UMUR "Earthbound" is a live album release by UK progressive rock act King Crimson. The album was released through Island Records in June 1972. It bridges the gap between King Crimson´s fourth- and fifth full-length studio albums "Islands" (December 1971) and "Larks' Tongues in Aspic" (March 1973). Recorded through a mixer directly to cassette tape "Earthbound" is a relatively lo-fi recording, and is sometimes described as a bootleg sounding live recording. The band wisely realised that, and upon release offered the album at a budget price. The reasoning being that it didn´t cost them much to record, so the fans shouldn´t have to pay much to listen to it.

Personally I´ve heard bootlegs which sound both better and much worse than "Earthbound", but it´s arguably not a particularly well sounding release. Opening with a loud, heavy, and noisy version of "21st Century Schizoid Man" King Crimson are on to a messy and untight start. "Peoria" is a 7:30 minutes long blues rock jam, which sounds almost nothing like what you´d expect King Crimson to sound. "Sailor's Tale" appears on a shorter version than the studio version found on "Islands" and it sounds uninspired and muddy. "Earthbound" is a blues jazzy improvised jam and again sounds nothing like you´d expect King Crimson to sound. Scat vocals and all from Boz Burrell.

The closing track is a 15:30 minutes long version of "Groon". A track which first appeared on the B-side to the "Cat Food" single in 1970. It´s an improvised jazz jam track...needless to say it again sounds nothing like what you´d expect King Crimson to sound like, and upon conclusion "Earthbound" isn´t a good quality live release from King Crimson. Not only is the recording quality sub par, but the band perform music here which isn´t at all in line with their studio output. Had I gone to see King Crimson on this tour I would have been extremely disappointed. A 2.5 star (50%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Islands" is the fourth full-length studio album by UK progressive rock act King Crimson. The album was released through Island/Atlantic Records in December 1971. It´s the successor to "Lizard" from December 1970. There have been two lineup changes since the predecessor as drummer Andy McCulloch has been replaced by Ian Wallace and bassist/vocalist Gordon Haskell has been replaced by Boz Burrell. "Islands" is the last studio album in phase one of King Crimson´s discography as this incarnation of the band folded acrimoniously in January 1972. It was however decided that the band would fulfill their US touring commitments in February/March 1972, which subsequently resulted in the "Earthbound" live album (released in June 1972). After that Robert Fripp opted to fire everyone and continue with a new lineup.

The reason for the fighting and disagreements between the members of King Crimson during the 1971-1972 period was due to Fripp´s resentment towards some of the other members because of their drug use and very different ideas of the future direction of the music. "Islands" generally suffers from the bad chemistry of the group and it´s a bit of a lacklustre affair compared to the three preceding studio albums from the band. The sexist groupie lyrics and blues rock direction of "Ladies of the Road" are for example completely out of character for King Crimson, and it´s not their finest moment (although the melodic Beatles influenced chorus is quite pleasant and nice, and repeated listens have somewhat softened my opinon on the track). The album opening 10:18 minutes long "Formentera Lady" is not much better with its odd mellow improvised psychedelic sound. It just passes by and seems to go nowhere.

The most interesting songs on the album are "Sailor's Tale" and "The Letters" where King Crimson show some of the things which made them unique. The classical influenced "Prelude: Song of the Gulls" sounds like the soundtrack to a Disney movie and again it´s not King Crimson at their best. The 9:15 minutes long closing title track is as such a pleasant enough listening experience, but the ambient jazzy atmosphere turns the track into sophisticated muzak.

"Islands" features a dark and slightly muddy sounding production job, and it´s not exactly a plus when paired with the generally unremarkable material featured on the album. There is a good reason why "Islands" is almost never mentioned when speaking about King Crimson. It´s simply one of their least accomplished and least interesting albums. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Lizard" is the third full-length studio album by UK progressive rock act King Crimson. The album was released through Island Records (UK) and Atlantic Records (US) in December 1970. It´s the successor to "In The Wake Of Poseidon" from May 1970, and as the band released their debut album "In the Court of the Crimson King" in October 1969, "Lizard" is the third album released by King Crimson in just little over a year. Considering the instability of the early King Crimson lineup that´s actually quite an achivement.

Guitarist Robert Fripp is the only remaining member of the lineup who recorded "In The Wake Of Poseidon (1970)", although lyricist/producer Peter Sinfield and bassist/vocalist Gordon Haskell, were also to a degree involved in the recording of the predecessor (the former more than the latter). Mel Collins (saxophone, flute), who did session work on "In The Wake Of Poseidon (1970)" has become a permanent member of the lineup on "Lizard", so the only truly new member is actually drummer Andy McCulloch.

