THREE OF A PERFECT PAIR

The conclusion, or rather, resolution of the King Crimson dilemma during the 80s comes with 1984's 'Three of a Perfect Pair', the final album released by the four-piece band before its disbandment that same year, and an album that completes the virtual "Hegelian triad" within the group's discography. This is the tenth studio album from Robert Fripp and his compatriots, and of the three records released during the 1980s, this might as well be the most musically challenging one, ultimately presenting the two opposite sides making up the music of the band - the accessible and the excessive, the two conflicting directions that have supposedly navigated the musical musings of each and every member of the legendary band. Half of 'Three of a Perfect Pair' is instrumental, while subsequent remixes have seen the addition of a third side composed of bonus material, unanimously known as the "The Other Side" (with the two sides of the original LP being referred to as the "Right" and "Left" sides).

The music on this album generally tends to take up the stylistic thread of the two preceding albums, yet it dares to expand the Crimson sound into an almost-post-punk direction, with some catchy, more straightforward and rather stark entries like 'Model Man', 'Sleepless' and 'Man with an Open Heart', together with that magnificent title track, proving how progressive artists are simply better at writing pop tunes than pop artists are. At the same time, "The Right Side" of the album offers a dramatic influence from industrial music, with its cold, metallic and often alienated soundscapes, these unusual compositions definitely remain some of the most challenging and experimental instrumentals of the entire King Crimson catalog, retaining that ever-crescent philosophy of breaking the musical boundaries, definitive of Fripp's work. Needless to say, that some of the material on "The Other Side" is rather fascinating as well, with the long and winding passages of the 'Industrial Zone' variations being especially lacerating and provocative. This is an album of bold experimentation and strong songwriting, masterful playing and excellent vocal performances, a great way for the band to complete their trilogy of innovation and technique.

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