King Crimson
The Night Watch
[Discipline Global Mobile]
I'm generally not a big fan of live albums, since they're usually greatest hits packages with inferior sound quality. But with King Crimson, the live experience is where they are at their best. This is particularly true of the '73-'74 era of the band, with its intense energy and improvisational abilities.
This double-CD set is a recording of the November 23, 1973 show at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw. It was remastered, sonically enhanced, and released in 1997 by Robert Fripp himself. The sound is worlds better than even the studio albums from the era, and the band's performance is incredible. Each section of the songs seems to have more care and emotion put into it, and the music as a whole pops out and grabs the listener.
All of the tracks from 'Larks' Tongues in Aspic' except the first are performed. "Part Two" is even more powerful than it was on the album.
The band also aired new material at this show. These are the original performances of "Fracture" and the improvisations later to be titled "Starless and Bible Black" and "Trio" that were edited and placed on the subsequent 'Starless and Bible Black' album. "Fracture" is part of the tradition begun with "Larks' Tongues in Aspic, Part Two" and continued with "Red" - heavy, riff-based instrumentals with an unmatched facility for dynamics and composition. This song is of critical importance to all fans of heavy music. "Lament" and "The Night Watch" are also unveiled. The latter would become one of the band's best songs, but here is marred by the failure of the Mellotron in mid-song, bravely left intact on this true-to-life remaster.
The "Trio" improvisation is one of my very favorite KC moments. It's a hauntingly beautiful, calm piece that emerges before our very ears, with only bass, violin, and Mellotron. Usually hyperactive drummer Bill Bruford has one of his best moments as, sensing the magic that's being created, he restrains himself from hitting a single drum. A special moment indeed. Each improvisation on this night was a rousing success, something the band readily admits is not always the case.
For the encore, the band unleashes the definitive version of "21st Century Schizoid Man". David Cross's violin adds a sharper sound than the original. During the jam section in the middle, John Wetton goes absolutely insane, playing his immense bass like it's a piano. The stop/start parts are an amazing display of band tightness. If I could pick one song to introduce a metalhead to KC, it'd be this one.
The typically high-quality packaging and thorough liner notes help make this the best live album I own, and an excellent place to get into the band.
© 2001 j.s.
This double-CD set is a recording of the November 23, 1973 show at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw. It was remastered, sonically enhanced, and released in 1997 by Robert Fripp himself. The sound is worlds better than even the studio albums from the era, and the band's performance is incredible. Each section of the songs seems to have more care and emotion put into it, and the music as a whole pops out and grabs the listener.
All of the tracks from 'Larks' Tongues in Aspic' except the first are performed. "Part Two" is even more powerful than it was on the album.
The band also aired new material at this show. These are the original performances of "Fracture" and the improvisations later to be titled "Starless and Bible Black" and "Trio" that were edited and placed on the subsequent 'Starless and Bible Black' album. "Fracture" is part of the tradition begun with "Larks' Tongues in Aspic, Part Two" and continued with "Red" - heavy, riff-based instrumentals with an unmatched facility for dynamics and composition. This song is of critical importance to all fans of heavy music. "Lament" and "The Night Watch" are also unveiled. The latter would become one of the band's best songs, but here is marred by the failure of the Mellotron in mid-song, bravely left intact on this true-to-life remaster.
The "Trio" improvisation is one of my very favorite KC moments. It's a hauntingly beautiful, calm piece that emerges before our very ears, with only bass, violin, and Mellotron. Usually hyperactive drummer Bill Bruford has one of his best moments as, sensing the magic that's being created, he restrains himself from hitting a single drum. A special moment indeed. Each improvisation on this night was a rousing success, something the band readily admits is not always the case.
For the encore, the band unleashes the definitive version of "21st Century Schizoid Man". David Cross's violin adds a sharper sound than the original. During the jam section in the middle, John Wetton goes absolutely insane, playing his immense bass like it's a piano. The stop/start parts are an amazing display of band tightness. If I could pick one song to introduce a metalhead to KC, it'd be this one.
The typically high-quality packaging and thorough liner notes help make this the best live album I own, and an excellent place to get into the band.
© 2001 j.s.