Comments for King Crimson, Islands

It's easy not to like parts of this album for raunchy or pretentious lyrics. But there's some great stuff here, & more relaxed than the usual King Crimson LP (a bit ambient, really!). "The Sailor's Tale", full-length, is fantastic. This is average-to-good for King Crimson, stupendous by anyone else's standards!

The Letters-Ladies of the Road-Song of the Seaguls are three King Crimson classics, that alone make this album a must-have.

a bit more subdued than their previous albums, except for "a sailor''s tale" which consists of really really annoying female vocals over messy music, followed by an incredible and dark instrumental break, which could easily have fit onto their next album. but if that did show what was to come in kc''s future, the rest of the album sure didn''t. "Formentera Lady" and "Islands" are more delicate ballads, "The Letters" is pure melodrama, and "Ladies of the Road" sounds like an R-rated "Cat food". and "Prelude: Song of the Gulls" is musically beautiful.