Beat Live was recorded from the band’s performance at the United Theater on Broadway in Los Angeles, CA., during the 2024 tour. It is now available as a deluxe edition from Inside Out Music featuring a Blu-ray, 2-CDs, a bonus CD and 36-page artbook, alongside a Blu-ray packaged with 2 CDs and a 12-page photo booklet, and a 3-LP colour vinyl release, however this review will only cover the 2 CD set.
Beat consists of Adrian Belew and Tony Levin, members of King Crimson when the early eighties series of albums Discipline, Beat and Three of a Perfect Pair were recorded, who are joined by Danny Carey, the drummer best known for his work with Tool, and Steve Vai, the legendary guitarist whose CV is impressively extensive.
When I was fortunate enough to see King Crimson live for the first time in 2015 none of these 80’s era songs were included in the setlist and, to be honest, that suited me fine as I have always gone back to the early period works for my King Crimson fix. My knowledge of the four-piece that created the three albums that Beat Live is restricted to is just from the compilation album The Compact King Crimson, and despite these hand-picked tracks not resonating particularly strongly with me, and not inspiring me to expand my KC collection in that direction, they do still get a spin from time to time.
The Beat Live project is the perfect opportunity for a deep-dive into KC output in this era and, hopefully, to find a spark within the live interpretations of these tracks from albums that passed me by at the time. I was genuinely taken by surprise about how excited I was when I heard about Beat Live, and how keen I was to get hold of the package when it was released.
Firstly, of course, we have to understand that this is a project put together with the blessing of Mr Fripp, but not with any of his input. Personally, I can get passed this, primarily because if this is the only way that these shows could be performed then so be it. If Adrian Belew and Tony Levin are keen enough to put a band together to re-visit the music, and have recruited well, then that’s fine by me. Steve Vai is an exceptional guitarist and Danny Carey, despite being a bit more in the rock mould than Bill Bruford, it has to be said, are solid choices to complete the touring band.
Commercially speaking, the three albums performed equally well. However, Discipline contains the most tracks included on The Compact King Crimson compilation, and the six tracks featured on Beat Live all figure towards the end of the set and deliver a lively and exciting finale. There are five tracks from the follow up album Beat, four of which make up the opening sequence, and seven tracks from the third album in the sequence Three of a Perfect Pair, mainly in the middle of the set. The inclusion of Red in one of the encore slots is a bonus, albeit being a fairly obvious choice for a tribute, and it suits the band’s more rock-orientated sound.
From the very first whistle, literally, when the band launch into Neurotica, and a sequence of songs from Beat, there is a sense that the concert will be an extremely tricky one for the band, handling the rhythmic complexities of this music, but a fantastically entertaining one for the audience, a once-in-a-lifetime moment. Listening through the whole set the first time I was struck by the relaxed ‘feel’ that the band managed to pull off. They take the music incredibly seriously, but they don’t take themselves too seriously, and through the recording the listener can sense the energy sparking amongst the band and the audience. The songs are characterised by their mix of the constraining rhythmic structural elements and the free-form improvised sections, and the band revel in the challenges and opportunities that this format brings.
The drums set off at a blistering pace and Adrian Belew is an outstanding, theatrical front man, delivering the complete range of vocal styles adopted across the three albums with zest and clarity. Neal and Jack and Me features a blistering guitar solo from Steve Vai. Tony Levin is as utterly riveting to listen to, as ever, and fills in on the keyboards that feature prominently early on in the set in Heartbeat. The intense opening sequence is topped off by the instrumental workout Sartori in Tangier. If there were any doubts about how this would all turn out, they have been swiftly extinguished, it’s a breath-taking start.
Fripp recalled, of Beat, that “at the time, Bill and Adrian thought that Beat was better than Discipline. For me, this [was] an indication of how far the band had already drifted from its original vision. The group broke up at the end of [the sessions], I had nothing to do with the mixing of Beat, nor did I feel able to promote it. Somehow we absorbed that fact, and kept going”.
The next slug of songs is taken from the album that followed Beat, Three of a Perfect Pair, recorded when the band was already in the process of fracturing, and came to be the final act from this version of King Crimson. ToaPP is a less coherent and less accessible album and despite the efforts to market the product as a deliberate ‘two sides of the same coin’ type vibe, one side being song-based and the other being experimental, it feels like the group’s best ideas had already been used up and the recording sessions just weren’t as fruitful this time round. However, all but two of the nine tracks on the album feature here, so there must be some lingering love for the work, amongst Adrian and Tony at least.
