RED

Red is probably King Crimson's heaviest album, and one of their best at that. Structurally, this is pretty similar to their debut album, as it contains five songs with one being the experimental instrumental, and the longer "epic" song at the end. The music is what you' expect from the band up to this point; heavy, moody, rhythmically intense, and experimental.

The album kicks off with the title track, 'Red.' This song only uses a few bone-crushing riffs, yet it is still made interesting throughout.

I've always enjoyed how the band is able to blend two very different sections in a song so beautifully. Fallen Angel is a great example of this, as it alternates between a calm, softer section with Wetton's angelic vocals and a rather ominous, heavy riffing section.

One More Red Nightmare is decent. The guitar riffs are nice and heavy, but Wetton's vocals and the some of the backing music are less than amazing.

Providence is the equivalent to their debut album's 'Moonchild,' with its free form jam style. Again, I still believe there is too much noodling for it to be any good in my eyes, but at least it's a tad better than 'Moonchild.'

How could I adequately describe the closing song? Starless is everything the band is about up to this point. From the gentle mellotron led intro, to the heavy guitar riffs and experimenting in the middle, and the hectic sax section at the end. Nothing quite gives the same feeling as this song. It has a very uneasy atmosphere, with a build-up and tension that could rival some of the best classical music.

Red is a solid album, but unfortunately nothing they've done has quite reached the same mark as In the Court. I would say this is the second best, and despite my relatively low rating, I still believe this is a great album to pursue.

6/10