RED

Beautiful, dark, heavy, melodic, aggressive, this is RED. What an album to disband on! This is sure some ass-kickin prog! This incarnation of KC ('73- '75) of core members Fripp, Wetton, Bruford is IMO their best, and while I won't say this one is their best (I like all three), I will say that it is their most powerful. Fripp is his usual self, and Wetton adds to the mix some melodic bass lines and a great voice, while Bruford shows why he left Yes with his syncopated grooves and dexterous jazzy style. "Red", as "overrated" as many say it is, is still damn good. "Fallen Angel" is almost a ballad, as it has that signature melodic sound and Wetton's voice, though it doesn't let up any on sheer power. "One More Red Nightmare" follows in the same vein, similar to "Red". That's side one. Side two switches it up with the 8 minute improv session "Providence" that is a bit lackluster, much like though a little worse than the live jams on the previous album "Starless and Bible Black". Definitely not on par with the rest of the album (which without this is quite consistent). While the other songs show a very structured and condensed Crimson, this one is drawn out too long and doesn't really go anywhere. While it's not bad, it's just a big contrast to the actively engaging, dense, and orchestrated sound of side one, and, like "moonchild" from the debut, you grow to appreciate it. Now, for the finale: Starless harkens back to the mellotron sound of ITCOTCK and is friggin' awesome all around, moving from extremely relaxed to incredibly tense and then back. I give the album 4.5 stars for the unsatisfying "Providence", rounded up to 5 for its influence and historical importance.