Adrian Belew does his upmost to put life into Model Man, from side one, and largely succeeds, whereas Dig Me, from side two is a bit out there for my tastes. Man with an Open Heart is cumbersome, at best, but this section is revived first by Industry, which comes with a brand-new sonic palate that provides a feast of interest, and then by Larks’ Tongues in Aspic, Part III, a return to more familiar KC sounds and textures.
Waiting Man, from Beat, begins with a percussion solo of World Music rhythms that is elevated firstly by guitar, then vocal and bass lines in turn. Beat was released in 1982, the same vintage as Peter Gabriel 4 and Talking Heads Speaking in Tongues, all seemingly evolving from similar influences, and it’s no surprise that the three bands involved shared personnel as well as musical threads.
Waiting Man segues into the centrepiece of the set, a gripping and cinematic 15-minute version of Sheltering Sky. The rhythm section provides a subtle, smouldering backdrop for the extraordinary fireworks provided by the guitars. The overall effect is quite stunning, the whole band displaying a measure of controlled passion and elegance that leaves us in no doubt as to the worthiness of this project, and the class of the performers. Following that, Sleepless is a rowdy and raucous song, a short and sweet rocker to contrast with the previous epic. The energy of the band has now picked up demonstrably. As well as some freakish guitar playing the bass and drums are bought more into the limelight and the closing section is an absolute tour de force. I’m not sure what Robert Fripp or Bill Bruford would make of it, but by this stage Beat (the band) have defined their own vision of this music and it is all going incredibly well.
Having worked up a head of steam, the band begin the Discipline section and have some outrageous fun reeling off a run of familiar favourites. Frame by Frame loses its extended introduction but gains another explosive guitar solo at the close. Matte Kudasai is soulful, and Elephant Talk is possibly the highlight of the whole set. Adrian Belew has shown outstanding versatility, singing straight up rock, a haunting ballad, and a quasi-rap lyric all in succession, never missing a note, whilst also nailing his guitar parts. His whoop of delight at the close of Elephant Talk just about sums up the feelings of everyone in the venue. The band then launch straight into a turbo-charged Three of a Perfect Pair and follow it with a no holds barred, all guns blazing version of Indiscipline.
For the encore, the band delight the audience with a dynamic but rather loose version of Red. They don’t mix up the track at all, dutifully paying a respectful homage, but they don’t quite nail the timing between the rhythm and the melody consistently. Thela Hun Ginjeet, an anagram of ‘heat in the jungle’ used as a euphemism for urban crime, is an absolute blast and a wonderful finale to a memorable evening. My bad that I hadn’t previously recognised the unique way that this song combines an epic progressive story-line with such a wide range of musical and cultural references.
It all feels very fresh and invigorating, like I’m hearing the music of this era of KC properly for the first time. I think the difference for me is that the recorded versions of the few songs I have listened to feel very clinical, whereas in the live setting the listener can ‘feel’ the organic way that the music develops. My lack of knowledge of music theory limits my appreciation in one sense, but I have no problem recognising the raw emotional force created by elite musicians performing at their peak on stage, in front of an audience. This is an outstanding live album that, for me, stands on an equal footing with my copy of Radical Action to Unseat the Hold of Monkey Mind, from the seven headed beast line up.
As Adrian Belew reflects, “You’re walking on stage with three virtuoso musicians, world class professionals who have seen it all but are still having fun playing this music which is timeless and unlike anything done before or since and the audience knows every word and are so thrilled with the performance the energy and love beaming back at you is overwhelming. What could be better?”.
Well said, Adrian.
TRACK LISTING
CD1: Live in Los Angeles 2024
01. Neurotica (4:25)
02. Neal And Jack And Me (6:16)
03. Heartbeat (3:57)
04. Sartori In Tangier (4:00)
05. Model Man (3:15)
06. Dig Me (3:33)
07. Man With An Open Heart (3:01)
08. Industry (10:00)
09. Larks’ Tongues In Aspic, Part III (5:53)
CD2: Live in Los Angeles 2024
01. Waiting Man (8:15)
02. The Sheltering Sky (14:19)
03. Sleepless (5:55)
04. Frame By Frame (3:54)
05. Matte Kudasai (3:39)
06. Elephant Talk (4:59)
07. Three Of A Perfect Pair (4:09)
08. Indiscipline (8:45)
09. Red (5:54)
10. Thela Hun Ginjeet (6:44)
Total Time- 110:00
MUSICIANS
Adrian Belew – Guitar, Vocals
Tony Levin – Bass, Chapman Stick, Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Steve Vai – Guitar
Danny Carey – Drums
ADDITIONAL INFO
Record Label: Inside Out Music
Country of Origin: UK/USA
Date of Release: 26th September 2025
LINKS
Beat – Website | Facebook | Bandcamp (Inside Out Music) | YouTube | Instagram
