IN THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING

One of the most important albums in proggressive rock, "In the Court..." represents the start of King Crimson, and sets a standard which few of their later efforts can even be said to be close in quality to. And it's brilliant, but I cannot say it's perfect, for the simple reason of eight minutes being wasted on "Moonchild".

The opening is less than pleasant. This is something I find with a lot of progressive rock albums. For whatever reason, so many, more so than any other genre, prog has a habit of opening songs with weird ambience, or other sfx. It's something I'm really not a fan of, but here it's executed fairly well, and it's somewhat enjoyable when a sudden burst of music. "21st Century?" is an awesome track, but it would probably turn off most people from listening to the rest of the album (which is a shame) due to it being quite a heavy track. Epitaph is also an amazing song, set in a dystopian future, it's an emotive, moving song, and truly shows that Lake is a pretty decent vocalist, but what it really shows is how amazing Fripp is as a composer.

Now, the reason I can only grant this album four stars. "Moonchild". Or more specifically "The Illusion". At around 2:30 it starts, and I can bear it for 2 more, but 10? No. It's a waste of time, self-indulgent nonsense. The title track is a return to form, and the best song on the album.

Overall, "In the Court?" 's influence on all progressive rock cannot be understated. And it's brilliant. In the Court of the Crimson King, undoubtedly, is the peak in King Crimson.