STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK

Second Lp with Wetton, "Starless And Bible Black" is one of the most controversial, extreme and unbalanced King Crimson's album. Despite presenting the same sound and arrangements as the previous record, SABB is profoundly different because it is not geometric, slow and thoughtful as Larks Tongues In Aspic but messy, unequal and almost improvised, according to a more jazzy wish. It's almost a live instrumental album.

Side A.

The beginning "The Great Deceiver (4:02)" is hyperkinetic, with a music that alternates moments of speed-rock (in advance of 20 years) with thoughtful moments. The sound is much more powerful and decisive than LTIA, with Wetton's wonderful bass in the foreground. Rating 8.

The second piece, "Lament (4:00)" is another strange track, very creative, the sound with Bruford's percussion and Wetton's bass in the foreground is increasingly jazzy and the composition is unpredictable, deconstructing the song form. Here you can hear better the violin of Cross that in this Lp is more in the background than the previous, in fact the rhythm section and the guitar of Fripp fill the whole sound scenario. Rating 8+.

These are the only two songs recorded totally in the studio.

The third piece, "We'll Let You Know (improv recorded in Glasgow) (3:46)", instrumental, is based on a really fantastic bass by Wetton, while in the background Fripp's guitar performs variations on the typical theme of jazz. it's little more than a sketch. Rating 6,5/7.

"The Night Watch (4:37)", partially recorded live, is another improvisation, but it's more melodic, the album's only burst of serenity. Rating 7,5.

"Trio (5:41) ", instrumental, recorded live at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, begins too soft, the first two minutes are almost in the background but the melody is beautiful, melancholy and poignant, almost medieval, thanks to a great work by Cross and an instrument that I can not identify. It's the symphonic track of the Lp. Rating 7,5/8.

"The Mincer (improv recorded in Zurich) (4:10)" is a live instrumental improvisation, vague and directionless, with Wetton's voice over-engraved in the studio. it's the weakest piece of the Lp. Rating 6+.

Rating side A: 7,75 (average 7,42).

Side B.

"Starless And Bible Black (9:11)" and "Fracture (11:14)" are recorded live at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. They are instrumental pieces, noisy, quite hard rock, criptic, dissonant, very ardous to listen. Starless is a real improvisation and begins slowly, percussion and guitar; the sound of Fripp's guitar is acid and very acute and becomes more and more acute and leads the sound of the group to abstract territories where the sound is rock but the score is jazz, thanks to the virtuosity of Wetton and Bruford. Rating 7,5.

Even Fracture begins slowly and Fripp's guitar is inhaled into a tonal scale that gives repetitive shape to the piece, whose sound robe is hard-rock but again the score is jazz. The piece alternates moments of pure minimalist improvisation with moments when it repeats a rock theme. Tra track is more structured than Starless. Around eight minutes the song became very remedied and continued until the end to conclude the album in a triumphant tone. Rating 8.

Rating side B: 7,75.

Medium quality of the two sides: 7,75.

Rating album: 7,75. Three Stars.