THRAK

This must have been one of my most anticipated albums ever. I had been a Crimson adept for many years and the news Crimson had reunited sounded like a dream come true. The line-up consists of the 81-84 incarnation fortified with extra drummer Pat Mastello and Trey Gun on stick. An extra drummer and bass player to complement guys like Bruford and Levin? Fripp must have been kidding.

Yet, somehow they manage not to get in one another's way and are as tight and dynamic as ever. In fact, this album sounds like the perfect marriage of Three Of A Perfect Pair and Red. It has the harsh rocking power of 1974 combined with the industrial elements of 1984 and Belew's known pop sensibilities. So I'm surprised at the poor reception here, as I remember this album even appealed to some of my metal/grunge friends back in 1995. Well actually, maybe that's the reason; maybe it is not classic prog enough. And if I'm not mistaken, Dinosaur even made fun of classic prog.

It's quite long for a Crimson album but I can't find fault with any of the individual tracks and I'd have a hard time naming highlights. It balances out nicely between songs like Dinosaur, People and One Time, and instrumentals such as Vrooom and Thrak. Much of this music was the result of improvisations and the album benefits from the freer and audacious approach they took. I can imagine this album may sound rather cold and distant to some listeners but I happen to find that industrial touch one of the main attractions here. And it hasn't aged a bit in 15 years.

Nothing less then an excellent album, probably missing that one stand-out track to deserve masterpiece status.