Red: King Crimson
Printed From: Progarchives.com
Category: Progressive Music Lounges
Forum Name: Prog Recommendations/Featured albums
Forum Description: Make or seek recommendations and discuss specific prog albums
URL: http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=101024
Printed Date: April 27 2024 at 04:06
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Topic: Red: King Crimson
Posted By: SteveG
Subject: Red: King Crimson
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 16:39
| 1974's Red. Is it better than Starless and Bible Black or a disappointing follow up? Or somewhere in the middle? |
Replies:
Posted By: The Son of Gorp
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 16:51
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The first time I ever heard Red, it shattered whatever expectations I had of it beforehand. It packed a whole lot of power, especially in Starless. SaBB was much more of an acquired taste, but it's still very interesting. Red is certainly better, though. ------------- When Da Zeuhl Wortz Mekanik, you just know. |
Posted By: The.Crimson.King
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 17:50
I'd say somewhere in the middle. SaBB was my 1st Crimso album so will always be hard to beat. When I bought Red a few months later, it sounded much more like USA than SaBB and I liked that heavier sound, problem was after a few listens I got tired of Starless so spent all my time listening to side 1...which made it kind of half an album compared to SaBB. OTOH, One More Red Nightmare still beats anything on SaBB for me...ya, somewhere in the middle  ------------- https://wytchcrypt.wixsite.com/mutiny-in-jonestown" rel="nofollow - Mutiny in Jonestown : Progressive Rock Since 1987 |
Posted By: Polymorphia
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 17:55
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I'd call it an equal to SaBB. I didn't like Red as much at first, though. ------------- https://dreamwindow.bandcamp.com/releases" rel="nofollow - My Music 
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Posted By: Raff
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 18:10
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I'd say that Starless and Bible Black is more dark and visceral, while Red is more polished. Personally, both are great favourites of mine, though I tend to play the former when I want to experience the rawer side of KC, and the latter when I'm in the mood for a bit more melody. |
Posted By: HolyMoly
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 18:15
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LTIA > Red > SAAB all essential albums but that's my preference. ------------- My other avatar is a Porsche It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle if it is lightly greased. -Kehlog Albran |
Posted By: Imperial Zeppelin
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 18:25
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The peak of their amazing career. ------------- "Hey there, Dog Man, now I drink from your bowl." |
Posted By: Kentucky_Hawkwindage
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 18:26
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I like Red better myself,in fact Red is my favorite KC album,followed closely by SABB ------------- "Nobody's Gonna Change My World That's Something To Unreal" Lyrics that i live my life by-from Black Sabbath's Technical Ecstasy's track You Won't Change Me |
Posted By: micky
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 18:30
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aye... not a fan of this era. Much of the acclaim for it goes over my head. Equal for me... Red has starless, the previous has the raucous lead track.. both I love... but obvious disimilar. The rest of both albums... ehhh. ------------- The Pedro and Micky Experience - When one no longer requires psychotropics to trip |
Posted By: verslibre
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 20:03
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Red is probably my favorite of that era. A stunner. Wetton was the man back then! ------------- https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_ipg=50&_sop=1&_rdc=1&_ssn=musicosm" rel="nofollow - eBay |
Posted By: Tom Ozric
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 20:11
| Red is much stronger than SaBB for my taste. I guess I go for the heavier sound...... |
Posted By: Man With Hat
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 20:11
I'll agree with this. ------------- Dig me...But don't...Bury me I'm running still, I shall until, one day, I hope that I'll arrive Warning: Listening to jazz excessively can cause a laxative effect. |
HolyMoly wrote:Posted By: HackettFan
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 22:07
| Red is too stark and slow for me. David Cross' contribution is sorely missing. I spend a lot of time waiting for something to happen in it, very boring except for Providence. I love Lark's Tongues and Starless and Bible Black, so put me down for disappointing follow up. |
Posted By: rogerthat
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 22:09
| Red, as Ivan and Hugues noted in their reviews, actually has a nostalgic, throwback quality, sort of tying up the Wetton-KC, which Fripp himself later opined had perhaps gone too far in the direction of experimentation, with the more organised and melodic ITCOTCK phase. This is particularly evident on Starless with its mournful mellotron. For that reason, its's my favourite of the trio. It is imo a culmination of the Wetton KC philosophy, finally contextualising their brilliant experiments in earlier albums into a more structured set of compositions. Having said that, I like LTIA almost as much. SABB is the one I am not so fond of. |
Posted By: Tom Ozric
Date Posted: January 17 2015 at 22:18
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Lark's Tongues - 5 Red - 4.5 Bible Black - 4 Wetton era Crimso produced phenomenal stuff really. ......or if you're a drummer, then Bruford era....... |
Posted By: Dellinger
Date Posted: January 18 2015 at 00:19
| I do like this album a lot. However, my very favourite song, Starless, I much prefer live, since that is the way I first heard it, and for me the main melody is made to be played with a violin. My second favourite song, Red, I much prefer on later live versions by the double trio line-up. And Providence, I'm afraid I just can't get into that one... improvs are just not my thing. As how I rate it compared to SaBB, well, I haven't heard that album, so it's difficult to tell, but I think I have heard almost every song from that album on other live albums (except for the title track)... and since that album was largely constructed from live recordings anyway, well, I guess I could say I almost have the whole album... in parts. However, most of those songs I have heard didn't do much for me, except for Fracture, which I do enjoy. |
Posted By: Dayvenkirq
Date Posted: January 18 2015 at 00:23
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Posted By: floflo79
Date Posted: January 18 2015 at 02:18
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Best album of King Crimson for me. Every songs are perfect except Providence. I find it a little bit boring. But Starless is one of the greatest songs of all time. ------------- 
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Posted By: irrelevant
Date Posted: January 18 2015 at 08:01
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Much better than SaBB. Probably my favourite KC album. ------------- https://gabebuller.bandcamp.com/" rel="nofollow - New album! http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=7385" rel="nofollow - http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=7385 |
Posted By: moshkito
Date Posted: January 19 2015 at 09:37
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Hi,
Let me go listen to it for the umpteenth time and then tell you what I felt and thought!
