“Welcome to the King Crimson 1984 tour of North America,” says Adrian Belew in Minneapolis on the 11th date, going on to ask the audience, “You don’t mind if we take our time and have fun tonight, do you?” Turns out they don’t. Sounding looser and more fluid than it ever did in the studio, Larks’ Tongues Aspic Part III ploughs its distinctive furrow through the centre partings of the heads in the audience, effortlessly displaying that special balance of tight control and sheer abandonment.
The energy of the overall gig here is clearly running high and it especially seems to benefit the six tracks of new material from what Belew describes as “our very, very yellow third album.” The thrusting dynamics of Industry really spark and catch alight here with Belew commenting at the end of it, “You like that stuff, huh?” Dig Me’s twisted shards and atonal scrabbling welded to what amounts to a glorious pop song chorus shouldn’t work at all but it positively races away, with Bruford absolutely revelling in his role as agent provocateur percussionist.
After completing a truly thunderous Larks’ Tongues Part II and taking the applause of a clearly ecstatic crowd, there’s a lengthier than usual pause. “Just a moment, folks. My amp has just frazzed out,” Adrian explains. “We’d love to play some more, and we will if you give us a chance to fix this problem.’ Turning a disadvantage into an advantage, this equipment snafu provides Fripp with an impromptu opportunity for an 80s-style Frippertronics with some subtle underscoring from Levin. With some brain-shaking soloing from Robert against the delicate backdrop, this is lovely stuff. As Adrian said near the top of the show, the band are indeed taking their time and having fun.
