The first date on the Frippertronics European tour was captured on this excellent quality audience recording. You’ll hear coughs, shuffles, camera shutters snapping, strings plucked and foot-switches clicking - oh and some warm slabs of intense guitar music. Reviewing a Frippertronics in London gig eleven days previously, Melody Maker’s Allan Jones offerered this observation: “The audience was clustered close around Fripp...They could see him playing; they could, more revealingly, see him *thinking* about what he was playing. They could observe his manipulation of technical effects and devices. The entire process of making music was thus demystified.” The demonically rasping de-tuned section towards the end of the fourth piece is pretty hair-raising stuff.
The first date on the Frippertronics European tour was captured on this excellent quality audience recording. You’ll hear coughs, shuffles, camera shutters snapping, strings plucked and foot-switches clicking - oh and some warm slabs of intense guitar music. Reviewing a Frippertronics in London gig eleven days previously, Melody Maker’s Allan Jones...
Being the first date of the European tour of 1979, this show is one of the earliest Frippertronics recordings available. Not the first show, not even the first show of 1979 (there were a few performances in Montreal and the UK in April), but still very early on. For that reason this set is absolutely worth picking up, as the style Fripp adopts here would change quite soon as the month of May progresses. This show features more ambient washes and drones, with fewer of the bleeps and blips that se...
Being the first date of the European tour of 1979, this show is one of the earliest Frippertronics recordings available. Not the first show, not even the first show of 1979 (there were a few performances in Montreal and the UK in April), but still very early on. For that reason this set is absolutely worth picking up, as the style Fripp adopts here would change quite soon as the month of May progresses. This show features more ambient washes and drones, with fewer of the bleeps and blips that seem to dominate the albums God Save the Queen/Under Heavy Manners and Let the Power Fall.
It's also worth picking up to hear Robert's playing overtop of the loops, although this is only possible because the recording is sourced from a bootleg made by an audience member. Being able to hear the sounds of the room do allow the listener to sort of get a grasp for how the loops are sometimes constructed; in Music For Theatres and Solo III, you can hear a point during Robert's soloing where he rapidly and repeatedly clicks on a foot pedal, switching the output of his guitar and Frippelboard back and forth, going from the amplifier on stage to the tape machines that allow him to create his loops. This appears to be at least one method used to create the various bleeps and blips.
All in all I can't say it's a particularly special or unique show because of the content. Most of the loops are built around ideas Robert would revisit in later performances with a little more experience under his belt. For that, as well as the quality of the recording, I wouldn't recommend this to somebody completely unfamiliar with Frippertronics (actually for that person I would recommend finding a copy of Let the Power Fall, or perhaps GSTQ/UHM although that one has not been released on CD as of the time of writing). However, if you have heard both of the Frippertronics albums or have heard a few of the other shows on this tour or others (or maybe the albums *and* some other shows), I can safely say this one is still worth picking up for historical reasons especially. This style of Frippertronics would very quickly evolve from the ambient washes and drones to the later heavy reliance on beeps (not that either one is inherently better than the other). Alternatively, save your money and pick up the entire 1979 tour.
Written by Jeff Miner
Another Standout Show with Solos
Definitely one of the best of the Frippertronics downloads - this features some wonderful soloing by Mr. Fripp throughout. To echo another reviewer, both the May 1979 tour to which this belongs and the July/August 1981 set are well worth the investment if you love Frippertronics.
Written by Jeremy Keens
Get The Set
I bought the 1981 set first. It is more like the music on the frippertronics albums - short notes building slowly - and has the second half of the show with solos. When I first saw these I thought they would be like the basic loops from later. How wrong I was. These are more like No Pussyfooting style albums - dense looping based on long notes, very full of sound, with sudden changes of mood as a dissonant or deep note is applied. Filigrees whisp through and around, notes last the length of th...
I bought the 1981 set first. It is more like the music on the frippertronics albums - short notes building slowly - and has the second half of the show with solos. When I first saw these I thought they would be like the basic loops from later. How wrong I was. These are more like No Pussyfooting style albums - dense looping based on long notes, very full of sound, with sudden changes of mood as a dissonant or deep note is applied. Filigrees whisp through and around, notes last the length of the loop to form drones. It is fascinating hearing how Frippertronics varied in structure even over a two year period. This set of music is well worth the money as each concert is a separate improvisation going in different directions every night. A wonder for the ears. (and get 1981 too)
Written by Melvin Collins
As I have said before this is what a lot of crimson fans want thank you MR.FRIPP BLESSINGS to you.
