Discipline
The title says it all and the title track further demonstrates the concept as the band runs through a series of incredibly intricate, ever-changing guitar patterns and time signatures. When Robert Fripp resurrected the King Crimson banner for this 1981 release, he assembled an amazingly skilled--indeed, disciplined--group of musicians. But this record is not so much about skill as it is about transforming the complex into the beautiful. By turns explosive ("Indiscipline"), driving ("Thela Hun Ginjeet"), and quietly meditative ("The Sheltering Sky"), Adrian Belew (whose vocals and lyrics reflect his tenure with the Talking Heads) injects a degree of manic humor to the proceedings. All this technical proficiency would be for nothing if these weren't such wonderfully compelling songs.--Percy Keegan