ROBERT FRIPP

In 2006 the Starless theme surfaced in a couple of Robert Fripp's solo concerts, and these extracts were passed on to David Cross. With the help of producer and keyboard player Tony Lowe, he fashioned them into this pleasing album, which consists of just under an hour's worth of ethereal violin, Frippertronics and washes of of electronic keyboards that recall the Mellotron on mid 70s Crimson albums. Variations on the theme are explored by different permutations of the three players, and while the overall effect is gentle and meditative, it doesn't slip into new age muzak or out and out ambience; beneath the tranquil surface there is some serious musicality.

If you're hoping for King Crimson style pyrotechnics, look elsewhere. If you're looking for good background music for late nights spent contemplating the infinite, this could sit nicely alongside Fripp and Eno's Equatorial Stars.

3.5 stars.

40+ years after its release, and rumors still persist that this is an ambient album (song titles, perhaps) when nothing could be further from the truth. Listen to the aggressive, driving title track, the speedy picking in the Eno-esque "China - Yellow Leader", and fast and furious songs like "New Marimba" and "Still Point". There are quieter moments, such as "Under Bridges of Silence" and "Girl on a Swing", but these are distinctly in the minority. Some will not care for the 1980s cliches such as the synth washes and electric sitar ("Hardy Country") used from time to time, but there is just too much going on to comfortably fit anyone's attempt to stereotype. Tracks such as "The Truth of Skies" and "Seven on Seven" have an almost unsettling "bizarreness" to them and keep this album from ever becoming dated. "Lakeland/Aquarelle" seems to be improvised, and "Stultified" closes with an emphatic gong.

For those who are wondering, Fripp is the dominant performer (especially on "In the Cloud Forest") on this recording in spite of Summers being first billed. Of course, in 1982 Summers had by far the most high-profile name in the marketplace, so that stands to reason. At the same time, I'm told he was going through a divorce at the time, so this album does not have the best of memories for him. Nevertheless, I Advance Masked is unequivocally a 4-star album, and the average listener should find it sonically closer to Ghost in the Machine than to Beat. I'll close by insisting that if the catchy yet atmospheric "Painting and Dance" had been released as a single, it would have been HUGE.

If you've heard Let the Power Fall or the God Save the Queen side of God Save the Queen/Under Heavy Manners, you know what to expect here; if you haven't, you'd probably be best advised to check out the reissues of those before you opt for even more Frippertronics. This is good, but between this and Fripp's other releases in this vein (both by himself and with Eno) it does seem like the format has its limitations and you only need so much of this stuff.

Although the liner notes to the subsequent Let the Power Fall claimed that that album picked up where God Save the Queen left off, it's perhaps truer to say that Let the Power Fall and the God Save the Queen side of this release overlap: both were recorded on Fripp's summer 1979 Frippertronics tour of small venues, but whereas the performances on Let the Power Fall span from June to August, the God Save the Queen tracks all came from appearances on July 30th.

Between this and Let the Power Fall, you have pretty much all the Frippertronics experiments you could want, most likely, unless you're such an addict to the schtick that you want to splash out on the Exposures boxed set, which contains more Frippertronics concerts than anyone could possibly know what to do with. The same constraints that affect the form when played live apply just as much here as there, though in both cases Fripp does a good job of using those constraints as a springboard for creativity. If you liked the Fripp and Eno albums, you'll probably also enjoy much of this.

Particularly noteworthy is 1983, a foreboding track in which Fripp is able to evoke a range of haunting new sounds which sets it apart from much of the rest of his Frippertronic material in how far it goes into the dark landscapes it evokes; think of it as the Frippertronic answer to Eno's Ambient 4: On Land.

The Under Heavy Manners side of the equation is an experiment in Discotronics - taking a Frippertronics performance and then layering more stuff over it. There's funky bass; there's a drum loop; on the title track itself there's even a (pseudonym-disguised) David Byrne, making it sound a bit like an off-cut from My Life In the Bush of Ghosts (which makes sense because this would be around the time that album was being put together, and Fripp guested on it). Fripp, perhaps, was already tiring of the constraints of working as a 100% independent "highly mobile unit" and was looking for ways in which his newly-expanded guitar palette could be applied in a band context.

After this Fripp would more or less jump to working in a band context - first in the League of Gentlemen, then in Discipline, and then Discipline surprised everyone (including Fripp) by metamorphosing into a revived King Crimson. Although Fripp would do occasional subsequent Frippertronic concerts, the success of the new King Crimson would soon take up much of his time; although he would do occasional solo records subsequent to this, it would be in pursuit of the "Soundscapes" technique, taking advantage of new technologies to perform something akin in creative spirit to Frippertronics but distinct in execution. So between this and Let the Power Fall, and the recently issued Washington Square Church concert recordings, you really capture the peak of Frippertronics.

