Larks' Tongues In Aspic
King Crimson
1973
Album Summary
Larks' Tongues in Aspic is the fifth studio album by the English progressive rock group King Crimson, released on 23 March 1973 through Island Records in the UK and Atlantic Records in the United States and Canada. This album is the debut of King Crimson's third incarnation, featuring co-founder and guitarist Robert Fripp along with four new members: bass guitarist and vocalist John Wetton, violinist and keyboardist David Cross, percussionist Jamie Muir, and drummer Bill Bruford. It is a key album in the band's evolution, drawing on Eastern European classical music and European free improvisation as central influences.
WikipediaOhhh, finally! An album that I already listened complete before I started this challenge! Ok, so let's start by saying that King Crimson is my favourite band. Like, not just my favourite prog rock band, my favourite band of ALL times alongside The Beatles, Queen and Black Sabbath. Each of its albums, except for In The Wake of Poseidon, are extremely different from each other and almost feel like they were made by different bands, and they technically are, since the lineup of the project has changed thousands of times, the only constant member being Robert Fripp. And from all of their studio albums, LTIA is definitely one of the weirdest ones, but it has some of the most talented musicians working on it, namely Jamie Muir and Bill Bruford, and many others. Even though this is not my favourite album of King Crimson (I would put it in fifth or sixth place in a ranking) it is still a great and hugely influential album, mixing classic prog rock with world music, neo-classical sounds, heavy metal and possibly one of the earliest prog metal and avant-garde metal songs in history: the Larks' Tongues in Aspics suite, which has five parts, that span four albums and 30 years in the making. It is possible that bands like TOOL or Dream Theater would have never existed without this album so I guess that deserves at least four stars. Screw it, the album cover is my profile photo of Discord, I'll give it five stars
aika perkuleesti on juttua kuultu crimson pojasta..odotukset ylhäällä kuin hepokatti laitumella. ensimmäinen vartti instrumentalllia...sitten tulee roguh wadursmaista vokaalinlyräytystä... ei voi muuta kun antaa aplodit, koko albumi laatu kamaa... exiles
Not bad but just a bit too much progressive and not enough rock to keep me entertained and intrigued
I really hate prog rock. I get the impression they think they're way more clever than they actually are. They're just farting about and making random noises. It's utterly tedious. There's a bit of nice violin in there which always gets my attention, and some nice piano and musical bits AT TIMES. That's where my 1 star is going. But it's like a feeble ray of light shining on a giant cloud of guff, which can't quite penetrate it and break free.
What an absolutely fascinating band. Ever-changing, ever-evolving, and always original and creative. Robert Fripp to this day seems to me to possess such an interesting and curious mind. And, of course, what a guitarist. I love the way he uses the instrument; very much on his own path. So refreshing. Great album art, too, by the way. I need to explore more of King Crimson's and Robert Fripp's work. I've listened to some of Robert Fripp's ambient music albums this year, and they are excellent. I know a few people who have seen King Crimson play live, even quite recently, and they raved about the experience. I hope to get out to see them one of these days -- would be such a treat!
Un des meilleurs albummde prog dans ce genre. Mon prefere de king crimson. 5
Hadn't listened to the one at all, I only know the screaming man album. Really enjoyed it, it sounds like the birth of math rock!
It is a masterpiece of rock music - not just prog rock - and one of the best albums of this band. I could write endless paragraphs about it. The strongest suit might be the highly versatile jump between complex and challenging parts as well as the the melodies and atmosphere. 'Books of Exile' is reminiscent of the more 'romantic' KC while something like 'Easy Money' shows how banging and jamming goes. Absolutely gorgeous!
C'est sûr qu'à la base j'aime beaucoup King Crimson, donc j'ai un préjugé favorable envers le groupe. J'aime beaucoup cette série de 3 albums (les 2 autres étant Red et Starless and Bible Black). Red reste mon préféré de cette série, mais Larks' Tongues est très près. J'aime les dissonances dans les pièces et ses côtés très rock par moment. Les percussions aussi sont intéressantes. Le côté deux drums sur Larks' Tongues part 2 donne un aperçu de ce que le groupe fera plus tard avec sa formation en double trio. La pochette est superbe.
Un album simpatico. Bello il sound degli anni '70. Interessante la combinazione degli strumenti.
Belle découverte, je trouve ça vraiment intéressant, même si je ne l’écouterais pas tous les jours
Samo se nadam da je dobar kao što je album cover. 8:21. // 9:07 - ovaj album mi je bolji od In the Court of Crimson King, don't @ me.
