DISCIPLINE

One of those funny things about King Crimson is that, with the diversity of their styles and their frequent experimentation, it's just about impossible not to have at least one line-up by them that just doesn't work for you. And for me, that's the "Discipline" era.

The album has some strong musical ideas and a team of competent musicians but, in my opinion, wasn't executed very well. The production aesthetic is one that I completely disagree with. The guitars sound sterile and dull, the drums overpowering and it's really trying to listen to most of the time. I won't try to discourage people from listening to it since there are some camps that it will appeal to, mostly Fripp fanatics and 80's art rock aficionados, but this isn't really an album that would appeal to most prog fans.

You've gotta hand it to Fripp and company for reinventing their sound so often, but sometimes experiments are better left sequestered safely away behind the lab bench, away from the general public.