KING CRIMSON — Beat (review)

KING CRIMSON — Beat album cover Album · 1982 · Non-Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
1.5/5 ·
aglasshouse
Not much is needed to be said about King Crimson's 1982 album Beat, other than it is more or less the same as many other 70's bands' absorption of 80's sound. Beat is infamous for it's split between fans of King Crimson; some say it's good musicianship pulls it through even with the musical styles it harnesses , others say it's just a sellout album that only features a modicum of King Crimson's actual talent. Personally I don't belong to the KC fan clique but I sure can tell you this a terrible album. Dated and extremely wince-worthy, Beat showcases perhaps every single way you can mess up 80's pop rock. The instruments sound watered down, annoyingly twanging out heavily effect-laden chords, the electro-drumming from Bill Bruford, who I know is a fantastic drummer, sounds completely artificial, and the keyboards and "Frippertronics" add a terrible atmosphere to the whole piece. The album has a pseudo rock-and-roll vibe, showcased mainly by Andrew Belew's croon (and in a way his attire shown in the band's live performances of the album). The album needs not one, not two, but three different guitarists (if you count Tony Levin's Chapman stick as one) to keep it afloat. Even with such a plethora of strings the album is weak. The whole album also has a sort of selfishness that differentiates itself from it's kin. It's minimalist album art, it's structure as an album. This may be just King Crimson still not getting over the fact that they made artsy bollocks in the last decade and can't go a single album without showcasing it like a bunch of prudes, but I really can't say for sure.

Frankly it's insulting to see these talented musicians go under just to please a certain audience. Perhaps this was all a Fripp plan and has some art rock meaning behind it. Perhaps it's a botched follow-up to 1980's Discipline. Perhaps it's just a bad album and that's all. The world may never know. But I'll take a shot in the dark and say it's the third option. All in all it's just my interpretation of 80's cheese. Sometimes it's innocent and fine, other times it's infuriatingly stuck-up and full of itself. This is one of those other times. Not recommended.
Share this review
more

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Metal Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

Gaia Metalcore
RELATIONS
Buy this album from MMA partners
Decievers Deathcore
ORACLE SPECTRE
Buy this album from MMA partners
A Fountain Of Anguish Is Gone Sludge Metal
TIGGUO COBAUC
Buy this album from MMA partners
Colossal Oppressor Sludge Metal
TEN TON SLUG
Buy this album from MMA partners
Tribus Rattus Mortuus Atmospheric Sludge Metal
TRAP RATT
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

Relations - Schwarzes Blut - 2020 - Lyric Video
RELATIONS
Bosh66· 24 minutes ago
RELATIONS - SHELTER (Official Video)
RELATIONS
Bosh66· 24 minutes ago
RELATIONS - NIGHT LIGHTS (Official Video)
RELATIONS
Bosh66· 25 minutes ago
ORACLE SPECTRE - VOIDSAYER (OFFICIAL LYRIC VIDEO) [2023]
ORACLE SPECTRE
Bosh66· 63 minutes ago
WOMBMOTHER | ORACLE SPECTRE (LYRIC VIDEO)
ORACLE SPECTRE
Bosh66· 64 minutes ago
More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed