DISCIPLINE

And it came to pass that there was a drought in the land and the King called Crimson was lost in the wilderness. And after seven years, the King returned, somewhat altered, but ready to spread the word that Prog had returned to the masses. And there was much rejoicing.

So, why am I adding another review to the long list of reviews for this album? Because I love King Crimson, that's why. Never a band to be predictable, but a band bent on progressing. The new incarnation of KC returned with barely a resemblance of the previous line-up. The only survivors from the hiatus were Robert Fripp (of course) and Bill Bruford. They were now joined by two new and extremely talented musicians, Adrian Belew from Talking Heads and Frank Zappa's band for a short while and Tony Levin, bass player extraordinaire. And there was a new sound. Sort of a industrial proto-prog way beyond the cutting edge and ahead of their time once again. Sure there was no beautiful singular masterpiece like "Starless" on this album like there was on "Red", but you can't keep making the same song and sound over and over and consider yourself progressing. Besides, other masterpieces were to come.

The sound is definitely different, and a lot of KC fans could not accept the progression that KC made, but they also ended up winning over a lot of new converts. The one thing that did not change was the ingenuity and influence they would continue to exert not just in prog but other forms of music as well. Whether you liked the change or not, it can not be denied that they would continue to have a great influence. Yes they adopted some new styles that were popular at the time, but they took those styles beyond anything that was being listened to at that time.

This album is full of rapid fire guitar hooks, crazy percussion, some frippertronics added in, and wonderful atmospheric sounds that people were not used to hearing from guitar players. Adrian's vocals definitely worked with the music and his guitar work enhanced and strengthened the spotlight on Fripp's sound and guitar work. Together, they formed a guitar team unmatched and put together sounds that were unheard of then. Listen to them now, and they are still timeless and pertinent, but not quite as new sounding as they were then.

Most of this album is straight ahead hard rock, but not like you would normally think of hard rock. There are a few quieter tracks, but the are still just as innovative, especially "Sheltering Sky" which took frippertronics to a new melodic level. And the rapid fire guitar work in "Frame by Frame" and "Discipline" is jaw droppingly amazing music.

This music speaks to me and gives me chills every time. I honestly don't know any other way I could rate this other than being a true masterpiece in that it embodies the whole idea of what progressive music is. Robert Fripp and crew were only bringing us the beginnings of Math and Post Rock with this album and the other two that followed. Pushing the limits like KC did only opened up the way for what was to come in the future. 5 well-deserved stars, and the King continues to astonish both believers and non-believers.