Author Topic: [Music] King Crimson - Lizard  (Read 1872 times)

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Offline Mladen

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[Music] King Crimson - Lizard
« on: May 30, 2010, 02:05:45 PM »
This is my very first review here, so I hope you like it.  :tup

Artist: King Crimson
Album: Lizard
Genre: Progressive Rock
Release: 1970

Lizard is an album that has often been called the black sheep in the King Crimson discography. There are several reasons for such status: it features an odd jazzy approach to most of the songs, it wasn’t as commercially successful as its predecessors, and it is the only King Crimson record to feature Gordon Haskel on vocals. To this day, some fans refuse to acknowledge Lizard, just for the sake of being negative towards an album. However, most of the people who decide to take a trip with this jazzy psychadelic prog rock record turn out to be pleasantly surprised. 

The album starts with Cirkus, which is apparently a fan favorite here. It features some wonderful guitar work by Robert Fripp, as well as a heavy and quite memorable mellotron riff. Gordon’s voice sounds ominous, which is particulary appealing to my ears. The last minute reminds me of Pink Floyd’s Atom heart mother suite from the same year. That certainly can’t be a bad thing, since I’m a huge fan of that particular release as well.

The next song is an amusing little ditty called Indoor games. The verses are catchy and fun for singing along, especially if you know how to cope with the lyrics. The words seem to spread the message of hedonism and happiness, yet you can’t precisely tell if that’s the deal. Gordon bursts into laughter at the very end, so you might say he got carried by the theme of the song.

Happy family follows, starting with a cool short figure that turned out to be one of my favorite sections on the entire album. Even though we know that Gordon sings about the breakup of The Beatles, the lyrics sound incredibly obscure and bizarre. There is an extended jam session in the middle of the song, which I find very enjoyable because of its craziness.

Then comes the ballad on the album, Lady of the dancing water. It’s unbelievable to me that so much beauty and warmth can fit into such a short song. Gordon delivers a passionate performance that almost brings tears to my eyes. The flute sounds just beautiful and helps the atmosphere as well. I might even say that the shortest song here is actually my very favorite.

However, the heart of the album is the lengthy title track, containing four sections. The first of the four sections features the great Jon Anderson on vocals. Needless to say, his performance is fabulous. The fascinating Bolero follows. It is an impressive piece of work, because there are so many wild things going on, before the guys go back to a wonderful and gentle phrase. Gordon’s deep and dark voice caries us through two more amazing verses, preparing us for another heavy part where Andy McCulloch shines. Robert Fripp delivers a two minute long gloomy solo, which slowly fades out and leads into a beautiful short section called Big Top.

The only problem I have with this album is the fact that it’s way too short. I wish there was more material from this period, but unfortunately, I’m pretty sure there isn’t. I learned to see this record as something unique and one of a kind, which maybe gives it some sort of new charm.

10/10

Offline In The Wake Of Poseidon

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Re: [Music] King Crimson - Lizard
« Reply #1 on: June 03, 2010, 10:23:28 AM »
Totally underrated album, a solid 9/10 in my books. Lizard is easily one of KC's best songs, Jon Anderson was a nice touch.

Offline Fluffy Lothario

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Re: [Music] King Crimson - Lizard
« Reply #2 on: June 28, 2010, 08:20:08 PM »
I love the first track and the last track is one of my favourite songs. The rest, I didn't like quite so much, and I found the production / general sound on those tracks detrimental to the point that I can't be bothered with them.