"Best show for me was the town center in Pisa, with wonderful view and weather" wrote Tony Levin in his online diary just after this part of the tour had concluded. All of the Italian gigs had been outdoor events and the weather had not been exactly kind at any of them.
Tonight though, the Crims would remain dry for the entire duration, which might account for the pleasure that’s evident in Adrian's voice as he announces "Good evening!" after the introductory Talking Drum and a particularly brutal LTIA2.
The improvised section leads off with fearsome columns of buzz-saw guitar lines and breaks out into a riotous flurry of Belew-driven soloing underpinned by another outbreak of Crimson on the march; relentless back-beat ala Vrooom Coda and a dread, unstoppable menace that sends shivers down the spine. Much like with the improv at Lignano, this is cohesive, focussed and a prime example of Crimson delving into the dark stuff.
But Crimson isn’t just about the darkness. Indeed, the run of tracks that includes One Time, Vrooom Vrooom, Neurotica, B'Boom, Thrak Waiting Man, Schizoid Man and The Sheltering Sky constitutes a remarkable 50 minutes that act as a kind of short documentary outlining what makes Crimson special: energy, intensity and eclecticism - to borrow a phrase!