Normally this progressive songwriting and instrumentals would frustrate me, but I was intrigued from beginning to end! Cool adventure of sounds.
Sko, þetta er alltaf áhugavert, oft skemmtilegt, og ég mun alltaf vera þakklátur fyrir Robert Fripp. Ég ætla samt ekki endilega að hlusta á hverjum degi.
Ein gutes Album, das ich ausnahmsweise schon kannte. Ist nicht zu lang, hat aber ein paar Längen.
Of all the prog rock albums I’ve gotten, this is definitely high on the list. It was much cooler than 2112 and the larks tongues in aspic parts 1 and 2 were the standouts.
excellent hidden gem. I liked it a lot and would like more listens. probably a 4.5.
After a few days of stuff that isn’t Really For Me At All, I was glad to get an album that I know I love. Not one of KC’s top tier releases, but it’s bookended by some of their most lovely compositions. B+
Not sure I've ever sat down and listened to a King Crimson album before. There was a lot to like here, but it was pretty spaced-out. 3.5/5
I've been taking a deep dive into Prog thanks to a question posited in a Facebook group, "How Prog was Bowie?" The answer: The Man Who Sold the World. Thanks to this discussion, my curiosity, and the movie Mandy, I've been actively listening to King Crimson, early Peter Gabriel Genesis, Can & more of Pink Floyd. To be fair, I had already been lightly dipping my toes into Prog & Krautrock for the last few years. Back to the album - I enjoyed it. It was atmospheric, calming, unnerving, alien, ethereal, and beautiful. You bet I'll be listening to this again. Probably cued up after Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. 4 out of 5 but will likely turn into a 5 pretty soon.
I liked this. I liked the mish-mash and the quick switch into early metal. I liked it.
Real good. Will be adding to my King Crimson rotation along with Crimson King and Red, the latter of which I was compelled to stick on after I listened to this.
Aspic Rodeo anyone? Headphones are the way to go with this one. First, the headphones are critical to avoid the verbal and visual insubordination of family members who are within earshot. On my first attempt to listen without headphones, before the first song was done my son came home and bribed me by saying he would cook us dinner as long as I turned the damn thing off. I was kinda hungry so . . . . Also, I was not getting into it since it's terrible background music. With headphones though it's a completely different story. The drums / timbales and strings on The Talking Drum are excellent. It has a middle eastern feel to it - even though the album is apparently Eastern Europe influenced. Fripp is a master at getting his guitar to make sounds that other guitar players only hear in their dreams. He is also very good at making his guitar make normal guitar sounds as he shows on Book of Saturday. I invented a game called Aspic Rodeo to play when company comes over. I'll play this album and whoever lasts the longest before asking me to turn it off wins.
Lick me bum bum. It's a freakin' masterpiece. A scrunched up sock full of dog shit thrown at your headmaster. A baby in a manger smoking a rolled up cigarette and shouting cruel observations as passers-by. A proud Norwegian woman slipping over in a dance hall. A couple of Nazi barmen pouring a round of orange juice for a group of yoga mums. The ending of Titanic performed by school children for an unimpressed bank manager.
I liked their other album better. Ut I have always been a fan of prog rock
7/10. Mr. Crimson, were those wet sounds at the start of easy money really needed? A couple pretty cool bits, but some sleepier parts too.
8/10 some of the weird animal sounds were grating but overall really cool prog rock, as expected
I'm still not sure I "get" King Crimson, but it went really well with the epic thunderstorms sweeping through the area.
A typically complexing, rewarding listen. Signs of the direction that King Crimson would take on subsequent albums is evident in the title track, but there still remain traces of the old Crimson in the more contemplative numbers Book of Saturday and Exiles. Easy Money is fine musically but the lyrics haven't stood the test of time But overall a really good album
I've never listened to King Crimson aside from the legendary In The Court of The Crimson King but perhaps I should've. This is really good. It does suffer a tad from the pitfalls of prog but it wasn't all that noticeable to me. I could see it being a 5, those title track songs are great. I just can't see it as 5 yet. Maybe after more listens. For now it's a Iron clad 4.
Il s’essaie beaucoup de trucs sur cet album. Je n’y reviens pas souvent, mais j’aime bien.
Before starting this 1001 challenge, I completely misunderstood progressive rock and experimentalism in popular music. So I learned a lot listening to it on some occasions and reading Wikipedia from time to time. It's not my favorite style, and I felt sad when I received some progressive album (apparently, the book's author loves this kind of music). Still, after almost 500 albums, I must confess that I was missing some experimentalism in my daily album. Thanks to "King Crimson" for allowing me to listen to some experimentalism today. I guess that after the subsequent 200 albums, I'll become a fan of progressive rock.
