ALBUM REVIEW: King Crimson - Islands

    Ah, King Crimson, the vanguarding act of progressive rock - with their 1969 debut In the Court of the Crimson King, King Crimson effectively birthed modern progressive rock as we know it, pushing even farther than acts like Soft Machine or The Moody Blues had. Of course, you probably already knew that (how smart!), but what you don't know is how quickly they squandered that potential. Crimson followed their landmark debut with In the Wake of Poseidon, a record that I actually can't comment on on account of not having heard it, and Lizard, which I have heard and it's fucking awful. Luckily, Islands is pretty much the rebound that I was hoping for - a technically impressive progressive rock album that melds ideas of free jazz far more professionally and skillfully than they had previously done. In practice, think of this as the sound they were going for on Lizard, but good.

    I think it is of note that, while they continue to meld the ideas of jazz with their sound, in some ways Islands also feels like a proper return to form for King Crimson - their sound and style of progressive rock that I had loved so much on In the Court of the Crimson King is eloquently continued and expanded on this record, resulting in album highs like Side B opener "Ladies of the Road," a mysterious and expansive rock piece, complete with a distinct vocal performance from Boz Burrell and some truly excellent guitar manipulation from Robert Fripp - his guitar punches, glides, and backmasks throughout the entire track, resulting in an assuredly rocking number. This following of what made them good in the first place also brilliantly meshes with the ideas of free jazz, often to the benefit or heightening of tracks - "The Letters" is an angry song about infidelity, and the instrumentation brilliantly showcases that anger without words with dirty saxophones, noisy guitar bending, and crashing drums. Brilliantly performed through and through, and it makes for one of the strongest aspects of Islands.

    A good amount of the album is also instrumental, and these moments also showcase the maturation and skillful craftsmanship of King Crimson. There's even two completely instrumental tracks, of which the fast-paced and frantic "Sailor's Tale" is of note - an adventurous track that evokes the image of a chaotic journey out to sea, eventually ending with ambience as if a ship has sunk to the ocean floor. The other instrumental, the classical leaning "Prelude - Song of the Gulls" is certainly lovely, but is probably the album's weakest moment. It, at the very least, culminates in the grand finale of the title track. "Islands" is not only a fantastic ending to the record, but it's a brilliant mix of gentle, spacey progressive rock with tasteful jazz elements, creating a bold and beautiful finish for a more than good progressive rock album - have I ever mentioned how I love when music sounds like the record cover?

    Islands is an ideal album after the assured and complete disappointment of Lizard. Not only does it pick up the pieces from where they left off on In the Court, but it's able to more fully and pleasantly execute the ideas and concepts that they previously attempted on Lizard - the key difference being, of course, that this time it's good. A really filling release from King Crimson, and one that more than washes out the bad taste of previous releases - ideal for any prog fans or those who, like me, thought Lizard sucked ass.

RATING: ✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯

Listen to Islands.