Customer Reviews

King Crimson: Eyes Wide Open

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

i am an experienced guitarist of many years and record with professional equipment;therfore i am familiar with many guitar effects and a lot of the type of things crimson uses. i watched this very closely several times to see what the other review was refering to as overdubbed guitar solos of adrian, and i am confident that i have seen none. what i THINK the reviewer might be refering to are a few parts where adrian uses a reversing effect, in which everything you play is held in a processor's memory and reversed, then played a few miliseconds later. so you have to play a little bit ahead of the time signature, then what the viewer hears is a few seconds behind what your hands are doing. it takes a lot of skill to use this effect properly. this is not a trick or overdoub. it is a very common studio technique that is not often used live. i saw no evidence of any use of overdubbing. everything heard appeared by my experience to be played at the moment by one of the musicians on stage. i think this is an excellent dvd for any crimson fans and is fabulous material. they are vastly beyond most musicians in many ways, least of which being skill. i dont mean to contradict the other reviewer, but i am confident of what i say and i just wanted to offer my observation to others who might be deterred from this dvd because of such a thing. blessings, and enjoy =)

King Crimson is and will always be a live band first and foremost. I first saw them over 30 years ago and have been amazed each and every time I have seen them play. The power in Robert Fripp & Co.'s music is when they play live. Their studio albums are great; however, seeing them live and watching them practice their art is what really draws you into their music. Once you see them perform live, you will forever remember in your mind the nuances you saw while they played each tune. This DVD is as close as you can get to a live Crim concert without being there. The video is a little grainy; however, there is usually smoke in the air at their concerts, so what you see is quite acceptable. The sound is OK in stereo; however, turn on the Digital 5.1 and prepare to be blown away! If you like recent Crim, these two shows will also provide you with a historical growth from 2000 to 2003 with the current four members of the band. If you are a fan of the '73/'74 power Crim (Fripp, Wetton, Bruford, et al)you will also find much to enjoy, especially in the 2003 Japan concert. If you are new to the band, this is a great place to see the modern performances of a band that helped define power rock and metal music. Robert Fripp is a musical genious and, if you watch closely, you will see that genious unfold again and again. This is, in my humble opinion, one of the strongest Crim lineups in the history of the band. Bruford may have been the best drummer they ever had and Tony Levin may have been the ultimate bass player; however, as a group, the four now together create a marvelous, well-oiled machine that shouldn't be missed. This is an essential Crim fan DVD and a good way for the newbie fan to get a taste of a classic, yet new and evolving, musical entity known as King Crimson.

I saw King Crimson in Boston of March 2003,about a month before this concert was recorded in Japan.
This disc absolutely catches the spirit and sound of the legendary band.
The concert recorded was one of many performances the band made in Japan.
Each member was on.
With the talented Trey Gunn on touch-bass, Pat Mastelotto on drums, Adrian Belew on vocals and guitar, and last, but not least the elusive veteran guitarist and founding member of King Crimson, Robert Fripp, this lineup did not dissapoint.
Fripp opens the show with a little demonstration of his guitar playing talents. Playing various magical sounds with his guitar.
The band runs the gambit of playing various songs throughout their careers. They play many new tracks from their latest release; The Power to Believe to Construction of Light to their earliest days Larks' Tongues in Aspic; Part IV.
If you didn't see them live this last tour or haven't seen them perform in some time or at all this is a live disc to get.
It is for me an excellent momento of what I experienced and saw on that memorable night.

Just from the very first moments of the "Introductory Soundscape" I had chills running down my spine! Then I was struck by the extraordinary beauty and power of this performance. This is the very best King Crimson concert ever put on video - hands down! Nobody else plays like these guys. They are absolutely brilliant. Robert Fripp will always be my all-time favorite musician. Incredible visual light show that enhances the music even more. Words just don't do these guys justice. This DVD is worth every penny! I rate this DVD with millions of stars!

If you are interested in the modern version of King Crimson, you cannot go wrong with this DVD set. Two DVDs with two concerts - one from 2000, and the other from 2003. The one DVD from 2000 freaked me out at first. What makes it extremely interesting is that it inserts random improv jams into various places in the setlist. This allows for a 'different' Krim concert every time you put the DVD in. It can be a tad jarring with the slight pause in between songs, but you adjust to it rather rapidly. You can also watch the improvs on your own as well.

I've always felt that the experience of viewing chamber music truly enhances appreciation. And King Crimson is chamber music (according to the definition of Chamber Music America) -- very loud, aggressive, quirky, virtuosic rock chamber music. The two concerts on this DVD are well-shot and edited to document the incredible musicianship, including Trey Gunn's elegant two-handed technique on the Warr touch guitar and Robert Fripp's masterful manipulation of his battery of electronic processing devices. And how DOES Adrian Belew wrench all those sounds out of a plain old guitar? Yes, all that music really IS made almost entirely by guitars, with the rock solid backing of drummer Pat Mastelotto. I've found that even people who don't like the King Crimson sound are fascinated by the visual spectacle of the music being made. This double DVD of King Crimson as a quartet is a welcome companion to the earlier "Deja Vroom" video, which documented the double-trio version of band that adds drummer Bill Bruford and versatile bass master Tony Levin.

I was pleasantly surprised by both the audio quality and video quality, and the two CDs full of 'improv' surprises.

I'm a youngster as far as this band is concerned, having first seen them during Three of a Perfect Pair, then later for VROOOM, the ProjeKcts, the ConstruKction of Light, and the Power To Believe. This DVD chronicles the crystalizing of the foursome of Adrian Belew, Trey Gunn, Robert Fripp and Pat Mastelotto, with a CD each from the ConstruKction of Light tour and the Power to Believe tour. I was surprised at how, as with any King Crimson, each veers occasionally towards the stunning.

This DVD captures that ongoing thread, and adds an additional nuance to something I find hard to pin down, which is what goes on in a rock improv. In this case, the DVD provides random leaps into that unknown territory, a tremendous feature!

For it's price and the legendary status of King Crimson, it would be worth three stars if DGM pulled three stars worth of effort in the production, the visuals and the music. In my book, together they pulled four stars, and out of the generosity of the muse that this band continues to push forward, I gave it a fifth star.

Yes I love King Crimson of the Wetton years but the modern Crimson is great also. This DVD demonstrates that this version of Crimson was the most interesting since the Wetton years. And, it is quite sad that several have dismissed this version of Crimson. I especially like the rythm section of Mastelotto and Gunn. These guys really create a unique sound.

I also saw the Crimson show at the Park West on Nov 8th. This DVD is excellent and does an excellent job of representing the band King Crimson. I had the chance to also see KC play during the Same tour except in the States that appears on the DVD. Buy it! You wont regret. Also, visit the DGM website for alot more KC goodies!

This dvd set I believe captures the live crim in their raw element. If your a fan of either The ConstruKction Of Light, Heavy ConstruKction(TCOL live plus improvs), and/or The Power To Believe(and especially the ProjeKcts), this is one you need to own.