grozart, Wednesday, 24 October 2007 00:32 (sixteen years ago) link
Poseidon is Court pt 2 for the whole of side A. Side B is Mars pt 2.
― Autumn Almanac, Wednesday, 24 October 2007 00:34 (sixteen years ago) link
Gordon Haskell's balls-drop voice on Lizard wears thin after a while. His laughing at the end of the 'hey-ho' song is derisory and has a fascinating story attached to it, but I can't remember what it is.
― Autumn Almanac, Wednesday, 24 October 2007 00:42 (sixteen years ago) link
KC has been the most sustaining music of my life up to this point. A buddy at work wanted to get into them and it got me into reliving everything I loved about them all over again.
― justice 4 CCR (Sparkle Motion), Wednesday, 4 March 2020 00:29 (four years ago) link
I have all the albums up through Red, the Epitaph box (four CDs of radio sessions and liveage from 1969), and three recent live sets: Radical Action, Meltdown (live in Mexico City) and the Audio Diary, which is five CDs, one each from 2014-2018. I'm pretty astonished how much of a fan of this band I've become, really only in the last five years or so. I was always much more into Yes and ELP, but at some point a switch flipped and they just started to make sense to me. I really like how radically they've been transforming their material live in recent years.
― but also fuck you (unperson), Wednesday, 4 March 2020 01:38 (four years ago) link
I think KC's innate heaviness has served them well. They never (well, rarely) were cheesy or corny or too D&D the way a lot of prog bands could be.
― Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, 4 March 2020 01:51 (four years ago) link
They never (well, rarely) were cheesy or corny
This bit of corniness is kind of endearing to me.
Said the straight man to the late manWhere have you beenI've been here and I've been thereAnd I've been in betweenI talk to the windMy words are all carried awayI talk to the windThe wind does not hearThe wind cannot hear...
― nickn, Wednesday, 4 March 2020 02:06 (four years ago) link
And the song is pretty.
― Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, 4 March 2020 02:07 (four years ago) link
Glad to see a bit of Lizard love. It's not their best album, but the whole last track / suite is one of my favourites by them and I especially like the Bolero. My guess is that Fripp is a big Ravel fan in general
― doorstep jetski (dog latin), Thursday, 5 March 2020 11:31 (four years ago) link
I still prefer In The Wake Of Poseidon to ITCOTCK - listened to that yesterday and enjoyed the whole thing
― doorstep jetski (dog latin), Thursday, 5 March 2020 11:32 (four years ago) link
Do you ever fantasise about hearing Easy Money on a massive reggae rig, or is that just me. Followed by a dubbed to fuckery version of course. What a groove. It's just not possible to get this loud enough at home.
― Noel Emits, Thursday, 5 March 2020 11:51 (four years ago) link
An older hippie friend of mine said his dream was to hear Easy Star Allstars cover the whole of Larks Tongues in a dub-reggae style
― doorstep jetski (dog latin), Thursday, 5 March 2020 11:52 (four years ago) link
Gonnna give Islands a listen now for the first time.
― doorstep jetski (dog latin), Thursday, 5 March 2020 11:54 (four years ago) link
hmmm... the Lizard / Islands era is maybe the least appreciated KC period, but I like the jazziness of Formentera Lady. Little bit of a Can-esque vibe going on too.
― doorstep jetski (dog latin), Thursday, 5 March 2020 12:02 (four years ago) link
I was a "fuck everything they did before Larks" person for many years, heard Lizard in like 93 and strongly disliked it, but finally bought Lizard and Islands two years ago. "Sailors Tale" is a major major achievement, but I'm afraid I still think the rest of Islands is pretty lousy, particularly "ladies of the road." Lizard is so maximalistically misbegotten that its kinda fun…
― veronica moser, Thursday, 5 March 2020 14:02 (four years ago) link
Of the bands I'd call my "favorites," King Crimson probably have the most songs I wish were instrumentals.
― but also fuck you (unperson), Thursday, 5 March 2020 14:19 (four years ago) link
I used to quite like Ladies of The Road as a quirky Lennon-esque piece when I was younger.
Juno selling KC vinyl for around £16-£17. Very tempting. I definitely want Poseidon, but deliberating between Red, Larks Tongues and Lizard. Red is song-for-song their strongest but I know it reasonably well despite the opening three songs being among my faves. Larks Tongues on the other hand is less known to me but always impresses
Have we ever done a KC poll?
― doorstep jetski (dog latin), Thursday, 5 March 2020 14:20 (four years ago) link
Lizard almost has a "so bad its good" sorta vibe to it in places. it's such a crazy mess and you can definitely hear the tension in the band, it's almost incredible that it came out at all. if you get it you should try and find Steven Wilson's recent remaster, not only does it sound better but it also incorporates parts that weren't in the original
― frogbs, Thursday, 5 March 2020 15:37 (four years ago) link
dude this is it
― the grateful dead can dance (anagram), Thursday, 5 March 2020 15:43 (four years ago) link
Poll closes at the end of your natural life
― justice 4 CCR (Sparkle Motion), Thursday, 5 March 2020 15:52 (four years ago) link
as for the 80s stuff...you may want to pick up Absent Lovers, its like the 80s albums on steroids. idk if there are any overdubs on it or if the band really was just that good. it's insane, maybe one of the best live albums ever.
This has been my line forever, it's wild how good it sounds compared to the studio versions (and how good the playing is). Like one of the very few examples where the live album is the definitive document (maybe I'll start a thread!).
― change display name (Jordan), Thursday, 5 March 2020 15:57 (four years ago) link
haha I meant a tracks poll. might be difficult with all the live versions etc
― doorstep jetski (dog latin), Thursday, 5 March 2020 18:12 (four years ago) link
Speaking of definitive documents, that was The Great Deceiver set for me.
As far as I'm concerned it has the best versions of all the cuts off of Starless, the great (and rare) Wetton-sung Cat Food, and all the LTIA IIs I could ever want.
― justice 4 CCR (Sparkle Motion), Thursday, 5 March 2020 19:55 (four years ago) link
Listened to 'Absent Lovers' yesterday... my God!
― doorstep jetski (dog latin), Friday, 6 March 2020 15:21 (four years ago) link
If the world needed a heavy-metal version of The Name Of This Band Is Talking Heads, this is it
https://townsquare.media/site/366/files/2020/03/316bcf3bbe6ef17215e556e780f8918b.jpg?w=630&q=75 US tour in June!
― BrianB, Tuesday, 10 March 2020 11:49 (four years ago) link
Robert Fripp got the cranky old person memo that touring all the time is a lot more lucrative than not touring and grousing from the sidelines.
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 10 March 2020 12:07 (four years ago) link
looks like no west coast dates tho :(
haven't seen them since chicago five or more years ago now! last west coast gigs they skipped portland for some reason. hey guys, soft machine played here last year! on the same date as the crazy world of arthur brown! clearly there's a market, right?
― Kate (rushomancy), Tuesday, 10 March 2020 13:28 (four years ago) link
They're playing Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, which is a great venue (I saw Kamasi Washington there), but it's a co-headlining show with Dweezil Zappa's covering-Dad's-music thing - ugh.
― but also fuck you (unperson), Tuesday, 10 March 2020 13:44 (four years ago) link
The Zappa band is not Dweezil's band. The Zappa Family Trust has their own thing out there.
Please note The Zappa Band touring unit is: Ray White (lead vocals, guitar), Mike Keneally (guitar, keys, vocals), Scott Thunes (bassist) and Robert Martin (keyboards, sax, vocals). Also joining are ZPZ alums Jamie Kime (guitar) and ZAPPA archivist Joe “Vaultmeister” Travers (drums, vocals). The band will be performing a mix of Zappa classics along with new and rare Zappa compositions. Described as “the ultimate Zappa alumni band in partnership the Zappa Trust” this tour will not be appearing with the hologram of Frank Zappa.
― Miami weisse (WmC), Tuesday, 10 March 2020 14:07 (four years ago) link
Getting their revenge by sacking the hologram
― panic-buying the upmarket pasta (Matt #2), Tuesday, 10 March 2020 14:12 (four years ago) link
I heard the hologram was fired for just chain smoking and making snide, derisive, cynical, sarcastic comments and fart jokes.
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 10 March 2020 14:16 (four years ago) link
Wow, that's actually worse.
― but also fuck you (unperson), Tuesday, 10 March 2020 15:27 (four years ago) link
not really, it's players from Zappas band playing music they used to play.
― akm, Tuesday, 10 March 2020 17:13 (four years ago) link
that said I'm bummed about this because it's a co-headlining tour I think, which means shorter KC sets, also, I'm not really a Zappa fan at all. but it's all moot since they aren't coming to the west coast this time anyway
― akm, Tuesday, 10 March 2020 17:14 (four years ago) link
Hoping that 2021 gets another full tour with Bill Rieflin back.
i highly recommend the two (I think) records Rieflin did with Fripp and Gunn.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62Ixbtg9GqQ
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 10 March 2020 18:19 (four years ago) link
the Zappa set might be kinda fun to see but this is coming nowhere near me so
still bummed I had to miss the new KC in Milwaukee on account of it being my son's birthday. if he ever gets into the band I'll be sure to let him know at every opportunity
― frogbs, Tuesday, 10 March 2020 18:26 (four years ago) link
i missed Roger Waters' Wall tour to see my then-5 year old in a play in which he had exactly one line. Now that he's almost 14 and into Pink Floyd I remind him constantly that he caused me to miss this.
― akm, Tuesday, 10 March 2020 19:54 (four years ago) link
fear not, Roger will tour the wall until he dies
― justice 4 CCR (Sparkle Motion), Tuesday, 10 March 2020 20:18 (four years ago) link
I know i say this every hundred posts or so, but all I really want from Crim at this point is Larks part 6 written and performed by this iteration.
― justice 4 CCR (Sparkle Motion), Tuesday, 10 March 2020 20:19 (four years ago) link
ohhh I just realized "Level Five" is Larks 5
― frogbs, Tuesday, 10 March 2020 20:41 (four years ago) link
We’re debating this. I’ve seen this iteration three times now and enjoyed all three but they’ve gotten appreciably better each time. Last time was absolutely mindmeltingly good. Also wondering how COVID-19 impacts this given the timeframe and the age of Robert and Tony.
― Naive Teen Idol, Wednesday, 11 March 2020 12:48 (four years ago) link
https://rockthebonnie.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/king-crimson-covid.jpg " class="noborder">
― nostormo, Wednesday, 12 January 2022 02:52 (two years ago) link
In The Court Of The Covid King
― nickn, Wednesday, 12 January 2022 04:27 (two years ago) link