Back in April 2024, with King Crimson on another hiatus and founder/visionary Robert Fripp focusing on other projects, fans of the progressive rock progenitors/innovators were ecstatic when it was announced that an all-star “tribute band” of sorts would be revisiting King Crimson’s three classic 1980s albums in concert halls across North America. With Fripp’s blessing and bearing his recommended band name BEAT, the assembled group had many music nerds’ jaws hitting the floor: crucial King Crimson members from the 1980s era, guitarist Adrian Belew and bassist Tony Levin, with shred legend Steve Vai handling the Fripp role, and Tool drummer Danny Carey tackling the challenging percussion parts originally conceived by Bill Bruford. The King Crimson fanbase is a small yet fervent following, and tickets for the tour were scooped up within minutes of going on sale. You can’t blame those fans, either: this tour had the potential to be a revelation, especially to the generations that were too young to catch the King Crimson foursome more than 40 years ago.
Spawning the much-lived albums Discipline, Beat, and Three of a Perfect Pair, that 1981-1984 period of King Crimson’s reign as progressive rock legends remains one of the most astounding stylistic shifts in rock history. After a spectacular run from 1968 to 1974 that saw Fripp and company take rock music in thrilling new directions on such classics as In the Court of the Crimson King, Larks’ Tongues in Aspic, and Red, King Crimson disbanded. Fripp would go on to collaborate with such luminaries as Brian Eno, Peter Gabriel, and David Bowie, as well as forge his career as a solo artist.
However, in 1981, King Crimson were resurrected in a startling fashion. Featuring Talking Heads and Frank Zappa collaborator Belew on guitar and vocals, the innovative session whiz Levin, and 1970s holdover Bruford, the foursome integrated post-punk, new wave, funk, Afrobeat, and minimalism on the astonishing Discipline album. Like all the tremendous visionary rock albums over the decades – Tago Mago, Autobahn, Low, Loveless – Discipline left many listeners wondering how four musicians could create music so tight, so complex, so bizarrely catchy, and are they, in fact, human at all?
The very prospect of witnessing such strange, challenging music performed in person had 1,500 people – the majority of them males over 60 – buzzing as they filed into the cozy Theatre Maisonneuve in Montreal’s lavish Place Des Arts. At 8:00pm precisely, BEAT casually took to the stage: Carey in his usual t-shirt and shorts behind a single-kick drum kit about half the size of his usual Tool kit, Levin in a snappy black jeans/white blazer ensemble, Belew looking like he just arrived from boating in Cape Cod, and Vai clad in a wonderfully garish, red zoot suit, including a black wide-brim hat with feather. Because why not?
As soon as BEAT launched into the frenetic “Neurotica”, Belew manically shouting, “Good morning, it’s 3:00am in this great roaring city full of garbage eaters!” it was off to the races: Levin tapping his signature Chapman Stick, Carey bursting into jazz fusion flourishes, Vai unleashing atonal riffs, Belew nattering on about hippos, impalas, and gibbons while holding down the fort on rhythm guitar. From the first measure, BEAT were locked in, yet communicative with each other and playful. The music might require a math degree to disseminate, but this was pure fun to the musicians onstage, judging by the big smiles on their faces.
The first half of the set focused on lesser-known tracks from 1982’s Beat and 1984’s Three of a Perfect Pair. “Neal and Jack and Me” had Belew channeling Jack Kerouac atop his and Vai’s nimble, chiming guitar work. “Dig Me” offered a fascinating contrast between skronky noise riffs that predated Sonic Youth and Belew’s yearning, melodic chorus of “I’m ready to leave.”
The closest BEAT would ever get to a “mainstream-friendly” song that night, the gentle new wave of “Heartbeat” brought a comfy, 1980s adult contemporary vibe to the venue, the seemingly ageless Belew in wonderful vocal form. Two instrumentals were especially fun surprises: “Sartori in Tangiers” saw Carey propelling the song with African percussion as Vai added colorful textures, while the raucous “Larks’ Tongues in Aspic, Pt. III” allowed for solo showcases by all four band members, highlighted by Levin’s nimble basslines and an opportunity for Vai to indulge in his trademark whammy bar divebombs. Meanwhile, “Industry” took the show into murkier, atmospheric territory, allowing for extended improvisation by Vai and Belew.
After a 20-minute intermission, the real fun kicked in. “Waiting Man” and the gorgeous “The Sheltering Sky” eased the adoring audience into the latter half, with Vai adding beautiful, layered harmonics to the latter song. “Sleepless” featured a frenetic performance by Levin, whose “funk finger” finger extensions added a wicked slap tone to his rapid bassline. Meanwhile, the timeless “Frame By Frame” was a brilliant showcase for Belew and Vai, the former cranking out post-punk riffs while the latter adopted a finger-tapping approach to Fripp’s skittering, arpeggiated riff. Discipline‘s sultry “Matte Kudasai” was performed beautifully, Belew’s slide guitar melodies floating in the proverbial ether.
So in tune with the intricacy of King Crimson’s work was the Montreal audience that nearly every song received a standing ovation, but the final half hour of the night left everyone enraptured. As soon as Levin’s Chapman Stick delivered the intro to the inimitable “Elephant Talk”, the crowd lit up, BEAT were clearly having a blast performing one of King Crimson’s most whimsical and danceable tunes. A sublime rendition of “Three of a Perfect Pair” allowed for a little breather (and sing-along) before “Indiscipline” brought things to a raucous climax, with Belew at his most playful, closing the second set with the song’s trademark, “I love it!” As we all did.
The encore served up a wonderful surprise in the form of 1973’s classic cut “Red”, in which Carey and Vai brought some heavy metal muscle to the massive-sounding instrumental. Closing the night, of course, was the irresistible “Thela Hin Ginjeet”, which had more than a few people dancing in the aisles.
What felt like a cool little experiment has turned into a stunning success, and judging by how well BEAT works onstage and how excited King Crimson fans are about the tour, it feels like only the beginning for this project. The 74-year-old Belew and 78-year-old Levin remain a wonder to behold, impossibly energetic, the anchors for this project. Initially an eyebrow-raising choice as a guitarist, Vai has proved to be a fantastic inclusion. Although he can interpret Fripp’s guitar parts through his techniques, Vai is still very faithful to the original material and never goes too far with the flashiness. Meanwhile, Carey flourishes behind the kit, nailing some of the most difficult drum parts known to humankind with grace and discipline. To see BEAT pull this off, with such a palpable sense of joy, in front of a knowledgeable and fun-loving audience made this a concert for the ages.