Errors-To: admin at elephant-talk dot com Reply-To: newsletter at elephant-talk dot com Sender: newsletter at elephant-talk dot com Precedence: bulk From: newsletter at elephant-talk dot com To: newsletter at elephant-talk dot com Subject: Elephant Talk Digest #505 E L E P H A N T T A L K The Internet newsletter for Robert Fripp and King Crimson enthusiasts Number 505 Wednesday, 3 June 1998 Today's Topics: NEWS: New surveys NEWS: CGT Info GIG BIZ: P2 in Boston GIG BIZ: P2 @ Summerville Theater, Summerville MA, June 28th Re: Can't Stop The Elephant From Talking BLUE@HOB TL/BB speak (there's always a commiedian...) Re: don't like the catalogue? the lighter side of Crimson Elephant Trash Talk Australia wants You! Off topic really Henry Rollins Band Sherlock Music next to silence KC Discipline question Dioxid: My musical project Fripp and The Beast Re : Rollins Connection Re: Open Letter to Virgin--or, music history lesson for the day/and then som new vs. old kc, again Mitchell and Fripp lyrics and melody sometimes god hides The Fripps in "Hello!" Magazine.. Damage Re: Thraking Ring Re: OPEN LETTER TO VIRGIN John Wetton live Re: THRAK on vinyl an in-depth album review A few reactions... GIG REVIEW: ProjeKct Two in Columbus, Ohio GIG REVIEW: Cincinnati GIG REVIEW: P2 in Columbus GIG REVIEW: ProjeKct Two Columbus, OH 5/31/98 GIG REVIEW: Mini Concert Review? /APB! GIG REVIEW: P2 - Pittsburgh, PA, 6/1/98 ------------------ A D M I N I S T R I V I A --------------------- POSTS: Please send all posts to newsletter at elephant-talk dot com To UNSUBSCRIBE, or to CHANGE ADDRESS: Send a message with a body of HELP to admin at elephant-talk dot com, or use the DIY list machine at http://www.elephant-talk.com/list/ to ASK FOR HELP about your ET subscription: Send a message to: help at elephant-talk dot com ETWeb: http://www.elephant-talk.com/ You can read the most recent seven editions of ET at http://www.elephant-talk.com/cgi-bin/newslet.pl IRC: Regular get-togethers at #ElephantTalk on Undernet Sundays at Noon PST / 3pm EST / 8pm GMT Mondays at 6pm PST / 9pm EST / 2am GMT THE ET TEAM: Toby Howard (Moderator), Dan Kirkdorffer (Webmeister) Mike Dickson (List Admin), and a cast of thousands. The views expressed herein are those of the individual authors. ET is produced using John Relph's Digest system v3.5b (relph at sgi dot com). ------------------ A I V I R T S I N I M D A --------------------- Date: Tue, 2 Jun 1998 00:40:19 EDT From: DanKirkd at aol dot com Subject: NEWS: New surveys Greetings from the beautiful Pacific NW, and thanks to those of you who have welcomed me to the area. And a belated happy 500th to ET! Who'd have thunk it. Here's looking forward to #1000! I have finally found a moment to update the ET Web survey page with, not one, but two new surveys. Survey #4 deals with the free form vs. structured debate (by popular request). While you're answering that, please take a moment to answer survey #5 too, which asks for a little information about you, the ET reader (no names - just general info). As for the "favorite Fripp solo" question, I hope to have the tabulated responses up in the next few days. Cheers, Dan ET Web ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 03 Jun 1998 02:37:49 -0600 From: Jon Lybrook Subject: NEWS: CGT Info The California Guitar Trio's new album P a t h w a y s is currently scheduled for release on June 23rd on the RYCO Disc label in Europe and the U.S. and on Pony Canyon Records in Japan (already released). The following CGT Summer Concert dates have been confirmed: June 26, 27, 28 - Quebec City Jazz Festival June 30 - Club Soda - Montreal July 1 - 13 North East Coast tour (details TBA!) Check out the CGT site for current info: http://www.cgtrio.com Jon ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 01 Jun 1998 23:06:34 -0400 From: Sean Mc Auley Subject: GIG BIZ: P2 in Boston I was wondering if anyone could tell me where and when P2 will be playing in Boston. I'm having problems getting this info. Son of Auley ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 02 Jun 1998 10:17:37 +0000 From: Martin Bradburn Subject: GIG BIZ: P2 @ Summerville Theater, Summerville MA, June 28th Fellow Spacers - The P2 Mothership will be downloading it's exotic cargo at the Someville Theater in Sommerville Mass June 28th the details are: Somerville Theatre 55 Davis Sq, Somerville, MA Phone: (617)625-5700 Fax: (617)648-6043 Located in Davis Square right on the Red line. Plenty of free parking. Box Office Phone is: (617) 625-4088 Price $22.50 (Terran) cash at the box office or Ticketmaster with the usual exorbitant charges. Hope you (& I) can attend - Martin <>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<> <> Martin G. Bradburn <>-<>-<>-<> Heartlab Inc <> <> Senior Database Engineer <>-<> 101 Airport Rd <> <> mgb at heartlab dot com <>-<> Westerly, RI 02891 <> <> mgb at brainiac dot com(home) <>-<>-<>-<> (401) 596-0592 x103 <> <>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<> <> 'When we have nothing to say, it is very hard to say nothing. <> <> When we have nothing to do, it is very hard to do nothing.' <> <> - Guitar Craft Aphorism <> <>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<>-<> ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 31 May 1998 22:00:23 -0400 From: Douglas Otte Subject: Re: Can't Stop The Elephant From Talking Sorry to continue this techie thread, but there's another option for stopping the "advertisements" from starting when you stick a DGM CD into your CD-ROM. If you have Powertoys (& if you don't, download it from Mafiasoft's Web site - great set of tools), the Autoplay Extender will give you an option window before a program starts playing. You can easily click Cancel & go on w/ the audio tracks via whatever Audio player software you use. There's also another option: click on the Tweak UI button in your Control Panel; click the Paranoia header; unclick the Plays Data CDs Automatically option. If the Plays Audio CDs Automatically option is still clicked, it should start up your audio CDs but not the data ones. However, I can't get this to work. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 01 Jun 1998 19:13:10 +0000 From: Martin Bradburn Subject: BLUE@HOB TL/BB speak (there's always a commiedian...) Dear All - A kind ETer recently sent me a copy of the HOB Blue show (Cybercast) and confirmed suspicion it was a mistake not to go to the show. And I thought BLUE rocked out on thier studio release and the audio of my copy is internet broadcast quality, the performance shines through they crank! Both BB and TL address the crowd so I thought I'd transcribe it for those unable to hear the show. Following Etude Revisited: BB: "Good evening everyone and welcome to the House of Blues. Thank you very much for coming along, hope everybody's warm enough packed in there. You catch us a a good time actually on the last night of exhaustive American tour, you know what last nights are like, there always nice and loose and good things happen up here and we enjoy these kind of things alot. The tour has spanned five whole nights (audience laughs)so ya know we're pretty beat. Oh yeh we went to Japan first but that doesn't count that was business class. This is kind of average class here. It was fun. We started the music there with a piece called Etude Revisited which actually is called revisited because it started life on a CD belonging to my co-host here Tony Levin called World Diary In English that's World Diary in Japanese that's (effects a sterotypical Japanese accent) "Wold O Diree", which is the Japanese translation of that one.. We're here to play you lots of sparkling shiny titles off our new cd Upper Extremities this is but one of them and is called "Original Sin"" TL: "Thank you so much, This is Tony here, this is a really special and momentus night for all of us, we've loved our little US tour. We're very much hoping to book some more in the fall we're working on that. It's special for me to finish in Boston cause I'm from Boston.