Larks' Tongues in Aspic

by

King Crimson

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Once again, King Crimson shifted lineups, only this time it was far more dramatic-- after having toured without lyricist Peter Sinfield, the entire band left, leaving Fripp on his own. A blessing in disguise, the band that assembled for this recording was full of such musical muscle and subtlety that they were able to turn out what may be the best of the King Crimson material (its a tough call, there's a number of stunning albums by them). This is also the first Crimson formation not to feature a saxaphone. Joining Robert Fripp (guitar, mellotron) are David Cross (violin, viola, mellotron), John Wetton (bass, vocals), Bill Bruford (drum kit), and Jamie Muir (percussion). Lyrics this time were handled by Richard Palmer-James-- getting away from the imagery of Peter Sinfield allowed the band's songs to flourish in different fashions.

But also allowing the band to flourish is the delicate balance they created-- Muir as a percussionist would play everything from mouth harps, thumb pianos, and chains slamming against gongs created his own dynamics without the influence of everyone else, likewise Bill Bruford at the kit could manage both power and subtlety, whereas Cross' violin and Wetton's bass were in opposition, both in register and in expressiveness-- Wetton is a brutally aggressive bass player. Fripp somehow counterbalanced all of this.

In many ways, this is also the band shedding their progressive rock leanings in terms of the traditional "prog" sound-- there's not the emphasis on harmonied instruments, mellotrons, etc. The approach is a lot cleaner and in many ways far less limiting.

A couple of the tracks here have their origins in the past-- the album opener, "Larks' Tongues in Aspic, Part One" (themes of which showed up in Crimson improvs from Fripp's guitar in '71/'72), is a signal of the future, from its delicate intro percussion, aggressive violin lines, and explosive guitar riffing, this clearly illustrates something else is happening here. Dynamically challenging, musically complex, and capable of both directness and subtlety, the piece is a sign of brilliance to unfold, both on this and throughout the album. Structurally, its looser than any of the previous instrumental Crimson material, when you want a musician to explode, he does. Also developed from older material is "Exiles"-- the opening theme was originally performed by the '69 band live as "Mantra". Both this and "Book of Saturday" are the ballads on the record-- "Book of Saturday" illustrates the softer side of the band, pretty violin figures and delicate guitar are the highlights of this piece. "Exiles", having its old origins, has a slightly older feel to it, almost similar in content to "Epitaph" or "The Court of the Crimson King", the piece has a more timeless quality to it brought about by the use of the mellotron as a highlight rather than a driving force. Wetton's voice is full of passion that was too often missing in the earlier band.

The second half of the album, as though to underplay the dynamic complexity and delicacy of the first half, is aggressive-- the band assumes a muscular stance right away with the obnoxious and stunning riff on "Easy Money"-- Wetton sings largely unaccompanied but the band falls upon themselves with a furious nature. A laughing box fades and "The Talking Drum" begins-- quiet a first, then building a repeated bass figure under which percussion work thrives, a soaring, aggressive, almost insistent violin lead bleeds into sustained guitar phrases from Fripp until almost like the train hitting the breaks-- the squeal arrives, and the piece transforms into the mighty "Larks' Tongues in Aspic, Part Two". Probably the highlight of the album, Larks 2 is a driving and insistent guitar riff in 9, phrases that turn each other around, and an explosive bridge, the piece boils over and is pure magic.

For fans of unique and powerful music, look no further, this album is genius. Probably difficult to get into if you're not ready for it, but without a doubt some of the most stunning rock music ever recorded.

"Larks' Tongues in Aspic" released in 1973 is King Crimson's fifth album. Musically, there have been radical changes since the symphonic debut "In The Court of the Crimson King" from 1969. The magnificent melodic numbers are replaced by complex compositions, where the melodic only in flashes are predominant. It's obvious that the group under its distinctive musical metamorphosis has lost some fans but on the other hand has managed to win others.

The fact that the musical changes have been so striking, is partly due to large changes in the group's lineup. Thus it is only guitarist Robert Fripp, who is left from 1969 debut. This is only a part of the explanation, because there is little doubt that leader Robert Fripp, never had any desire simply to repeat himself, but always wanted to explore new musical expressions.

Half of "Larks' Tongues in Aspic" is instrumental, with the two title tracks playing more than twenty minutes. These numbers are pretty complex, especially Part One contains several very different sequences, some of which may be heavy for the ear.

Also "The Taking Drum" is instrumental, and as the title suggests, the number is a showcase for drummer Bill Bruford. It should be no secret that these types of instrumentals are not really my cup of tea, so I must resort to the second half of the album to find numbers that justify expanding my music collection with the album.

There are fine things in the short and quiet "Book of Saturday", though John Wetton never reaches the magic of Greg Lake. The closest you get to the classic King Crimson sound is on "Exiles" which has some of the melodic approach that typified the group's earliest albums.

"Easy Money" is more hard hitting, and it can glimpsewise appear reminiscent of Pink Floyd. The group's desire to experiement is also reflected in these vocal-numbers, but they are generally more accessible, and the reason why I still think that the album belongs to a King Crimson collection.