Starless And Bible Black
by King Crimson

From Jboy56 05/31/2023 15:43 | #297323

Very accessible KC, the musical competence is top mark and the songs ring originality,

A mixed album but the highlights are very high.

This album has a harder edge than earlier works, more aligned to Red in parts. The Mincer and Fracture are personal favourites. Bass work on album is stunning, recording quality superb and plenty of Tron to be absorbed in. Not a lot of vocals on this album, which I actually prefer.

King Crimson didn't create bad albums. That said, I think this is the most mediocre album of their 2nd period. It's a letdown after Larks and also inferior to what followed, Red.

Still a very solid album with a lot of interesting improv. If you're liking this kind of thing, you may like this album more than I do.

From OldToad 07/01/2019 08:07 | #238718

In later years, when DGM started putting out so much of the old live stuff, this album almost became obsolete. You can hear the full recordings that some of these tracks are extracted from, and you can hear so many versions of The Night Watch and Fracture, you might find you prefer some of those live versions to the ones here.

But this is the classic album as many of us grew up with it, and I think it still stands up really well. Every track is great, no clunkers, each side has a coherent arc to it, great playing by great players. An all-time classic album. This night wounds time.

From Jbalbinolr 11/25/2018 00:21 | #225599

This album is mixed for me, it has some of the best tracks in the King Crimson´s vast discography, like "Fracture", "Lament", and "The Night Watch", but the production is so dry that the tracks sound lifeless, still, "Trio" is stunning, and this is one of the few places to get it. If this had better performances and production, it could be their best, but those really bring this down.

Track Picks: "Trio", "Fracture" and "The Night Watch".

...or as drummer Bill Bruford used to call it: "Braless and Slightly Slack".

From discojets1 03/15/2017 23:15 | #187493

On of the more under appreciated and underrated of albums. Showcase the bands live work. Bruford and Wettons musicianship shine throughout. Significantly shorter songs than what the band is used to

From Mountandrew 12/22/2016 03:50 | #180698

Basically shows all the talent of Larks Tongues in Aspic lineup and how good King Crimsons live performances were.

Included here is The Night Watch which is one of the best tracks King Crimson ever recorded, Lament is wonderful too, and if only we had a few more tracks like this then I would be happy.

We do get a classic instrumental piece in Fracture which sounds great but is something I wouldn't want to even attempt to learn on the guitar.

Overall, this album is not as good as the debut, Red or Larks' Tongues In Aspic but is still worth checking out if only for The Night Watch alone.