(Crowd yells) Yeh, let's here it. I don't get back here as much as I'd like to but it's wonderful being back. That's the reason that I know almost everbody here. Between my family and my friends I think I know almost everyone. Most especially my parents are here, you might notice one couple that doesn't fit into the normal demographics of Crimson. And I like to share with you something odd that occured to me. When I was growing up my mom loved to hear me sing, I didn't sing much around the house but some, and she always encouraged me "Why don't you sing more" and then later when I toured with Peter Gabriel and King Crimson I'm singing somewhere in the background, but of course I've never been a lead singer, however tonight,(crowd yells) on our Bruford Levin Uppper Extremities CD there is one track your about to hear where I sing. Ok it's not a lot of singing Ok there's no words(Crowd laughs) ,and alright there's not many notes, one note actually. However I'm going to sing that note and for the first time in our lives my mom will here me sing in concert so for that reason tonight I'd like to dedicate certainly the performance of "Cerulean Sea" from our Upper Extermities album to my mom." BB: "You already met my co-host Tony Levin , who's leaving the stage for no good reason. Tony Levin on basses and photography. One of my favorite guitarists certainly one of the best guitarists in the country I think. In the er town he's not so good but in the country he's great and this is, we're going to spend a few minutes now with David Torn and his oud. Master of the lute ,master of the oud." If they do come around in the fall, I'll be sure to be there and if you haven't ordered BLUE from Papa Bear then do you won'y regret it! BLUE, P2 i'm one happy listener! - Martin ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Jun 1998 22:18:03 -0500 From: "Eric and Nancy Thorson" Subject: Re: don't like the catalogue? In case anyone wants to know, it's not necessary to suffer through the DGM catalogue every time you stick a DGM CD into your computer. In Window 95 machines, the "disable auto-play" function is engaged by holding down the shift key when you put the CD in the drive. Then you can start your CD player as usual. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Jun 1998 22:47:01 -0500 From: "Eric and Nancy Thorson" Subject: the lighter side of Crimson >the early bands featured a non-guitar >instrumentalist who provided an nice counter-weight, indeed >a much-missed complement, to Fripp's assaults It has been my observaton that Fripp himself has changed roles in the double trio, and spends much of his time using soundscapes and synth-patches to replicate the same role Ian McDonald and David Cross used to play. On Space Groove, He and Trey Gunn (also an accomplished soundscaper) trade this role. of course Space Groove brings back the flutes and saxes too, albeit in digitized format. King Crimson invented the now-cliche Heavy Metal aesthetic of soft-loud soft-loud. They used it with intelligence and much more imaginative instrumentation than other bands who followed them. I would point those who miss the softer side of Crimson to the soundscaping of Fripp. This is the way he makes the Crimson voice new for us. Eric J. Thorson ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Jun 1998 22:46:48 -0500 From: "Eric and Nancy Thorson" Subject: Elephant Trash Talk >In conclusion, why does everyone want to trash so much about >these guys? This kind of opinion gets regularly expressed on this list to no avail, thank God. I am usually in disagreement with the whiners and ultimatum givers, but in order to have a list, you've got to stir up some controversy. We have one of the finest internet newsletters around because people faithfully put their most finely-honed arguments on the line for us to comment on. Rarely do ET opinions reach the level of outright insult to the artists. We have yards and yards of people trying to universalize their opinions, but like I said, if this were to stop, we would just have one or two posts a week about "Did you know that Fripp co-wrote Heroes with Bowie in the 70's?" or "what does Thela Hun Gingeet mean?" and our beloved Elephant Talk would never have reached issue 500. Now, back to our regularly scheduled dissention, declamation, discussion, etc. Eric J. Thorson (no concert in Minneapolis -sigh-) ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 2 Jun 1998 21:19:52 +1100 From: "Warwick Allison" Subject: Australia wants You! Hi, in #503 Rob Cervero bored us all with his"'tron" talk and how he likes his"flutes and saxes"...OK anyway he finished up by pleeding Robert to visit Australia next time he goes near it.Well I live in Australia and I think old Rob here is a hero for stating the obvious( he said that he thought there was enough ETers to hold a concert for, let alone all the Crimson fans who don't know about ET.) I'm 15yo and I love Crimson. When I talk about Crimson (which I do a fair bit) everyone thinks I'm a member of the raving looney party, but when I play Crimson and they get to hear it they think it's cool (I KNOW it's cool!) AUSTRALIA WANTS YOU CRIMSON!!!!!! Rob Cervero is the hippest cat on the corner! Stuart Allison New ETer Sydney, Australia ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 02 Jun 1998 11:39:29 +0100 From: Matthew Nolan Subject: Off topic really Saw a new CD in the shops recently - Steve Howe, Quantum Guitar. Anybody heard it / know anything about it? I remember reading somewhere about him being an "experimental guitarist" (in fact in a Future Music magazine article featuring messrs Fripp, Belew and a fourth who I can't remember just now). I wouldn't want to buy it on a purely speculative basis. Having said that, I bought Steve Hackett, The Tokyo Tapes recently (I think someone mentioned it in ET a while back, includes Chester Thompson, Julian Colbeck, Ian MacDonald and John Wetton) but sadly, I found it a little lame. It's a double CD with about 1 CD's worth of interesting material. I took it back. Hey, please don't start a thread on this by the way, it's just a comment. Private emails would probably be best about the Steve Howe too. Thanks for the bandwidth, Matt Nolan. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 2 Jun 1998 21:32:48 +1100 From: "Warwick Allison" Subject: Henry Rollins Band Tim Breen said he saw a show on Henry Rollins saying he liked to sound like Crimson on a bad day. He then asked for comments. Here is two cents worth: Henry Rollins is Mad and so is Crimson* *Crimson is better but Stuart Allison New ETer Sydney Australia P.S. Can we start the Primus comparison up again I missed it last time! ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 02 Jun 1998 08:09:19 -0400 From: TJ Mathews Subject: Sherlock One hint. Sherlock has a new mom. tj dumela at nicom dot com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 02 Jun 1998 20:35:42 -0700 From: einklang at t-online dot de (EINKLANG) Subject: Music next to silence Robert Fripp talks in his introduction to the League of Crafty Guitarists "Intergalactic Boogie Express"(DGM 9502) a lot about ancient cathedrals. What about the music which was composed for this arcitecture? Ancient music presents music next to silence. "Music is the cup which holds the wine of silence" (Robert Fripp). Ancient musics nature is near the same as the nature of RF sound- scaping. The nature of ancient music is also present in the music, which King Crimson plays. Try it out. Here some of my favourit recordings (do you know them all, Mr.Fripp?): I Orlando di Lasso "Requiem/In Paradisum" The Hilliard Ensemble ECM 453 841-2 II Thomas Tallis "The Lamentations of Jeremiah" The Hilliard Ensemble ECM 833 308-2 IIIPerotin "Viderunt Omnes" The Hilliard Ensemble ECM 837 751-2 IV John Dunstable "Missa Rex Seculorum" Orlando Consort Metronome MET CD 1009 V DIV/ANONYMOUS "The Age of Cathedrals" Theatre of Voices harmonia mundi HMU 907 157 VI a contemporary: Arvo Paert "Kanon Pokajanen" Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir ECM 457 834-2 VII ...and so on... In my illusion I hear Fripp do soundscaping to the beautiful voices of my favourite Ensemble, The Hilliard Ensemble. Listen also to the cult CD "Officium" (ECM 445 369-2) - Jan Gabarek adds his saxophon to the singing. I wish Robert Fripp instead of Gabarek would play. Who knows, perhaps a dream come true... Now sit down, shut up, listen, enjoy! Best wishes from Stuttgart, Germany. Martin Gebhard e-mail: einklang at t-online dot de ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 02 Jun 1998 16:24:53 -0700 From: R Tony Subject: KC Discipline question Hello. Just enjoyed Projekct 2 last night here in Pittsburgh--a great show. I found your website today--looks good. I was wondering if you or someone else there knows the "10 rules of Discipline" that King Crimson followed in creating that album. My brother said that the band posted signs at concerts in 1981 with these guidelines. I couldn't find anything about it in the FAQ. I'd appreciate any info. Please email to rtony at telerama dot com Thanks-- Rick ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 03 Jun 1998 02:23:16 +0200 From: Sergi Puertas Subject: Dioxid: My musical project Dear ETrs, I don't know if this a proper post, but being King Crimson my essential influence, I thought you might be interested in listening some of my stuff. I have uploaded four excerpts in MP3 format to the following URL: http://www.geocities .com/SunsetStrip/5855/dioxid.html If by any means you decide to download them, I'd appreciate any feedback, even negative. Pardon the noise, Sergi, the piano has been drinkin' "Music speaks through one language but in many dialects" -Robert Fripp- * -----------------------------------------------------------------------\ Sergi Puertas | "Nothing matters but flopping on a mattress| V 4 Vendetta | http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/5855 | Indiscipline Global Mobile| With cheap dreams and a beer." -Bukowski- | * -----------------------------------------------------------------------/ ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 2 Jun 1998 17:19:13 -0800 From: rtc at sirius dot com (Robert Cambra) Subject: Fripp and The Beast I'm wondering . . . can a musician other than Robert Fripp, or a band that does not include him, bring forth The Beast know to Robert Fripp and us by the name King Crimson? Fripp has mentioned the impersonal nature of this beast, but has he or anyone else ever reported experiencing it's presence without his musical involvement? About fifteen years ago I was watching Einsturende Neubauten perform. At the peak of the performance, when the music opened up, I suddenly felt that this overwhelming thing that I was experiencing was the blues (which seemed strange to me at the time since these guys were making a violent drone largely with metal pipes and truck springs). So I'm wondering if what is referred to as The Blues in this forum and elsewhere is, regardless of musical genre, sometimes a name for a music beast? Robert Cambra ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 03 Jun 1998 13:08:48 +1000 From: "Mark Hawling" Subject: Re : Rollins Connection > one of the special guests was henry rollins. the >moderator asked henry what his current band sounds like. his >response," we try to sound like king crimson on a bad day"! >interesting...comments? About six years ago the Rollins Band had a definite 73/74 King Crimson sound. This can best be heard on their excellent "End Of Silence" album. A lot of this stemmed from the bassplayer Andrew Weiss's sound which was probably even more terrifying than John Wetton's. The band live was even more Crimsony in that many of their songs had variations in dynamics and long improvy bits that weren't blowing, very much like 73/74 Crimson. This band was incredible live and had all the "lurking" Bruford describes in his "When in Doubt Roll" drum book along with an incredible sonic violence and intensity. This isn't to say they were King Crimson sound alikes in anyway, they were just sharing some of the mechanisms that were used by Crimson (though they are of course big fans). I never could imagine Crimson ever having a huge, sweaty mosh pit thrashing around to them!! The more recent Rollins Band has Melvin Gibbs on bass and they have stripped back considerably on the long songs and improvy nature (especially on record). Live they still have more of that sound and are wonderful. Essentially I would recommend them to anyone to either fulfill their need for Crimsony stuff, or for the better reason that the Rollins Band can stand proudly in their own right. Personally I would probably see Rollins instead of Crimson if they were playing on the same night. Well maybe?...... Cheers Mark ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 03 Jun 1998 00:36:40 -0500 From: Neal Brown Subject: Re: Open Letter to Virgin--or, music history lesson for the day/and then some >From the Jazz side is what about Miles Davis? I can't, off >the top of my head recall specifically, but wasn't Bitches >Brew released around '68-'69? Bitches Brew came out in '69. Miles' In A Silent Way, kind of a prototype for BB, came out in '68. Tony Williams played in a band called the Tony Williams Lifetime, which split off from Miles' band after the release of IASW. Lifetime's founding members were Tony (RIP), John McLaughlin (who founded the Mahavishnu