While "In The Wake Of Poseidon" (1970) in many ways is a similar sounding album to "In the Court of the Crimson King" (1969), "Lizard" shows a lot more progression of King Crimson´s sound. Their will to experiment and incorporate quirky moments are audible here (Fripp´s time with Giles, Giles and Fripp shines through a couple of times, when the band are most positive and silly), and "Lizard" is overall a highly progressive and varied rock album.

"Lizard" opens with the trio of tracks "Cirkus", "Indoor Games", and "Happy Family", which are all experimental and progressive rock tracks of a high caliber. "Lady Of The Dancing Water" is a mellow and atmospheric ballad type progressive folk rock track featuring flute (and some brass too). The 23:22 minutes long title track closes the album and it´s a track featuring many great sections, but also many simplistic (often sounding improvised) experimental/avant-garde sections, which aren´t really that interesting. The first six minutes are brilliant and again from the thirteenth minute of the song the band plays a dark and heavy section, which works really well, but overall I´d say at least half of the song features sections which don´t make my blood boil. It´s worth noting that Jon Anderson from Yes sings on the title track and his distinct sounding voice as always lifts anything he touches to a higher state.

"Lizard" features a well sounding production job, and overall it´s arguably a high quality progressive rock release, but the longer sections of the title track, which feels like they go nowhere, and the relatively unremarkable "Lady Of The Dancing Water" do drag my rating down. On the other hand I can listen to that opening trio of tracks all day, every day. A 3.5 - 4 star (75%) rating is deserved.

siLLy puPPy While already one of the most eclectic of prog bands that got the larger prog party started with its 1969 classic “In The Court Of The Crimson King,” Robert Fripp ingeniously steered his baby through a multitude of varying styles, techniques and songwriting ingenuity all throughout the early 1970s dropping a few instant classics that caught on with the fans immediately as well as albums that reached unthinkable complexities that took longer than usual to cultivate a warm and fuzzy feeling over. Obviously KING CRIMSON was less concerned with instant gratification for the fans and fully devoted in an almost monkish manner of astute dedication to its craft where each album had to stand on its own and the very thought of a simple copy and paste and then shuffle around a bit approach was not even remotely part of the equation.

One of the most significant reasons for these extreme changes between albums was the unstable lineups which found every album hosting a whole new prog soiree with members joining the team and then departing as soon as they exited the recording studio. By the time KC got to its fifth album “Lark’s Tongues In Aspic,” the lineup of Robert Fripp (guitar, mellotron), Davis Cross (violin, viola, piano), John Wetton (bass, vocals), Bill Bruford (drums and percussion) along with secondary percussionist Jamie Muir proved to be the most cohesive lineup and not only delivered one of the band’s most revered classic albums but followed with a demanding tour that left little time for conjuring up new studio material for the next chapter of the KING CRIMSON saga. By tour’s end only a mere two studio tracks had emerged from the precious little down time the band experienced which led to the dilemma of what to present to the record company for new album material.

The genius of Robert Fripp transcended such obstacles though and after reflecting on the amazing musical moments that the band had honed during their live performances, KC members noticed how extraordinary some of the live improvised footage turned out from the band’s extensive touring schedule and opted simply to capture the magic of a live setting and simply assimilate it into the context of a studio album. Shrouded in secrecy and unrevealed until well after the band broke up after “Red,” KING CRIMSON meticulously scoured through an entire tour’s worth of the best improv moments (primarily lifted from a sole Amsterdam show) they mustered up and mixed live recordings with new studio embellishments. The result was one of the greatest (mostly) live albums that nobody knew was (mostly) live! STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK was born and thus KC created one of the most eclectic albums in their already far-reaching canon that led up to it. The clever KC kept it all under wraps due to the fact record companies pay less royalties on live albums even when they are mere samplings incorporated into the mishmash of live / studio hybrids. The album’s title refers to a quotation from the first two lines of poet Dylan Thomas’ play “Under Milk Wood.”

Enjoying the stability of the same lineup minus Jamie Murr who abruptly exited due to purported back problems leaving Bill Bruford to tackle all percussive duties, STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK found the band shifting gears once again and delivered an eclectic potpourri much more steeped in jazz and classical then anything from the rock paradigm but once again unleashed the goods in a way that was well outside the parameters of the more popular progressive rock acts of the day. While a divisive album for many fans, STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK is one of those albums that you can never predict exactly where it goes. Roughly 3/4 improvised live material and only a quarter studio only, the album begins with the completely new power packed “The Great Deceiver” which delivers one of the hardest rocking songs of KC’s career with Fripp’s spidery guitar riffs haunting the time signature rich musical motifs that offer the most authentic of true 70s rock that KC ever delivered infused with a hard rock energetic performance. Just one of four tracks that featured lyrics, STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK was a mostly all-instrumental affair with complex liberties and creativity flourishing at every juncture.