Was that Donal Duck at the end of "Easy Money"? If so, amazing Overall, a really decent album enjoyed listening to it too, exciting use of drums, violins, and cello. 3/5
I like the violin. I feel this album could have been stronger if there was more structure/direction.
I don't think I've ever heard King Crimson, although I know they're huge in prog-nerd circles. Could go either way. Ok it's ultra-prog. Sound-wise, it's kinda like if Led Zeppelin substituted songwriting talent for nerdy technical ability. There are heavy rocking parts and folky sensitive bits, extreme displays of jazzy music theory knowledge, long as fuck songs, etc etc. It's all there. It's not bad, and I like ultra-prog to an extent, but for some reason the lack of real songcraft sticks out. Vocals are a weak point as well. Can't say I'd listen again. 3/5.
This album's name is BAD This album's music is FINE At times it gets kind of prog rocky, and that's GOOD. At other times it does this ambient Brian Eno but in China thing which is VERY GOOD. At other times it's generic 70s stoner crap and that's BAD.
Not my favorite King Crimson album. The studio recording bonus track kinda was the most interesting.
I'm just not a prog rock guy. I find it kind of exhausting. That being said, this isn't an awful record, it's just not really my thing. There were a few tracks that I could enjoy but overall I can't really see myself choosing to put this one on again. Standout Tracks: Exiles, Easy Money, The Talking Drum (enjoyed parts of this song)
I must admit I'm one of those weenies that likes Prog. And of all the Prog groups, King Crimson is one of the best IMO, just behind Genesis and Yes. This group never ceases to impress, constantly evolving and changing their line-up, with Robert Fripp the band leader being the only constant. This iteration brings in one of my favourite drummers, Bill Bruford and bassists, John Wetton. David Cross' violin adds another interesting dimension to their sound. I think the two bonus tracks that Spotify tagged on to the end are really good, but to be fair they shouldn't be rated with the original album material. Their almost heavy metal prog sound was highly influential on bands like Porcupine Tree and Dream Theatre and the improv noodling shows that they can push the envelope. However, I think In the Court of the Crimson King and Red are better albums so I hope they show up on this list.
Robert Fripp is an impressive guitar player who’s not afraid to experiment. I like the way he jumps around from heavy rock to jazz to acoustic. David Cross’s violin is also a highlight. Some of the longer songs don’t hold together too well, with the sudden changes of pace, lack of melody and structure, and Fripp’s penchant to create jarring experiences for the listener. I’m not crazy about the vocalist – it’s kinda like they asked, out of the five of us, who’s the best singer?
I don't know why this would be the King Crimson album that would make it onto the list. Some of the drums really stood out to me though.
Title track(s) are cool but I don't like the rest. Waaaay better than In the Court of the Crimson King though.
1. Larks' Tongues In Aspic (Part I): bit trippy how this song progresses. Just a lot going on with very good and very underwhelming parts. 6/10. 2. Book of Saturday: love the instrumentals, nice vocals. 7.5/10. 3. Exiles: solid track, very nice instrumentally and vocally. 7/10 4. Easy Money: chorus sounds great. Really strong buildup throughout the track. 8/10. 5. The Talking Drum: vibey track, very good choice of instruments. 7.5/10. 6.Larks' Tongues In Aspic (Part II): this part is really nice, definitely a good ender. 7.5/10
Well this is overwrought. Some exceptionally talented musicians have managed to produce something really quite dull.
Nothing particularly interesting about this one. Prog rock like this just cracks me up. 1.5/5
I don't want to say that one shouldn't record jam sessions, but to me, most of this album sounded like unrefined or unapplied musical exploration – the kind of playing that might be helpful in creating songs or warming up for gigs. This overall impression was overcome neither by the one song I enjoyed in its entirety nor the poetic intro and outro ordering of Parts I and II.
How much math rock am I supposed to endure?!? Robert Fripp et al have all separately contributed to so many classic bands and albums. Together it’s hard to take. It will spawn many bands. Sure, I hear primus in there. I hear Faith no More. Those are not compliments.
I think it's safe to say that prog rock isn't my jam. Much like this album's title, the genre feels like it's trying too hard to differentiate itself from popular music (a term I use generally, not in reference to pop specifically), and it usually ends up coming off as pretentious to my ears. There are interesting bits scattered throughout these overlong tracks, but I mostly found myself somewhere along the spectrum of indifferent to actively rolling my eyes.
look, I called myself a "nerd" growing up, and I have since learned to let people enjoy what they're gonna enjoy, so, enjoy, nerds! but lord, this album irritated the shit out of me. like Rush but with worse singing and annoying show-offy musicianship (at least Rush rocks).
