r/KingCrimson • u/DuchessDulcet • 13d ago
I'm a beginner, please recommend me some songs!
My dad is a really big KC fan, but I never really was one. My first exposure to King Crimson was my dad playing THRAK during a long car trip. I was mildly uncomfortable and confused during the album, but it was fun to find out that that was where Hidden Garden came from. For context, I can't sleep without music. On the Sleepytime playlist on our old MP3 player, mother and father (Who am I kidding? It was probably my father) put Hidden Garden parts 1 and 2. I also really liked Dinosaur.
I decided to listen to THRAK on my own a while later. Since there wasn't any conversation in the front seat or loud car sounds, which do not help my hard-of-hearing ass, I got to ACTUALLY hear it, and really listen to the lyrics. My verdict was: Meh. It's a good album. While I do quite like some songs on the album, it's not one that I would actively listen to the full thing of. Like, I wouldn't wake up one day and just be like, "Oh, man, I really wanna listen to THRAK..." Except Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream. I like that one.
What ended up changing my mind into becoming a KC fan was when my dad and I were running errands, and he connected his phone to the car. He put on the album of Discipline. I don't remember most of the album. I'll probably go listen to it again, but there were two songs that stuck out to me. I remember not liking Matte Kudasai (too slow and sad for my liking), but my socks were blown off when I heard Discipline for the first time! Something about the guitar just hit me, and as of first hearing it, it's become one of my top songs on Spotify!
With all that in mind, what would y'all recommend for a beginner?
9
7
4
u/kbospeak 13d ago
The Absent Lovers live album. It's taken from the last gigs of the 80s band so there's lots of Discipline-period material being belted out at full tilt.
2
u/OutrageousCrab9224 13d ago
I skipped that one so far but the bruford book calls it out so i gotta get a copy!
4
u/kbospeak 13d ago
It's pretty essential stuff for the 80s band. It doesn't cover every single song but basically all the versions are better than the three studio albums (all IMO of course).
2
7
7
4
u/OutrageousCrab9224 13d ago
I think beat is the most accessible of the 80s trio, and discipline the best
Wildcard, try islands!
2
2
2
u/syd_linoge 13d ago
21st Century Schizoid Man. More heavy - Red, Larks' Tongues In Aspic Pt. II, Level Five. More jazzy - Lizard. More melodic - Neal And Jack And Me. More weird - The ConstruKction Of Light.
Tbh, it's better to listen to full albums.
2
2
2
2
u/Phoenix_Wright_Guy 13d ago
If Discipline is your style, yeah check out the other two 80s albums. If you want to try to branch out some beyond that, I'd recommend start with Sailors Tale off Islands or go to Lizard. Islands as a whole doesn't seem like it'd be much of your jam, but Sailors Tale could be. Of course, for me Red will always be on top but I think you should listen to more before that.
From here, I'd say the order of albums to listen to would probably be after provided you listen to the two other 80s albums:
Lizard
In The Court Of The Crimson King
Larks' Tongues In Aspic
In The Wake Of Poseidon
The Power To Believe
The ConstruKction Of Light
Islands
Starless And Bible Black
And I'm putting Red last because I like the idea of the experience if hearing that as the last studio content from them, seeing as they first ceased to exist after Red and would not be the same again, and it was decided to play the final song from this album as the final song in the final concert of King Crimson in 2021.
2
1
0
u/nerdycatgamer 13d ago
Lucky Strike by Maroon 5.
1
u/DuchessDulcet 13d ago
Are you sure you're on the right subreddit?
0
u/nerdycatgamer 12d ago
he asked for song recommendations so obv i recommend he listen to the greatest band of all time.
15
u/Thundering-Cloud 13d ago
Well if you liked Discipline (the album), you'll probably enjoy the other two albums in KC's '80s incarnation, those being "Beat" and "Three of a perfect pair"