“Lament,” the only other completely studio track, follows with a softer orchestrated intro ceding to another heavier rocker and “lamenting” the pitfalls of fame and losing one’s anonymity when on the world’s stage as a famous rock band. On tour, Wetton even received an impromptu marriage proposal from an unknown female fan accompanied by her brother to guarantee the success of her fanaticism run amok! After the first two tracks which in a way prognosticate what Fripp would revive in the 80s starting with the trilogy of albums that began with “Discipline,” the rest of the album takes on a more contemplative cerebral approach with thoughtful instrumental compositions that showcase the aleatoric improvisational skills that the band had honed into Olympic winning performances as each musician developed the perfect methodology of punctuating the silence between the other’s playing techniques, a feat almost unheard of in the context of rock music and more akin to the greatest masters of the classic world of jazz. The “Night Watch” showcased the band’s skillful studio mastery of removing any traces of live setting audience noises which was totally absorbed from the single night at the Amsterdam Concergebouw concert.

Being the head scratching shapeshifter that it turned out to be, STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK morphs into a chamber rock session with “Trio”, which found Bruford sitting out and twiddling his thumbs while violinist David Cross evoked more of an Antonio Vivaldi vibe than anything remotely resembling how the album began just a mere five tracks prior. The most daring and complex creations of the entire KC playbook emerge at the end of the album with “The Mincer” delivering an abstract almost Soft Machine style of free jazz only accompanied by Fripp’s eccentric guitar accompaniments. The track meanders instrumentally only to throw the curveball of Wetton’s lyrical contributions emerging towards the end. The track seamlessly cedes into the all instrumental title track which threw the entire world of classical, jazz, rock and chamber music into the cauldron and unleashed a monstrously bizarre track kept from losing any connection to reality by Wetton’s groovy bass lines. Cited as the most difficult composition to play guitar on of his entire career, the closing “Fracture” seems like a totally different band that how the album began with “The Great Deceiver.” The track in many ways showcases the apex of Fripp’s unique playing style that differed so greatly from any other guitarist of the era.

While often ignored for the more cohesive popular masterpieces that bookend it, STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK really is one of the more difficult nuts to crack in the KC playbook but attentive listens over long periods of time reveal its ingenuity and musical innovation in a way that a mere one exposure or even two, three or four could possibly achieve. In many ways the album showcases the pinnacle of the progressive rock paradigm that had apexed in the years of 1973 and 1974 and taking the visionary fusion of rock, jazz, classical and creative license to its logical conclusion. STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK may not be the most accessible of KC’s lauded string of masterworks that were crafted for the relatively short time span of 1969-1974 but after allowing it properly sink in and work its magic, it definitely stands high in the standards set out by the early pioneers of prog and has retrospectively garnered much more acceptance than it did initially when deemed inconsistent and arcane for many.

My personal experience is basically the same as most as my first several encounters left me feeling indifferent and only by attentively listening for many years has the album really gotten under my skin. The album proved to be the perfect transitional stage between “Lark’s Tongue” and “Red” and although the band was on the verge of breaking up, showcased the magnanimous nature of what talented dedicated musicians can achieve when they fully commit themselves. Perhaps just a smidge behind the album it followed and one that came after but nevertheless STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK now screams masterpiece every time i put it on. For those having a hard time with this one, don’t force it. Let it sink in. It truly is one of those albums that only reveals itself after numerous exposures and astute attentiveness. While many dismiss this as a mere space filler between “Lark’s Tongue In Aspic” and “Red,” STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK is certainly no slacker when it comes to high quality and compositionally challenging progressive rock. In fact it was TOO complex for its own good in many ways but has more than stood the test of time and in many circles equally revered as just another classic in the impressive KC canon.

Warthur When it comes to the monster King Crimson boxed sets I've covered so far, I'd put The Road to Red on a tier above Sailors' Tales and the Larks' Tongues box, but below that of Starless.

In terms of sound quality, whilst it's a bit less consistent than the Starless box, it's nonetheless streets ahead of most of the material on Sailors' Tales and Larks' Tongues. In terms of the live sets presented on the box, there's obviously a lot of fantastic performances here, but I'd say that by and large the performances on the Starless box have the edge on them, with some exceptions.

In addition, there's a more nuanced reason why I think Starless is a five-star set whilst The Road to Red is more four- and-a-half stars. On the European tours covered in Starless, King Crimson were typically the headliners, with set lengths giving them space to sprawl. Conversely, in many of the US dates chronicled here, their improvisations where greatly curtailed due to the fact that they were working as a support act. Consistently, the better gigs here are the longer concerts where they were headlining and had the space to really get into it.

It's still a fantastic collection for anyone who loves mid-1970s King Crimson (and the new mix of Red is great), but I just don't think it hits five stars.