I have heard a lot about King Crimson over the years, but have never taken much of a dive into their music, so this was a good opportunity. The opening track moving slowly from a new age crystal meditation piece of sorts to an all-out guitar jam to a funky progressive "freestyling" on the guitar was absolutely a fun build and journey. That first track did become a bit of a slog, though; there were multiple times where I was thinking (and hoping that we had moved on to a new track). The problem with this "brand" of prog rock is that a lot of this never seems to go anywhere. It seems mostly freestyling in nature and lacks a lot of the cohesion and theme seen in other prog rockers' work...say, Pink Floyd or Rush, for instance. Both bands could jam and explore but it didn't typically feel aimless. This not only felt aimless at times, but also tedious and rather long-winded -- both on individual tracks and as an entire album. That said, this album has moments of instrumental intrigue that capture my attention. I can hear the interplay between typical rock instruments and other string or percussion type instruments, and find it fascinating!
some of this album was startlingly beautiful. the drums in "exiles", or the violin in "larks' tongue in aspic (part i)"--they could make such beautiful music! but then a lot of it was weird. i'm not sure what the purpose was to make the violin sound abysmally terrible. and some of it was just average: it didn't stand out too much but most wasn't awful to my ears. i guess i just have some questions to ask of king crimson. a polite 2.5.
Some prog seems too much like they just got a bunch of very talented musicians in a studio and recorded them trying stuff out. They are talented, no doubt, but this either needs more polishing to be prog I can enjoy, or more of a plan to be jazz I can enjoy.
Highlights: "Lark Tongues in Aspic Part 2," "The Talking Drum," the Fripping at the end of "Exiles" This album is in an annoying space where it's trying to bridge high-minded stuff like Reich, Bartok, and Derek Bailey, but even though it's technically much better performed than CotCK, the band is never on the level of most of their "high" influences while also sacrificing memorable melody and riffs that are assumed for pop and rock. The pop influences are also right on the sleeve all the time. It's truly baffling if/how they copied Pink Floyd a mere three weeks after Dark Side of the Moon was released, and the most obvious influence of all is Yes. Even if I think Crimson's harmony is more interesting, they're leaning so much here on the ideas of Close to the Edge (1972). We do hear the emergence of Fripp's signature superprocessed guitar sound, which he would continue to develop with Brian Eno, and Jamie Muir's found object percussion is still fresh, surprising, or sometimes just charming.
I always thought I liked some forms of prog-rock. Based on listening to this album, perhaps I do not. This is music for people who make music so they can tell others how good this music is.
After the high of ‘Crimson King,’ this one comes off as more of a slightly-polished studio jam sesh than tight prog epic. I think some more vocals or string melodic themes would’ve helped this album feel more cohesive rather than a scattershot of collection of tracks (and at times, individual phrases or even sounds).
Vähän turhan kilinää... Tahtoison tykätä, mutta se onnistuu vain kohdissa, jotka ovat enemmän rockia, ja niitä on liian vähän.
Alan Niester of Rolling Stone summarized the album saying "You can't dance to it, can't keep a beat to it, and it doesn't even make good background music for washing the dishes.”
Two of my three favorite artists are prog rock musicians. But I don't much care for King Crimson. I don't get it. I enjoy some of Pink Floyd's more experimental stuff. And some of Captain Beefheart's stuff. But not this. I don't get it. I strongly believe that if an artist is respected by a lot of people (esp. ones that aren't middle school children), they are probably talented. This is how I feel about King Crimson. And they (he) have stood the test of time. But I don't get it. And I do believe there are cases where reviews suffer from the issue of "The Emperor's New Clothes". "This album is challenging to listen to, so it must be deep." And then someone says that, and others feel like, "Well, I don't want to be seen as shallow, so yeah, though I don't really enjoy sitting down and listening to this, it must be deep, and the musicians are really talented, so yeah, it is good after all!" No one wants to be the one to say that, sure, it's innovative, and the music is well played, but no one actually wants to listen to the damn thing. I don't expect all of my music to be "easy" to listen to, but I don't see when I would want to sit down and listen to this. Maybe this is "groundbreaking" or highly innovative or some such, yet, I don't think it's enjoyable for many, and that's more important, so it gets two stars. I appreciate Fripp's talent, but the songs just aren't very enjoyable. Even the critics that praise the album admit that it's not easy to listen to. But that's mostly the point of music, so this is mostly a fail. I think all the praise is mostly people not wanting to point out that the emperor isn't wearing any clothes.