Orchestra), and Larry Young. TW was on Bitches Brew, McLaughin was on BB and IASW, and Young was on BB. The Tony Williams Lifetime released Emergency! in '69. As I recall, ITCOTCK came out in January '69, so I guess Lifetime's debut was sometime after Crimson's. >I must point out that KC has far more in common with Miles >Davis' efforts in this genre than BS&T or Chicago. Here I have to disagree. Miles Davis, beginning with Bitches Brew, was exploring an African idiom. Chicago and all that stuff wasn't really in the same arena either. In fact, I'd have a hard time calling In The Court a jazz-rock album. The only tracks that really approach jazz are 21CSM and Moonchild--the former because of Giles' shuffling drumming and Lake's walking bass, the latter because of the ten minute blow at the end of it, which sounds quite a bit like Miles, sans the volume and African influence. In fact, I'd argue that Crimson really hasn't ever done a "jazz-rock" album; certain tunes are pretty jazzy (Cat Food, Ladies Of The Road, and Easy Money come readily to mind), but on the whole, Crimson is not and never has been a "jazz-rock" band the way Chicago was in '68. (Chicago's first album, by the way, is highly recommended to Wetton-Cross era Crimheads. Yeah, I know Chicago is responsible for a high amount of department store muzak, but the early stuff is avant-garde proto-fusion, often moody, occasionally brutal, sometimes just silly, and almost always pretty damn good.) >Upon hearing "Sartori in Tangier" my roommate and I looked >at each other and agreed, "the Fripp guy sounds like >Coltrane." Fripp sounds like Coltrane? Not really. Trane sounds like Trane and Fripp sounds like Fripp. (If you were going to compare Fripp to Trane, why not cite a dissonant jam from The Great Deceiver, instead of something from the distinctly non-jazzy 80s albums?) I should state here that I agree that KC has been *heavily* influenced by jazz, but KC has typically been so startlingly independent of musical trends (often times beginning them, and abandoning them before others can realize how to imitate the Red Monarch) that I can't really agree with lumping them with the other jazz-rock/fusion bands of the 1966-1975 period. P.S. The Double Trio covering Heart of the Sunrise? It's such a delicate, lovely song. Typical of Anderson and Co. I would really love to hear the Double Trio give that wicked roller-coaster opening section the Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream treatment, playing it in different tempi, etc. Can you imagine? THRaKoFTHeSuNRiSe? A 55-minute improv based on a Yes tune? "Thrak--the sound of 127 overdubs of Rick Wakeman solos at approximately the same time." ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 03 Jun 1998 00:58:02 -0500 From: Neal Brown Subject: new vs. old kc, again Sorry for double posting, but here I am again. Had to respond to Greg Karl's post about not getting Thrak. For one thing, I've always though Three of a Perfect Pair was superior to Beat. The only thing new on Beat is the cleaner production; otherwise, it was just Discipline all over again. (Sort of like In the Court and In the Wake.) TOAPP, on the other hand, had that schizoid personality reverse in the middle. After Man With An Open Heart comes Nuages and all the rest of the proto-thrakking, followed by LTIA III in all its intricate glory. And I've always really liked Belew's lyrics. (Except for Two Hands.) I mean, Man With An Open Heart, Heartbeat, Matte Kudasai, and Model Man aren't masterpieces musically, but the lyrics make them interesting. (Particularly Matte Kudasai. But stuff like "she sleeps in a chair, in her sad America..." is great. IMHO, anyway.) And I really like Dinosaur and People--great, funky songs that serve the same purpose on the album as Easy Money and One More Red Nightmare did on their respective albums. Walking On Air, One Time, and Inner Garden are great ballad-ish songs (sort of in the Matte Kudasai mode). And the point of Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream is to lull you into sleep before all hell breaks loose in the multiple-tempo sections. Maybe I'm not as familiar with Lennon as I should be but stuff like "primal tribal apple egg vegetable eel/I have a new canoe but it does not have a wheel" is downright funny. Another cool thing about SSEDD is the contrast between Fripp's guitar arpeggiations and Levin's (or Gunn's? or both?!?) basslines--Levin is playing an easy, funky riff, kind of a light pentatonic scale, while Fripp is playing ominous minor chords. But certainly, you miss the point of Thrak if you don't talk about the instrumentals. This is the meat of the album. The VROOM/Marine 475--B'Boom/THRAK--VROOM VROOM/Coda pieces are magnificent and completely unlike anything else I've ever heard. If anybody can tell me what the hell this actually sounds like (noise is not an option) I'd love to hear it. THRaKaTTaK is pure brilliance (albeit edited from a number of different jams)--no lyrics to debate over here, just pure brain-crunching discord. In regards to the Exiles example, I don't think the synthesis between lyrics and music is as important as you make it--certainly not the "word-painting" style, in which the mellotron figure at the intro represents waves and that kind of thing. (Not sure if this is what Fripp et al intended; doesn't sound very Frippian. It's possible, but you may be reading too much into the music.) I don't think Crimson *tried* to achieve that synthesis on THRAK. Maybe this is why Crimson's 90s output hasn't been received all that warmly. P.S. Next up to be released by DGM: ProjeKct 3--Spice Groove. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 01 Jan 1970 11:00:00 +0000 From: Evan and Vanessa Thomson Subject: Mitchell and Fripp Hello, As a first time contributor I feel rather inadequate when it comes to the verbosity so aptly displayed by so many of you! I unfortunately am not so loqacious! Question: Have you discussed the influence of Joni Mitchell on Robert Fripp? Why? In an interview Robert was quoted as saying one of his top 5 favourite albums was 'Blue' by Mitchell. This has previously been discussed on the Joni list but as I'm not a regular I have no idea if it has here? Obviously you discuss influences but have you discussed non musical influences like Art or Literature on the band? example: Joni is influencecd by Van Gogh and Picasso. Bringing these elemsnts into her music via imagery in the lyrics. Robert's influenece is evident on Joni by the song "You turn me on I'm A Radio" inspired perhaps by "You Burn Me Up LIke A Cigerette" (sorry I don't remember the actual somg title.) What do you think? Also is it mandatory to declare one's nationality each post? Vanessa. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 03 Jun 1998 00:18:55 -0700 From: Kirk DeGrasse Subject: lyrics and melody One of the beautiful things about a group as broad in scope as King Crimson is the concurrent breadth of opinion regarding its output. I think most of us recognize that the broad range of styles explored by the group results in a wide spectrum of listeners, many with widely divergent tastes and expectations. When someone posts espousing the virtues of a particular release, we either nod along in agreement or scratch our heads and wonder what they are experiencing that we are not. But no offense is taken, because no attack of values has occurred. However, when someone decides to deride a particular aspect of the group, many are sure to be offended and some will respond with a vigorous defense. That would be this post, as I respond to George Karl's description of the songs "People" and "One Time" as 'banal' and his general disrespect for Adrian's lyrics. Let the flames proceed... There seems to be a number of Crimson fans out there that view the band as worthwhile only on the basis of how complex, obtuse, and serious the band can be; anything other than that is somehow unworthy of the band. The idea of the band playing something with a catchy melody, a consistent beat, a delicately pretty tone, or anything else approaching mainstream rock musical forms is scoffed at. Well, guess what: not only is the band themselves interested in playing a wide variety of musical styles, there are many of us in their audience that appreciate that variety. I may not love everything the band does, but I appreciate the exposure to styles of music I might not otherwise listen to. I love the uncharted territories this band explores, but I also love the distinctly Crimson take on more familiar rock forms and I think the breadth of style serves to better illuminate the differences of the music presented. I also recognize that music is an art form that can be appreciated in an endless variety of modes and serves different needs at different times. On Thrak in particular, I can find music that fits many needs and moods in one collection; classic Crimson-style instrumental workouts like "VROOM" and "THRAK"; funky groove like "People"; somber, meloncholy melody like "One Time"; rock Crimson-style like "Dinosaur"; and wierdness such as "Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream". The varied approach to their music keeps it feeling fresh to my ears, and anything but 'banal'. If you think anything Crimson does is banal, you haven't listened to Savage Garden or Bush. That's banal. As far as the lyrics go, I'll avoid getting into the whole "Is Adrian good for King Crimson" argument and just say that many of us don't need lyrics to be some attempt at poetic genius. Singing is a way of adding the human voice into the mix; it is music we are talking about, not literature, and the sound of the words, their syncopation, and the melody of the lyrics in their counter to the music are all as valid as in this context as the meaning of the words themselves. I happen to think that the humor and weirdness that comes with much of Adrian's lyrics is a welcome counter to the ponderously scholarly and serious approach many have to the notion of what King Crimson is all about. It's o.k. for the band to have fun. And I happen to think that the lyrics of "People" and "One Time", while not earth-shaking, do fit the respective musical context they are placed within. The bottom line is, this is a band that is great because it embraces so many styles and attempts to explore with its music; sometimes this exploration takes them into 'mainstream' rock territory, but it is always distinctly King Crimson. If you are unable to enjoy these forays, that's too bad for you; you're missing out. You certainly have the right to your opinion of what is 'banal'; it's my opinion that you are taking things too seriously. Kirk DeGrasse BTW - anyone else in the Pacific NW getting frustrated at the lack of ProjeKcts and Soundscapes passing our way? What did we do to piss Mr. Fribble off? ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 03 Jun 1998 10:33:05 +0100 From: kate dot d at virgin dot net Subject: sometimes god hides g'day all... just picked up "sometimes god hides" and it leaves me with a question and a comment: Q: in "cage" is that a real didge player i hear, or is it yet another bit of frippery trickery? if it's a real didge player, does anyone know who it is? Comment: listening to CGT doing "sleepwalk"...the tune was driving me nuts , i knew it was familliar but just couldn't place it...well i went on a hunt through the few items i have in this country and lo and behold, Leo Kottke does it on the album "guitar music". With that solved i was watching a video i have recently acquired and i discover that Kottke and Chet Atkins do "sleepwalk" as a duet, and it's beautiful... best to all, ashley ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 3 Jun 1998 03:07:48 -0700 From: "Stephen P. Goodman" Subject: The Fripps in "Hello!" Magazine.. Greetings folks! I thought you'd get a kick out of this at least. Let's just say that I'm flat on my face for a certain young lady in London, and in the delightful process of getting to know one another better - albeit remotely - I was describing the noise that a struck coffee pot makes when water sloshes round inside it, a bell tone like in that song... "...Easy Money?", she cut in. My jaw dropped. Turns out she bought her own copy of LTiA herself, and no mere gift of an ex-boyfriend. Uncommon odds from our previous discussions of Women and KC... :) So it was that when, on the heels of seeing the reference to Hello! magazine here, I mentioned it to my lady, who proceeds to tell me that she'd just picked up a copy of the 5/23 issue that had the Fripps story in it; furthermore she'd not bought the magazine for quite a long time. So besides being in love, I'm impressed beyond any expectation! :) By the way, I can't remember, did anyone describe the article itself? [giggle] Stephen Goodman * It's... The Loop Of The Week (this week, Phil Hartman)! EarthLight Studios * http://www.earthlight.net/Studios ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 3 Jun 1998 07:15:17 -0400 From: Adam Aronson Subject: Damage To all those individuals searching for a copy of Sylvian & Fripp's "Damage"... AB-CD has a copy at their auction page: http://www.ab-cd.com/auction.html Along with a bunch of other Sylvian related goodies. adam aronson ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 03 Jun 1998 08:12:25 -0400 From: "Tommy Kochel" Subject: Re: Thraking Ring On Fri, 29 May 1998, Ellwod Irish wrote >Ash nazg durbatuluk, ash nazg gimbatul, ash nazg THRAKatuluk >agh burzum-ishi krimpatul. (One Ring to rule them all, One >Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the >Darkness bind them.) > >J.R.R. Tolkien, "The Fellowship of the Ring," pg. 267 > >Thrak: "The sound of 127 guitars playing the same chord at >approximatley the same time"??? As a linguist, doing a *quick* study of this passage leads me to believe that "THRAKatuluk" corresponds to the English "to bring them all". Reference to the double trio, perhaps? "To Bring Them All" (all six musicians) on one stage? Tommy Kochel teak Grand #1325 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 3 Jun 1998 08:23:15 -0500 (CDT) From: "R. CUDNEY" Subject: Re: OPEN LETTER TO VIRGIN >seminal bands in this genre. >From the Jazz side is what >about Miles Davis? I can't, off the top of my head recall >specifically, but wasn't Bitches Brew released around >'68-'69? But the truly seminal rock-jazz group, from the >jazz side, was a group called (forgive my sketchy memory) >Tony Williams Lifelines (or maybe Lifetimes?) which was >recording in 1966. It was interesting to read about the first set of groups, the ones which contributed to fusion on the rock side. I had not heard of any of them. I think another one that could be added is the Free Spirits, with Larry Coryell, from 1966 I think, and several Gary Burton groups from this period with Larry Coryell. The dates in the above quote however are all wrong. The first Lifetime album, Emergency, featuring John McLaughlin, was recorded in May 26 + 28 '69, and the band only formed earlier that year I believe. I think you may be thinking of the fact that Tony released an album in the mid '60s called Lifetime, but it was not fusion. Bitches Brew was released in 1970, having been recorded in August 19-21 '69. But that was Miles's second fusion album. His first, In a Silent Way, had been recorded on Feb 18 1969. So these are all close enough to the beginning of KC for it to be possible to say that KC played jazz rock at least before any real jazz rock albums had been released. These albums, Emergency by the Tony Williams Lifetime, and Bitches Brew, are must hears for anyone into improvised music. Emergency is an absolutely amazing album which was recently remastered I think. It is a guitar, organ, drums trio. The distortion level is so high it is hard to believe that it is '69. This group is supposed to be the main precedent for the Mahavishnu Orchestra. There are some similarities, but I think Lifetime is much more intense and much more 'heavy.' The last incarnation of Lifetime is also of interest, as it featured Allan Holdsworth. It released two albums, both available on one CD called Lifetime-The Collection. Bitches Brew has been mentioned recently on ET, but another Miles Davis album to hear would be Pangaea, his last from the '70s. It is sort of a double trio. It has two percussionists, two guitarists, two horn players(1 trumpet and 1 sax) and one bass player. He recorded another album, Agharta, the same day with the same personnel, but it is not essential. These, especially Pangaea, are very free form improv, each consisting of two cds each of which contains a forty minute slab of improvised music. There are no songs and no breaks, just continuous music. Thus for someone who wants to get a good sample of Miles Davis's electric music, get Bitches Brew or Pangaea. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 03 Jun 98 15:36:39 PDT From: Sergio Lombardi Subject: John Wetton live Hello everybody! I am an Italian Crimson fan and this is my first mail in 3 years of subscription. John Wetton will play in Vigevano (Northern Italy) on July 4th (on stage with PFM-greatest Italian progressive band produced by Manticore- as guest, and on 5th with his band, featuring IAN MAC DONALD. Other bands will complete the festival. Perhaps for you yankee crimheads this is routine (Fripp & Co. play in U.S. 200 nights per year), but for us Sex-Sleep-PIZZA-Eat-Drink-Dream this is a great happening ! If anybody is on holiday in our Country on July, don't miss these concerts! An Italian version of this message follows, for Italian readers (please don't cut it). More info on www.space.tin.it/musica/massorla or lotclub at tin dot it << Ecco il calendario dettagliato del Festival di Vigevano del 4 e 5 luglio. Sabato 4 luglio: ore 17, 30 LothLorien (Italia) ore 20 Quidam (Polonia) Ore 22 PFM Nel corso della serata ci saranno parecchi ospiti importanti che suoneranno con PFM (abbiamo gia' avuto conferma da Di Giacomo e Wetton). Domenica 5 Luglio: ore 17,30 Clepsidra (CH) ore 20, 30 John Wetton Band (Con Ian McDonald ex King Crimson) ore 22,30 IQ Per tutte le altre informazioni, schede e prevendite, guarda il ns. sito: www.space.tin.it/musica/massorla >> many thanks Sergio Lombardi postaser at tin dot it ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 03 Jun 1998 07:21:46 PDT From: "J.A. Hogard" Subject: Re: THRAK on vinyl Camzone writes: > Well, thats 3 people who want it all on vinyl! > > I think it would really be worth thinking about, if >anyone who works for DGM is reading. And maybe the Obsolete Technology Fairy will bring to our pillows vinyl-ROM drives for those enhanced multimedia LP's. And the portable TurntableMan for jogging. There are reasons that vinyl (snap, crackle, pop) has been on the way out for years. We have better toys now. Let it die. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 03 Jun 98 10:30:30 PDT From: "DJM" Subject: an in-depth album review Album: Space Groove Artist: ProjekCt Two Label: DGM Review: "Highly Recommended" DJM PWHQ ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 03 Jun 1998 17:37:35 +0200 From: Christophe Gauthier Subject: A few reactions... Hi ETers all around the world, A few reactions from a french fan about the last newsletters... in ET#503, Michael Flaherty wrote : " "Discipline" would be the same album, I would assume, if the band had used the name Discipline instead of King Crimson." Well, I have a May 1981 issue of the french magazine "Best". If I remeber it well, the author of this article, Herve Picard, made an interview of the "Discipline" band - Fripp, Levin, Belew, Bruford. The article wasn't titled as KC but Discipline. The article also said that the concert posters all announced "Discipline, ex-King Crimson". I also remeber that the first release of the LP was under the "Discipline" name (to be confirmed). It seems to be like some marketing pressure from EG, simply because KC would sell more albums under its proper name than under the Discipline name. KC historians should confirm my informations... ET#504 : Richard Reames wrote : On the summer solstice 1976 I picked up a Hitchhiker in Modesto California. I later found his painting on the inside of the album ITCOTCk. [...] I have been searching for information about the painting and about the being and looking for others who have encountered this person. Of course I would like to encounter him again but I'm sure he knows that already. Any help with this is much appreciated. Somehow learning of the death of Barry Godber does not surprise me as this encounter could have created the situation for my own death. Hmm, very weird post, really. Barry Godber died in 1970 from a cerebral attack or something like that. Fripp talked about him in "Rock&Folk", another french magazine, during an interview he made for the release of THRAK. He said that the "Crimson King" painting was Godber's only work. "The Crimson King" was hanging for years on a wall of an EG office, under a very hard sunlight, until Fripp almost stole the "oeuvre" during an EG removal... However, I don't understand if Richard met a guy named Barry Godber or a guy with a face like the Crimson King. But a meeting with Godber in California in 1976 ? Maybe a homonym, or a mythomaniac ITCOTKC fan... This is just my opinion. To be continued. Chris's own contribution to the "Vinyl ring" : I would be ready to buy KC and other related on vinyl. I was very