The way Frippetronics works inevitably means that all the tracks are somewhat samey: each starts out with Fripp and a blank tape. He plays some guitar; the sound goes on the tape; the Frippertronic tape system then replays what's been recorded so far and Fripp adds a further level of music. As such, every composition starts out fairly sparse and simple, and then becomes more ornately layered as the track progresses.

This was all pioneered by Fripp and Eno on their collaborations, but here Fripp is doing a deep dive into the art form, doing what he can to tease out fhte possibilities of a format which, whilst interesting, has certain restrictions. Inevitably, as time goes by the repeated phrases become softer and quieter as they become more overlaid by subsequent recordings. In some respects this is a strength; a harsh or discordant note is smoothed out by this process, an error can be "painted" over. In other respects, this constrainst Fripp in how he constructs tracks: he always tends to have some harsh, loud notes early on, because he knows he'll need to use them to construct the early layers of the track, and if he doesn't lay them in firmly at the start they'll get lost in the tape fairly quickly.

Let the Power Fall is honest about what it is - it bills itself as "an album of Frippertronics", and that is what you get. One such album is, to be honest, probably enough. Fripp would go very sparse on the solo albums after this - he's done much more as a collaborator or as a member of various band projects - and maybe part of the reason is that having satisfied himself here with the possibilities of what he can do with just himself and his equipment, he has only infrequently felt a need to do more.

The album is interesting both as a guitar-oriented ambient release - a rarity in the field - and as a snapshot of Fripp developing the sort of guitar tones he'd bring to the table in the 1980s incarnation of King Crimson, which was already coalescing when Fripp decided to release this onto the market. Perhaps, then, this was a farewell letter - however temporary - to Fripp's brief but interesting solo career of 1978-1981.

Robert Fripp at his best Fripperctronics which are as astounding as mysterious and beuatiful as it could get ,yet obscure and bright and in between.

What a treat. I wonder how the audience reacted to this marvel all way back in 1981 in NYC where there was non of this kind of electric guitar revolution happening but at the end of the day what a privilege to have heard this wonder.

This Robert Fripp - Washington Square Church (2022), was recorded as told in 1981 and then brought to life (for our ears) in 2022.

I am a follower of Fripp since I can not remember but this music reminds me of the past and future.

To put it in this work for future followers this is Progessive Electronic but all made up with electric guitar with tapes running around loops and solos interacting over them.

What can I say.........Creative truly. A genius at work live!

5 stars no less.

Also joining in on this album is Trey Gunn on the Chapman Stick, who also supplies the lower register vocals. Paul Beavis plays the drums. What you end up with is a very interesting sound, very much what you would expect King Crimson to sound like with a female vocalist and a lot less instrumental solos. The music is just as high quality as KC. Fripp's guitar is unmistakable, playing his unique styles and adding in Frippertronics when needed along with the fast fingered discipline style playing.

There is a good amount of variety here too. There is the upbeat and catchy sound of the title track, the slower and hesitant "Kneeling at the Shrine" which also uses some cool Kate Bush-style vocal tricks. "Don't Take It Away" has a straightforward sound with a solid beat that would have fit on any early Bush album. "Transient Joy" has a nice bright sound and Fripp uses the guitar to create an synthesizer sound and Gunn supplies the background vocals. "Strange Girl" allows Toyah to demonstrate her amazing range and at times almost operatic voice and some innovative Fripp work. "If I Were a Man" could be a possible single that would sound right at home even now in 2019.

This album is definitely something that is worth searching for if you are a King Crimson or Robert Fripp fan. Half of it is quite accessible, and the other half is a bit more experimental, but any Kate Bush or Robert Fripp fan would appreciate all of it. I don't consider it as good as most of the King Crimson or Kate Bush albums, but it is still something that makes for a good spin from time to time.

"Good evening and welcome to those of you out there in Radioland to an evening of live music, improvised music dedicated to the notion of hazard. Here in the studio, we are creating a first in that Frippertronics has never before gone out live on the air and this is recommencing a tradition of live music. I'm very privileged to be the first person to kick it off this time," says Fripp in his opening remarks to the audience assembled in Montreal on the last date of his extensive North American tour. - Taken from Robert Fripp´s DGM Live.

