Este es uno de los más influyentes grupos de rock progresivo en todo el mundo. Como miembros de la “redinosaurización”, han permanecido intactos en su apreciación ante múltiples cambios en su alineación, forjándose además como ejemplo a seguir por un montón de artistas en el medio, gracias a su magnificencia estética, su música oblicua y sus diferentes fases. Las personas que quieran explorar en un progresivo único, pueden empezar a escucharlos sin un orden determinado. Su sonido es tan exacto, tan perfecto, que sin duda gustará desde cualquier ángulo que se le escuche, aunque habrá de considerar la posibilidad de encontrarse, desde música que desquicia, hasta ritmos dulces y melódicos.
Por la controvertida calidad de su propuesta original, hubo gente que le atribuyó a KING CRIMSON la creación de un sonido: el RIO (Rock en Oposición). “Era el único grupo donde, como batería, podías tocar en un compás elaborado, de 17 16, por ejemplo, y aun así dormir en hoteles decentes”.The name King Crimson was actually derived from a particularly potent 'brand' of LSD tab that was doing the rounds in the mid-to-late sixties. It was coloured with cochineal food colouring to distinguish it from 'ordinary' tabs, and was referred to as 'King Crimson' because of its effectiveness and vivid hue. Pete Sinfield was a heavy user when he first joined forces with McDonald, Lake, Giles and Fripp, and already had a bulging portfolio of far-out lyrics and poems based on the visions and hallucinations he had experienced while under the influence of the drug. One of these was, of course, 'In the Court of the Crimson King', and while the eponymous king referred to in the song may well be a reference to Beelzebub, it was the candy-coloured source of Pete's inspiration (rather than the result) that provided the newly-formed band with its name.
As any Crimson historian will know, Pete was a fearlessly adventurous drug enthusiast during the years that he was involved with the band, and he also indulged in regular cocktails of heroin and cocaine. The lyrics for '21st Century Schizoid Man' were written under the influence of this brain-frying combo, and there is an obvious contrast with the luminous, fantastical imagery of his LSD-inspired lyrics for 'Epitaph', 'Moonchild' and 'Court'. It's probably fortunate that the band didn't know in advance that 'Schizoid Man' would become their signature song for all eternity, otherwise they might have called themselves 'Speedball'.
Tracklist:
1. 21st Century Schizoid Man
2. I Talk to the Wind
3. Epitaph
4. Moonchild
5. The Court of the Crimson King