disappointed by the sound quality of the ITCOTCK CD. I bought it first on vinyl... just because I wanted to hear correctly the incredible Greg Lake's bass play on 21st CSM. Today, I've got it on CD - part of the Virgin box set "The First Three". But I always prefer listening to it on vinyl. And the 12" cover is FAR more upsetting ! And I'd like to experience John Wetton's final note of LTiA II on vinyl, just to see if I can create a "do-it-yourself-earthquake" in my house... (it almost happen with the CD, so who knows ?) Now, some questions. a- In "Rock&Folk", Fripp said that he was preparing a new release of the Crimson albums, with 20-bit-remasterings. It was in 1994. Does anybody have any informations about that ? The booklets of the Virgin releases are ridiculous, the sound seems too flat... I want some DECENT definitive editions ! b- If anyone has information about future P2 gigs in Paris, in France or even in Europe, please tell me... Much regards to all Crimsod fans. Christophe Gauthier PS : anyone interested for a translation of the 2 KC's french press interviews ? contact me... ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Jun 1998 14:49:07 -0400 From: "COLLINSCLAN" Subject: GIG REVIEW: ProjeKct Two in Columbus, Ohio Boy my mind is still fried from the great night last night seeing my hero Mr. Fripp, and the ever brilliant Mr. Belew, and a very shocking Mr. Gunn. To all of you that had bad experiences with these shows...I wish you could've seen this one. It was so amazing. Adrian came out and did some acoustic music, including Dinosaur. The three did amazing renditions of vroom and THraK. Not to be believed. AND! Mr. Fripp even smiled a few times. Oh it was beautiful. I also got to check out the massive rig that Mr. Fripp had brought with him. With 4 TC Electronics delay machines which he didn't use very much. And Mr. Belew almost sounded like Bruford was behind the kit. IT was totally amazing. and they even did an ENCORE! WOW! I truly believe that that show was one of their more fun. Have fun at the next show whoever you are...and remember... NO PICTURES. Jeff Collins ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 01 Jun 1998 21:56:53 +0000 From: Michael Bennett Subject: GIG REVIEW: Cincinnati I was priviledged to get to see the Project 2 show in Cincinnati. Just getting the chance to see Robert play live was worth putting up with all the hassles of live performances, i.e. the odor of beer belches, hearing "musical authorities" talk about "f-ing Fripp, man!", that kind of thing. The show started on time at 8pm. Robert's equipment went out on him three times during the first set, but only briefly, and not enough to adversely affect the music. His soundscapes swelled as Adrian and Trey added to the sonic experience in their unique ways. Seeing Robert strum the guitar, and the two second delay before the sound left the speakers was interesting. They played various songs that sounded like the cuts on Space Groove, and took a break after an hour. Adrian appeared prior to the second set, and played two tunes on guitar which I was not familiar with, but the second was an environmental awareness song. The second set was in my opinion better than the first. The tunes were more varied, ranging from whimsical to terrifying. After about another 45 minutes, they left the stage. Adrian came back and played an acoustic guitar version of "Dinosaur", which was excellent. Did he do this at other shows as well, or just this one, Cincinnati being his home town? He was then joined by Robert and Trey, and they finished the show by playing a "Space Groove"-flavored version of "Thrak". Just being able to stand and watch Robert Fripp from about fifteen feet away was a unique experience. I hope next time he comes this way, all of King Crimson will be with him. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 01 Jun 1998 21:52:48 -0400 From: Larry Subject: GIG REVIEW: P2 in Columbus Hi Team, Last night, my son and I were privileged to attend the P2 show at the Newport Music Hall which is located direct across the street from The Ohio State University in Columbus. We arrived at 6:25 and there was a line forming already. But we had pre-show tickets so we went to the beginning and were admitted at 6:30 before the normal door at 7:00. We entered to soundscapes playing and found a good table on the railing above the floor. We were located on the left side of the stage at almost the back of the floor area. Great seats! Another advantage of the pre-show tickets is a free hot dog and chips which we enjoyed with large cold drafts. It was a hot muggy evening with little evidence of air conditioning and the cold drafts hit the spot while we waited. AB even had a fan set up behind his V-drums to help him keep cool. About 7:50, an announcement was made to welcome us to the show and advise us of the no recording/no pictures policy and that the show would start in 5 minutes. Soon RF came out and started a soundscape which lasted a few minutes before AB and TG joined him. Then it took off; the improves were excellent, often giving me goosebumps. They went about 40 minutes before taking a break, during which I visited the merchandise table in the lobby, and purchased BelewPrints and The Third Star. At the beginning of the second set, AB came out with an acoustic guitar and said that he had been requested to do something with words, which he did with "Young Lions". He then promoted the sale of BelewPrints and performed "Men In Helicopters". RF and TG joined him and they were off again. Again they performed about 3 or 4 improves with TG included his voice patch on the last one. Another great set. Following the calls for an encore, AB returned with his acoustic guitar and asked if there were any King Crimson fans present. When told that there were, he launched into Dinosaur. From our seats, we could see RF backstage enjoying AB's performance. He even threw his arms into the air in what seemed to be a show of excitement. RF and TG then joined AB and they presented us with the lounge version of Vroom that seems to be the standard closing of these shows. The middle of the song had AB with a V-drum solo with TG and RF standing on each side applauding. I think they do something familiar to really show how they can translate an old song with their new technological tricks. We stayed around while the hall cleared and went up to the stage to watch the equipment being torn down. Shortly, AB and TG cane out and walked thru the remaining crowd to the merchandise table where they talked to the people and signed autographs. I got AB to sign BelewPrints and TG to sign The Third Star. I've probable gone on too long, but I really enjoyed the show (my son did too) and I wanted to share it with the list. Larry Haas ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Jun 1998 23:09:54 -0400 From: Drew Layman Subject: GIG REVIEW: ProjeKct Two Columbus, OH 5/31/98 Taken from www.dispatch.com: King Crimson spinoff a perfect fit at Newport Music Review June 1, 1998 By Curtis Schieber For The Dispatch There were no mike stands on stage for the first half oflast night's ProjeKct Two concert