On 2nd thought forget it ... I'm just gonna close my eyes and fade away with it. Sorry ... no inner mind porn to tell you about it! ------------- Music is not just for listening ... it is for LIVING ... you got to feel it to know what's it about! Not being told! www.pedrosena.com |
Posted By: TradeMark0
Date Posted: January 19 2015 at 13:06
| SABB was good, but Red is one of my favorites. I've never heard an album quite like it. |
Posted By: Blacksword
Date Posted: January 19 2015 at 13:11
Yeah, much prefer Red too. Altough it's not specifically the fact that it's heavier. I just prefer the songs. Fallen Angel & Starless are two of their best songs from any era, imo. ------------- Ultimately bored by endless ecstasy! |
Posted By: Padraic
Date Posted: January 19 2015 at 13:47
This |
Posted By: hellogoodbye
Date Posted: January 19 2015 at 14:34
| Not really a preference among the magnificent seven. |
Posted By: The Dark Elf
Date Posted: January 19 2015 at 14:46
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The title song is that annoying sort of KC piece that goes on for 5 or 6 minutes too long. I prefer "Fracture" which is more akin to the splendid instrumentals on LtiA. "The Night Watch" is in my top five as far as KC songs go, but I think Red is more cohesive and consistent overall. Might as well be a double album really. Two sides of one coin. ------------- ...a vigorous circular motion hitherto unknown to the people of this area, but destined to take the place of the mud shark in your mythology... |
Posted By: richardh
Date Posted: January 19 2015 at 15:14
| I love it including Providence ( and I don't like improvs normally), '3 pieces' will always have a magic for me. Its also an album that all drummers should study. |
Posted By: Mascodagama
Date Posted: January 25 2015 at 12:24
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Mistaken post edited out!
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Posted By: Kirillov
Date Posted: January 27 2015 at 04:19
^This |
Posted By: Toaster Mantis
Date Posted: January 27 2015 at 04:31
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I think Red has the best flow as a coherent album, but Starless and Bible Black has the stronger individual songs. Like I get the impression Red is supposed to be listened to in one long sitting without distractions, even if it isn't a concept album as such. I gain some extra enjoyment that way from how the tracks are sequenced and flow into each other. In the case of Starless..., it's more individual tracks I pull it out to listen to. Does that make any sense? ------------- "The past is not some static being, it is not a previous present, nor a present that has passed away; the past has its own dynamic being which is constantly renewed and renewing." - Claire Colebrook |
Posted By: irrelevant
Date Posted: January 27 2015 at 04:36
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^ Does to me ------------- https://gabebuller.bandcamp.com/" rel="nofollow - New album! http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=7385" rel="nofollow - http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=7385 |
Posted By: Michael678
Date Posted: January 27 2015 at 06:36
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i quite like this record; side 1 is awesome, side 2 not so much (curse you Providence!!!) but Starless still takes the cake. SaBB may need a few more listens, but the first 2 tracks, The Night Watch, and Fracture, are all fantastic, especially the latter. ------------- Progrockdude |
Posted By: Rednight
Date Posted: January 27 2015 at 10:22
 A finer example of prog has yet to be commissioned!
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Posted By: Pastmaster
Date Posted: January 27 2015 at 10:59
| I really like both, but as far as favorite goes it all depends on my mood. |
Posted By: TeleStrat
Date Posted: January 27 2015 at 11:57
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For one reason or another, my KC albums (and other classic prog albums) have sat idle for some time. Because of this thread I put on Red to see if it was what I remembered it to be. Just finished side one and enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Back in the day I bought a lot of albums in a short period of time and did not (could not) give many of them a lot of time to sink in. I guess it was better to buy albums and not listen to them much than not buying albums at all. |
Posted By: KingCrInuYasha
Date Posted: January 27 2015 at 12:11
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Probably better. I'm not too fond of "We'll Let You Know" or "Starless And Bible Black", so Red has a more consistent flow. ------------- He looks at this world and wants it all... so he strikes, like Thunderball! |
Posted By: Xonty
Date Posted: January 31 2015 at 16:46
I used to be a huge fan of it, but rarely listen to it now. I kind of feel obliged to call a masterpiece though, despite the fact most of the songs are "only" great, and not mind-blowing like they should be (being a King Crimson record and all). At the moment, I prefer all of their first 5 studio albums to it and have for a while. On the other hand, the musicians are probably at the top of their game, and Starless possibly the greatest KC song ever written. Such a great balance of eerieness, airy melodies, time signatures, and Bill Bruford 
I'll hear it again tomorrow, to hopefully rekindle some interest and feel some much-needed nostalgia.
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Posted By: aglasshouse
Date Posted: January 31 2015 at 17:23
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I've always liked Red more. It's probably my favorite release from their discography. ------------- http://fryingpanmedia.com |
Posted By: Argonaught
Date Posted: January 31 2015 at 17:50
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To me, LTIA, SABB and Red are distinctively individual, but inseparable constituents of the Great KC trilogy. Red culminates the trilogy and therefore is somewhat more prominent, ostensibly. ------------- Thank you, Fripp, for our daily Prog (Red 39:54) |