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THRAK

King Crimson - THRAK Audio CD

A fair review of the King Crimson "THRAK" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all King Crimson reviews here, or go back to the King Crimson tabs.

Band: King Crimson
Title: THRAK
Rating:

Release Date: 1995-04-25
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Vrooom 2: Coda: Marine 475 3: Dinosaur 4: Walking on Air 5: B'boom 6: Thrak 7: Inner Garden, Pt. 1 8: People 9: Radio, Pt. 1 10: One Time 11: Radio, Pt. 2 12: Inner Garden, Pt. 2 13: Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream 14: Vrooom Vrooom 15: Vrooom Vrooom: Coda

A Good THRAKing
Andrew Belew, Robert Fripp, Tony Levin, Trey Gunn, Bill Bruford, and Pat Mastelotto were to play some of the most innovative sounds of the decade, bringing a new meaning to the word "metal". When King Crimson emerged into the mid-90's, they had six members ready to crank out heavy music. From soft ballads like "One Time" to heavy sounds like VROOM, the flow of music brought a new light to starved listeners. "THRAK" itself is 15 tracks almost an hour long--but led to many unforgettable concerts.

Not only is "THRAK" available but several concerts have been released during its tour. "B'boom: Official Bootleg. . . " and "Collector's Edition, Vol. 3" are recommended also.

Midlife Crisis?
It's astonishing to think how old these guys were when they came together for "Thrak". The first thing I noticed about King Crimson's eleventh studio LP s is how surprisingly brutal, heavy and most of all inventive these rock granddads sound. . . you've got Robert Fripp - 49, Adrian Belew - 46, Tony Levin - 49, Trey Gunn - 35, Bill Bruford - 46 and Pat Mastelotto - 40. Supremely old in relation to the 90s rock scene - yet they sound more inspired, more fresh and inventive than 99% of the material being churned out at this time.

While "Thrak" is not considered a metal album, it is undoubtedly brutal and retains a "heavy" feel without ever cranking the guitar distortion. This is partly down to the "double trio" line-up consisting of two drummers (Bruford and Mastelotto), two bassists (Levin and Gunn) and two guitarists (Fripp and Belew). The resulting sound is immense. Just one listen to the bewildering "Vrooom" gives a sense of what "Thrak" is all about. Classic Fripp guitar melodies and riffs, complex, jazzy and intertwining drum patterns and thundering baselines. As I mentioned "Thrak" is not a metal album, but to me this sounds as (if not more) brooding, intense and relevant when compared to the majority of metal acts around today. Then there's "B'boom" and the title track, the former being a drummers heaven with a duet solo that builds to a bewildering, syncopated groove. This gives way to the scary onslaught of the title track - evolved around blasts of intense guitars and difficult rhythms, the song sounds more like modern metal gods Meshuggah than anything King Crimson has ever put out.

Amidst this mayhem, "Thrak" also showcases King Crimson at their classic rock best. "Dinosaur" sounds like 70s prog rock given a twisted revamp. The verse flows and eases, giving way to a booming chorus in which Belew croons "I'm a dinosaur, somebody's digging my bones". The song shows how KC fear being overtaken in the music world, and this would certainly explain the inventive and heavy sound elsewhere. "People" and "Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream" are both funky rock numbers, fully equipped with off-beat grooves and catchy choruses. Both songs also continue a theme of social satire, of cynically stepping back and viewing the world, with "People" attacking our single-minded visions and lack of wider appreciation, and "Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream" focusing on the mundane and pointless. "Walking on Air" and "One Time" showcase KC at their delicate best, two superb ballads that would fit right in with their classic 60s and 70s material.

"Thrak" sees a band of old-timers, of rock granddads, pushing their sound to incredible and unexpected new places. At times harsh and chaotic, sometimes downright heavy and brutal, "Thrak" is the band's most adventurous album. Of course, they always come back to their classic rock roots, and this really sets off "Thrak" as a wonderfully eclectic yet balanced album. Highly recommended.
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Accessable King Crimson
This has got to be one of my all time favorite King Crimson albums. I really wasn't sure how the whole "double trio" thing was going to work, but I must admit I love it! Somehow two guitars, two sticks (bass) and two drummers coexit in beautiful musical harmony. Granted, Adrian Belew seems to be sheparding the tunes in his fashion, but when it ends up with great tunes like "Dinosaur" and "Walking On Air" and "People" and not to forget "Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream", how can you complain? My only complaints are not with the astounding musical offerings but with the crazy title "THRAK"? and the boring cover art. I would have preferred a cartoon like cover art from P. J. Crook as many of the live KC albums have received. Heck, Dinosaur would have made a proper name for this CD. This is a more accessable King Crimson than most of their other albums but it still offers the heavey guitar crunching that all Crimsonites have learned to love. Highly recommended. - Ciao.

Nothing new...
To me, King Crimson is often more in the "noise" category than music. I am not a fan of King Crimson but I do like "In the court of the Crimson King", "Red" and "Discipline". This cd is a very good example of my thinking. Sorry, but it is my humble opinion. Don't take it too personnal, it is a matter of taste. I just don't like it.

King Crimson - The Debut Of The Double Trio
Along with the 80's lineup of Fripp, Bruford, Belew and Levin the band added a second bass/stick player in Trey Gunn and a second drummer in Pat Mastelotto. Yet another version of King Crimson emerged in the mid 90's with Robert Fripp putting together the "double trio" concept. I like this album a lot. It is a very nice mix of complex musical works and more accessible songs. There are several killer instrumentals to be found here including "Vroom", "B'Boom", "Vroom Vroom". The album also includes some really good vocal songs including the single "Dinosaur" with it wry commentary on band who much of the mainstream music industry considers to be a Dinosaur. "Walking On Air", "One Time", and "People" are all great tunes too. There are a few tracks that don't work that well for me including "Sex, Sleep Eat Drink Dream", but overall this is a very cool album. Of course with the lineup of musicians present here everything is played flawlessly and it is truly an album that musicians should love. Overall "Thrak" was a very nice comeback for King Crimson and for me ranks up with the best of their material.

You can see a complete list of all King Crimson discography, or go back to the King Crimson tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.