King Crimson - 1974-03-24 Avignon, FR (2014)

Sounding somewhat tired compared to the Brecia gig, the band appear to have a little trouble in finding their focus. Rough edges and near scrapes abound and even the powerful Fracture teeters at times in an alarming fashion. Yet even when Crimson isn’t firing on all cylinders, they still manage to rattle the windows a little as this growling rendition of The Great Deceiver demonstrates. Slowly but surely the band pulls themselves together and by the time they reach the screaming guitar section of Starless things are locking together. The end solo on Exiles though brief is filled with that bitter-sweet aching that makes this track such an attractive old-Crim ballad. The weaving solo that David Cross dishes up on The Talking Drum radiates high above the hurtling melee scuffling below. Be warned though, the hoped for resolution of LTIA Part 2 is chronically curtailed by a bad case of Tapeus Interuptus - the unkindest Crim cut of all!

Robert Fripp - Guitar, Mellotron, Devices
John Wetton - Bass, Vocals
Bill Bruford - Drums, Percussion
David Cross - Violin, Mellotron, Keyboards