As far as capes go King Crimson is no more likely to wear them than any other prog rock band from the 60s and 70s, which is to say capes are certainly possible but not necessarily likely. That is, of course, excluding the world’s most prodigious Chapman Stick player, Tony Levin, for whom capes are standard fair whether playing with Crimson or not. Of these three perspectives on the band the one that is undoubtedly true is the idea that King Crimson’s music has changed people’s lives. The second track on In The Court of The Crimson King, this quiet number features the flute work of Ian McDonald. The idea of following a loud, harder edged song with something on the mellow side becomes a bit of a theme for Crimson throughout the years. In this case, I Talk To The Wind acts as a calming palate cleanser after the madness of 21st Century Schizoid Man, which starts the album.

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Black/Death Metal/Hardcore.

There were also passages of real emotional depth, and Epitaph is a prime example. Just as any best of King Crimson must include 21st Century Schizoid Man, so too must it feature Starless, both tracks neatly bookending their 70s’ studio albums. While Schizoid Man lays out the band’s essential qualities up front, Starless feels like a summation of everything they’ve learned along the way.

When King Crimson emerged from the dust of the considerably more oblique and largely absurd trio of Giles, Giles and Fripp-whose one release, The Cheerful Insanity of Giles, Giles and Fripp (Deram, 1968), was aptly titled-nobody could have anticipated that this group would literally change the face of the pop world, and almost single-handedly define a new musical.

No King Crimson album is bad, but this one is worth leaving until you’ve indulged in the rest of their back catalogue. Here the band did try to make their sound more palatable for the mainstream, although claims at the time that they were looking for pop success were hardly true. While the more obvious melodic leanings are offset by some brusque experimentation, nothing works quite as well as it did on its predecessor-but-one, Discipline (they were separated by 1982’s Beat).

The 40th Anniversary of King Crimson's legendary debut album is a tour de force of 5 CDs and 1 DVD and a beautifully designed booklet. I absolutely cherish this song and it is one of the best prog tracks I have heard. Lake's vocals have never been better, and there are amazing flourishes of sweeping keyboards that send a chill down your spine.

Yet, in the midst of the meltdown, it’s surprisingly their hardest-hitting, most cohesive album they released up to this point. Bringing back players from their past, including David Cross (who left during the initial sessions for this album but returned briefly to do more violin work), Mel Collins, Ian McDonald and Mark Charig. While this period of progressive rock had several groundbreaking efforts, this stands tall among the best, and is a unique statement even in the Crimson catalog. There has never been anything quite like it ever since, and King Crimson has continued to draw from its influences to this day. This is truly where everything gelled, Larks’ Tongues in Aspic could not be a better title.