in the Newport Music Hall. Not for singing, announcing and, least of all, for joke- telling. Didn't need to be. None of these activities had anything to do with the presentation of the trio made up of guitarists Robert Fripp and Trey Gunn, and Adrian Belew, who played electronic drums, instead of his usual snakey-sounding guitar. The stage was simply lit, Fripp sat in front of a bank of electronic gadgets all night while playing, and next to no showmanship was exhibited. Given the artists at hand, though, it was perfectly fitting. ProjeKct Two is one of the various shards, or "fractals'' as Fripp calls them, split from the parent group King Crimson in search of new combinations and new directions. ProjeKct Two got to some familiar territory in unique, new musical vehicles and it plowed fresh ground with old tools. Rarely was it so disorienting, though, that the one- quarter-full Newport audience felt it alien. Much of the music sounded improvised, though it was obvious that the group had definite cues to shape its improvisations. Much of it was tied to the new Space Groove album. But little of it conjured titles, whimsical, serious or otherwise. Minute "A.25,'' however, was certainly one of the highlights of the night. (In keeping with Crimson's technical approach to the music, we'll dispense with titles and refer to sets A and B and minutes into each.) A delicate, atmospheric ambience was created by the guitarists and punctuated by various beeps and pops triggered by Belew's synth drums. When Belew's tapping resulted in a lovely marimba figure, the idea was devinely complete. Other times, such as minute A.30 or so, the sound built by Fripp's treated guitar (sounds rarely emanated from whence they appeared to) and Gunn's thundering bass strings and higher guitar leads -- his instrument included both ranges -- packed the rafters of the hall, with the Newport's booming ambience turning it mostly into mush. Set B changed all that for a few minutes, when Belew, the irrepressible troubador and intricate techno- rocker, took the stage before a mike with an acoustic guitar. His contributions were cheery and in marked contrast to the rest of the night. At about B.8 the band joined in, with Belew back on the drum "kit'' setting up a gurgling rhythm to a set of countering, ominous chords from Fripp and Gunn. At B.20, the tune turned into a wonderful unison theme played by Fripp's horror- show-conjuring guitar and Gunn's thick, sculpted bass sound. The group's grab bag success continued until the end of the second 35-minute set, which was followed by an encore. The formal part of the show ended on a positive note with Gunn's touching solo amid an ominous soundscape created by the other two musicians. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 2 Jun 1998 07:44:34 -0700 (PDT) From: Joseph Basile Subject: GIG REVIEW: Mini Concert Review? /APB! Hello Fellow ETers, APB, need a Boot of the Pittsburgh Project 2 show. I promise to make no monetary gains from this. Email me for the ransom. The Concert.? Through the efforts of Arnie, and ET, six of us met a Bobby Rubinos, for some good food,drinks and lively conversation. We were joined by a very knowledgeable producer, Chris.He worked on this show, and gave us great insight. I must say I was very happy to meet Tim, Rob, Arnie, Alec,and Chris. In general this confirmed my belief that most Eters are intellectual dudes. Tom, my brother- in- law, who is probably the best singer in Pittsburgh,and over all great musician, asked why Belew was on drums only? Alec, Arnies second grade gifted son, answered that Adrian played drums in high school. This started the magical evening on a roll ! Arnie and family good luck to your up grade in Charleston. Probably from the Columbus post you know by now Adrian played an acoustic guitar set. The last song was very emotional to me. I am not a tree hugger, but this was exceptional! For an encore he did a brilliant acoustic version of DINOSAUR, with many, many singing along.I leave the musical adjectives to Arnie, Tim ,Rob, there better at it than I. My impressions were that;1) I never saw Robert's brilliants,and soloefforts so much. 2) I never saw Trey's amazing playing so much, truly one of the best I'd ever seen! 3) Adrian was born to play music ! Very adapt at anything he does, extemely gifted musician, versitile! 4) The crowd was very impressive in number, expectation (I did hear a few RED, LTIA), knowledgable, and in enthusiaium! Finally, I don't no much, being a non-player, but I know Crimson music when I hear it. Set one might or might not have been Crimson. Set two was NO PROJECT! IT WAS KING CRIMSON, at it's very ,very, BEST!!! WOW! BASILE BY THE THREE RIVERS ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 3 Jun 1998 07:31:39 +0000 From: "Robert A. Bartz" Subject: GIG REVIEW: P2 - Pittsburgh, PA, 6/1/98 Concert Review - ProjecKt Two tour, I.C. Light Amphitheater, Pittsburgh, PA, 6/1/98. Well, not hearing the album first before coming to the show, I didn't know what to expect. My brother had seem them the previous Saturday in Cincinnatti, and said I shouldn't miss this. Well... I was very pleasantly surprised! As far as an opening act, like it was advertised, there was none. I wonder why they even mentioned it? Some Frippertronics played in the background before the show (not sure where it was from). I sat next to a guy who had seen Crimson back in 1974 at the old Stanley theater with Robin Trower opening. Man, I wish I was at THAT show! The setup was very minimal, with the V-drums in the middle, and Fripp's stool on stage left. Fripp came out first, and started his thing for a few minutes before Gunn and Adrian came out. Groove was definitely the key word for this show. Great rhythms laid out by Trey and Adrian, while Fripp did his usual guitar bit. I really enjoyed Adrian's use of the V-drums unique sounds, hearing everything from standard drum sounds to chimes to more "unusual" sounds, so to speak. After the first set, Adrian came out during the intermission to play two songs on acoustic guitar. I didn't recognize them, but I'm guessing they were on his new acoustic CD. Second set was more of the same, and I enjoyed it more as the show went on. For the encore, Belew said that since we were seeing a King Crimson project, we were entitiled to hear a King Crimson song. Which one? Of all things, "Dinosaur" on acoustic, with mellotron and all. And for the last ProjecKt Two song, a revised version of "VROOOM VROOOM". Pretty neat. If you're a fan of the more recent Crimson style, I think you would enjoy this group. Having not heard BLUE, I'm not sure exactly what direction they went, but ProjecKt Two is defintely a direction I wouldn't mind KC using more. Picked up the double-CD as well for only $15, not a bad deal. Anyway, highly recommended for any Crim head, but again, if you're not into the more "experimental" side of KC, this may not be for you. Bob Bob Bartz Polymers IS staff, Bayer Corporation rbartz at telerama dot com Microsoft Certified Professional Go Red Wings! ------------------------------ End of Elephant-Talk Digest #505 ********************************