Le Pretzel en Chaine (19-August-1979) is an unedited live & radio broadcasted "remix" (to set it in contemporary market-lingo), of some tracks of these records plus his spoken word intermissions explaining the possibilities and reasons of this event, Frippertronics themselves and Brian Eno´s acquaintance. One can say whatever but when you are a composer who actually owns a musical idiom your words become twice relevant.

The live electric guitar & layers added move from mesmerizing solos, intense dronescapes & layers upon layers of pre-recorded material into a new mix.

Once I listened to this digital album and have heard all its intermissions I just simply glued only the music (around 45 minutes) and it just simply rekindled my affection for these past masterpieces.

For anyone who enjoyed Under Heavy Manners/God Save the Queen & Let the Power Fall as I did or has a special hunger for independent, original and intelligent electronic electric guitar music composition this is pure joy.

****4 PA´s stars.

'Parade' starts out the album with what sounds like something recorded for a TV theme song or game show. It is penned solely by Summers and it doesn't really have much substance to it other than sounding like it was trying to be popular, but ends up sounding cheap.

'What Kind of Man Reads Playboy?' is the 2nd track, and again it uses automatic percussion, and a somewhat oriental sounding riff as the main melody, but at over 11 minutes, it is definitely more interesting. It does strive for the popular music sound, but there are some nice guitar and sax solos and later a nice bass line along with a funky vibe. What starts out as feeling canned, actually develops into a decent, yet accessible track.

After this track, the remainder are much shorter tracks, with only 1 going over the 4 minute mark. 'Begin the Day' has a dated sound, again it is upbeat, but the keyboards have the smooth jazz sound. Of course, the guitar is great with Fripp's signature sound, but everything else is annoyingly poppy. 'Train' at least has a more interesting vibe, but doesn't develop much outside of its theme. 'Bewitched' is something left over from 'The Police' with Summers' obvious sound. It is at first a decent enough track that lends itself to the typical Police instrumental with his atmospherics and it actually has some repeated vocals in the background. Again, there is no development and it gets too repetitive by the end, so it wears itself out.

'Tribe' is much better and features the sound you would expect to hear from this talented pair. The percussion is better and the music is more interesting. Taking sounds from both of their styles, the only drawback to the track is that it is too short. 'Maquillage' has a more experimental feel to it and could have fit on the 'I Advance Masked' album. It features a Spanish sounding guitar and a slow plucked acoustic accompaniment. No cheap electronic percussion, thank goodness. 'Guide' ventures into a spacey ambience which is very nice. 'Forgotten Steps' continues with the ambient feel, this time with more of Summers' atmospherics and Frippertronc-sounding sustained chords without the usual Fripp layering effects. 'Image and Likeness' ends the album with the shortest track. Plucked strings give that oriental vibe again, but with a shimmer that echoes behind each note.

This 2nd outing isn't near as interesting as the first as the first half of the album is too composed. The second half is more interesting after they lose the electronic 80's beats and get into more experimental territory. But, with the exception of one track, everything on here is too short. The length of the one long track works to its advantage even if it is on the weaker half of the album. I wish the better tracks could have been more developed. The stronger tracks tend to save this album from being a complete failure, but if you can suffer through those terrible 80s beats, its not too bad. At least it comes out of it with 3 stars, more for the guitar work of these 2 geniuses than the overall quality of the music.

Anyone who enjoys and appreciates great guitar music played expertly should enjoy this.

Don't be put off if you're not a fan of Fripp's solo work. This album is very different (mostly) and is built around the talents of the California Guitar Trio, along with Fripp and Trey Gunn.

The album is an exhibition of classical guitar combined with often distorted electric guitar or stick.

"Bicycling to Afghanistan" is one of the stand out tracks on the album. The fast paced picking of the classical guitar combined with the heavy rhythm of the base guitar perfectly evokes the sense of bicycling through mountainous terrain towards Afghanistan. You feel that this track should be used as the introductory music to Tour De France coverage or something.

"Passacaglia" is a wonderful piece, with it's intricately winding and interweaving classical guitar pieces building to a climax where all of the guitars sing in unison.

My only issue with this album is the final piece "Threnody for Souls in Torment".

It's not that it's a bad piece in itself, and, on a different album, it would probably work well.

It's just that it seems terribly out of place on this album. It is a very dark and brooding track that has everything to do with Robert Fripp's solo work and little to do with the California Guitar Trio.

The other tracks on the album are much lighter in tone and "Threnody" feels like a Halloween costume at a summer wedding. It just doesn't belong on this album.

But "Threnody" should not put you off from owning this album, and I would recommend anyone who loves the guitar to buy this album and have it as part of your collection.

A little gem in my opinion.