THRAK BOX

Another year, another large King Crimson box. After dedicating significant attention to the trio of albums from the 'classic' 70s quintet/quartet, the Crim brain trust skips ahead to the mid 90s double trio. This lineup only produced one album, but toured excessively, resulting in more than several live albums. This incarnation of the band could certainly kick up a racket and could get a bit outside during their most exploratory moments, but also has a surprising and almost unnecessary delicate side. Thrak Box attempts to make sense of this part of King Crimson's history, giving a brief run up to the creation of Thrak, the album itself, and a slight taste of the six headed beast in action on tour.

Unfortunately, this is the first megabox (if it could even be called that at only 12 disks) that feels like a letdown. Of the 12 disks involved, very few include new material, there are no full live shows (just three amalgamated sets from multiple dates at the same venue), and two copies of the studio album proper. The tour was well documented by the band, with professional (and full) recordings of large swaths of this tour, so choosing so few live shows to feature feels incredibly odd. Likewise, the King Crimson Collectors Club released two full albums of rehearsals by this lineup, of which only a handful of tracks appear spattered over two different disks. While I'm not a fan of including already released material in these large boxes, it would have made sense to include more of the road to Thrak, as this box is meant to represent the entirety of this particular era and, especially, as this box isn't exactly bursting at the seams with content. And some of what was included is equally as head scratching.

First, the positives: Disk 1 and Disk 4. Disk 1 is entitled JurassiKc Thrak and is comparable to 'Keep That One , Nick', from the Larks' Tongues box, essentially allowing the listener to sit in on a recording session with King Crimson and listen as ideas are tossed about and tracks are demoed and experimented with. Disk 4 is entitled AttaKcathrak, and is similar to Thrakattak, i.e. a fusion of various improvs from live shows, edited together to form new musical events. Both of these disks are previously unreleased, exclusive to the box, and pretty wonderful. The live shows (disks 7-12) are also of high quality. Each complies a complete setlist from each of the three venues (as opposed to being a complete show from one night). All three show the power of the mighty beast, but AzteKc Thrak is definitely my favorite. Disk 2 is somewhere between the good and the bad. An expanded Vrooom EP, it's nice to have, although it feels a bit thrown together, as if they just wanted to get enough material tacked on to the end to call it a complete album. Disks 2 and 5 are both the studio album Thrak (albeit different mixes) and having both is completely unnecessary in this reviewers' eyes. The worst offender is disk 6, Btye-Size Thrak. A collection of single edits, 4 live cuts (two of which are of some of KC's least interesting material), three sessions outtakes (that would have made more sense on disk 2), and two short frippertonic pieces. Why anyone thought this was a positive addition to the thrak box is truly a wonder. (As an aside, even though this is only 12 CDs (16 disks total) it is still as expensive as the larger set The Road To Red, and only slightly more than the smaller Complete Larks' Box.)

All in all, this is an unfulfilling exploration of the mid 90s edition of King Crimson. By no means as definitive a dive as the previous megaboxes, the selections presented here range from disappointing to confusing (aside from the first and fourth disk). So much material was left on the sidelines, that it makes it feel like this box is an afterthought, meant to only give a faint whisper of what King Crimson were about at the time. This set can only be recommended to diehard fans of the double trio. 1.5 stars on my personal scale, rounded up to 2 stars for this website.

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