Recorded: 1984, Released: 1998
Tracks: Entry of the Crims; Larks’ Tongues in Aspic (Part III); Thela Hun Ginjeet; Red; Matte Kudasai; Industry; Dig Me; Three of a Perfect Pair; Indiscipline; Sartori in Tangier; Frame By Frame; Man With an Open Heart; Waiting Man; Sleepless; Larks’ Tongues in Aspic (Part II); Discipline; Heartbeat; Elephant Talk
Best track: Sartori in Tangier
Track to skip: none
This 2 CD set was recorded in Montreal on 7/11/84 and was the last concert this lineup of King Crimson played. This is the end of the road for my little Crimson 81/84 review session and I love how we get the beginning (Live at Moles, this lineup’s first gig), go through 3 studio albums and another live one, and then end up here at their last gig. The band starts off the show with an improv, a rarity for this lineup. Fripp starts us off, then Levin, then Belew comes in and increases the noise and finally Bruford arrives and launches the band into a fierce version of Larks’ III. Bruford’s drumming on here is pretty spectacular. He’s also got a nice solo at the beginning of Indiscipline. I love this version of the song. The band just rages on it and Belew has a lot of fun with the lyrics. This track in particular shows how far the 81/84 Crimson has evolved. The audience is pretty enthusiastic during this track. It’s amusing. By now the audience has more than accepted this ‘new’ King Crimson and they clearly love it. Only at a King Crimson concert would you get an enthusiastic response from “Do you want some more of the weird stuff?”, which is what Belew asks before launching into Dig Me.
The band is really on fire for this whole show. On the first disc, the only break is a nice version of Matte Kudasai, with the rest of the disc being pretty relentless. Disc two starts off with a jaw-dropping version of Sartori in Tangier (previously available in the Frame By Frame box set from 1991). It’s nice that on Sartori Belew returns to his original instrument (drums) to pound out the rhythm while Bruford does some nice percussion over the top, all while Levin does his typical cool stick work and Fripp plays an absolutely raging solo. This is probably the best track of the set and it clearly illustrates how powerful this version of King Crimson was. Belew also continues doing percussion in a duet with Bruford on Waiting Man and it’s another great version.
The 80’s version is my favorite lineup of King Crimson and this album showcases why. They don’t do very much improvisation, but they make up for that in how powerful the music is. Discipline is the not only the best that this band did, but also the crowning achievement of King Crimson in general. As for Absent Lovers, it’s the definite live album covering this period of King Crimson. I wish there had been more material from Beat on here, but that’s just a small complaint. For specifics, start with Discipline, but if you want a good overview of this 80’s Crimson, this is the place to go.
Rating: 95
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