h e a t h e r

This is an amazing live document of the '72-'74 era King Crimson, containing music from the Larks' Tongues in Aspic and the Starless and Bible Black albums. Unfortunately nothing from Red is here, but if you would like to hear live performances of pieces from Red, you can check out the Great Deceiver box set. Wow, what a great band. While this 2-CD set can never substitute for their original prog-rock masterpieces, Larks', SBB, and Red, this is still a pretty great purchase that really captures the energy of this era of King Crimson. Nothing about the sound gives away the fact it was recorded in 1973; the crushing power of the performance sounds like Metallica playing exotic progressive rock. This version of "Exiles" is, in my opinion, the best available, with the ominous low-pitched introduction, and the Moog and violin playing the main melody of the song. The versions of "Easy Money" and "21st Century Schizoid Man" are heavier than the originals. A lot of the tracks here are also on the classic Starless and Bible Black release: "Trio", "Fracture", "Starless and Bible Black". The version of "The Night Watch" is slightly different from the studio version — I can't pick which one I like best, they are both great. This collection is an example of the King Crimson ability to draw opposites into music: heavy and soft, melodic and noisy, classical and rock, improv and structure, beauty and menace. If you have the other albums I mentioned, this is still worth tracking down. If you already have the Great Deceiver box set, you might not need this. review by Heather Mackenzie — undated —

j o e

I was in Amsterdam one summer, and had to give pause when walking on the lawn in front of the famed Concertgebouw classical music hall, nowadays off-limits to rock performers. In back of me was the Rijksmuseum, which houses the original "Night Watch" painting by Rembrandt. The Nightwatch is King Crimson's performance at the Concertgebouw over 25 years earlier, on November 23, 1973. Over half of Starless and Bible Black was drawn from this night's performance, including the breathtaking, atypically ghostly improvisation "Trio" and the basic foundation tracks for Fripp’s mammoth "Fracture". Violinist David Cross relates that this show was a point of low morale and energy for the band. The listener wouldn't know this otherwise, as the band turns in reliably skilled performances throughout. Also, the little imperfections (e.g. the problems with Cross' mellotron during "The Night Watch" forcing Wetton to cover with vocal fills) add to the disc's charm as a live document. This is an essential release for non-dilettante Crimson fans. review by Joe McGlinchey — undated —

e r i c

This is a very good sounding set, and the band is in fine form. The lineup of Wetton, Bruford, Fripp, and Cross improvises alot here; at times it is powerful, and at others gets a bit boring ("Fright Watch"), but more times than not it is successful. The ending of disc two is particularly strong, with "Larks' Tongues II" and "21st Century Schizoid Man" to end the show. "Easy Money" also starts the first disc out on the right foot. Overall, I will continue to support these archival releases, as everything I have heard has been well done with excellent documentation by Fripp about the shows and the band at that time. Keep them coming please! review by Eric Porter — undated —

b r a n d o n

For diehard King Crimson fans, this is more of a curiosity than anything else. It's interesting to hear the versions of "Fracture" and "The Night Watch", warts and all, before they were cleaned up and added to for the Starless and Bible Black album. I find the "studio" version of the former song to be more powerful, with some added percussion dubbed in here and there, but "The Night Watch" is charming; the listener can't help but be drawn in when Cross' mellotron fries and Wetton has to cover for it, with a fair degree of success. "Starless and Bible Black" and "Trio" are basically the exact same as on the studio album, but the sound quality is much improved (though this may change with the release of the 30th anniversary edition of SaBB!). The other pieces here are passable but somewhat redundant, given the existence of the absolutely stunning Great Deceiver box set from this same period of the band's history. I would recommend this album to two groups of listeners, then: the King Crimson completist that snaps up every single archival release out there, and the fan of 1973-4 King Crimson that isn't willing to spend $70 on The Great Deceiver but wants to have some live document of this fundamentally live band. review by Brandon Wu — undated —