Archive Panic: An extreme case. Their core discography isn't that big, but as noted on the main page, they have released literally hundreds of live shows in their entirety through their website and via massive reissues, which often get as large as twenty CDs.
Award Snub: King Crimson is one of the most requested bands to enter the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame but even though they have been eligible for years have never been nominated. Some have attributed this to the fact that they don't have the mainstream popularity of other well-liked Prog bands like Pink Floyd and Genesis. The fact that the Hall of Fame has become more accepting of Prog Rock recently, as seen with them inducting Rush, Yes, and Electric Light Orchestra, means that fans do remain hopeful that they get inducted one day.
Awesome Music: Plenty of it — not surprising given the members' virtuosity and the sheer amount of Epic Rocking they do. Just about every fan will put "21st Century Schizoid Man," "Fracture," and "Starless" at the top of the list. They also have their own page.
There are also those who cannot stand Robert Fripp's heavy enforcement of Digital Piracy Is Evil, almost reaching Prince levels. It makes it worse when he forced the website last.fm to remove album art and band photos of the band, a ban the site still enforces. Fripp significantly softened his stance starting in 2017, uploading several live albums to Spotify and Apple Music, before announcing in 2019 that the band's entire studio catalogue would be made available for streaming. On the other hand, for many years, the musicians in the band weren't getting paid any royalties from record sales because the band's former managers had acquired the rights to the music, and streaming services pay out hardly any money to any musicians except the very biggest stars, which King Crimson aren't. Fripp spent years in litigation to win back the rights to the band's recordings, and then spent several years ensuring that it was only available through his label, which gives the rights to the music to the musicians who played it, so that the musicians would finally earn something from King Crimson. Digital piracy really is evil, because it can prevent musicians from ever getting paid for their work.
Cult Classic: While they weren't unpopular during their time, they definitely lacked the mainstream popularity other classic rock bands had and were only really known among hardcore music enthusiasts and critics. Along with Pink Floyd, they were one of the few Progressive Rock bands critics actually liked. As the years have gone on, however, they've started gaining more attention among both young and old members of the general public. Most of it has to do with how many of its members worked with more popular bands or artists; being referenced in JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind certainly helped as well.
Dead Horse Genre: Seems to be averted, since even some normally prog-averse critics such as Robert Christgau have praised some of their albums (e.g., Red). Alongside Pink Floyd, they seem to be one of the few prog bands that even prog-skeptic listeners will admit to liking.
"Moonchild" from In the Court of the Crimson King suffers from this big time, with ten minutes of ambient improvisation that goes nowhere. It's almost universally considered the low point of their otherwise beloved debut album.
The ending of In the Court of the Crimson King isn't overly long, but it feels like it since it's kind of repetitive.
"Starless" is undoubtedly a beautiful song, but damn if that instrumental section isn't long (about 8 minutes after the lyrical part has ended), though for many fans it's also the best part of the song.
"Groon". The cacophonous, avant-garde composition reaches what looks like the end, cuts off—and a split-second later, another several bars of cacophony burst in. And it's repeated a few times.
Greg Lake only played on In the Court of the Crimson King and a few songs on In the Wake of Poseidon, and for older rock and roll fans is more known for his work with Emerson, Lake & Palmer. For newer King Crimson fans however his work with the band is easily where he shone the most. This was further solidified by him passing away in 2016.
Despite not appearing on any studio albums, Bill Rieflin is held in high regard by fans for his contributions to the current incarnation, particularly since his own passing.
Many fans hold Andy McCulloch's playing in high regard, though he only drummed on "Lizard" LP and never appeared live with the band.
Epic Riff: "21st Century Schizoid Man", "Larks' Tongues in Aspic (Part Two)", "The Great Deceiver", "Fracture", "Red", "Indiscipline"...
Epileptic Trees: Some fans have speculated that Discipline is about autism, ADHD, or some other form of neurological/learning disorder. Signs that point to this include the song titles being more intricate than they need to be, and in particular, the lyrics to "Elephant Talk" outline how the narrator is unable to comprehend the extensive, fast-paced conversations going on around them, interpreting it as just mindless babble. The fact that Adrian Belew previously collaborated with a then-undiagnosed autistic musician only amplifies the theory.
The final incarnation of the band is officially called the "Seven-Headed Beast" (2014–16, '19–21) or "Three Over Five Formation" (2017–18), but fans often just call them "RadCrim" (after Radical Action to Unseat the Hold of Monkey Mind, their first live box set).
In the Court of the Crimson King is sometimes jokingly abbreviated as "COCK".
First Installment Wins: Their first album, In the Court of the Crimson King, is arguably their most popular release, and generally regarded by casual listeners as their best. Fans and musicians, on the other hand, disagree widely about different periods, lineups and albums. It's their highest-charting release in the US, their highest-rated album on Rate Your Music (and one of the highest-rated albums on the site overall), and the only one of their albums to be certified Gold (500,000 copies) in the US and UK.
A lot of newer King Crimson fans are also fans of the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure series, thanks to the antagonist Diavolo having a Stand named after the group. It certainly helps that Robert Fripp himself acknowledges the connections. Many older fans of King Crimson openly respect JoJo for bringing a new audience to the band.
In the music world, fans of King Crimson are also fans of other prog rock bands, particularly those that members have been a part of, such as Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Yes, Genesis, and Porcupine Tree.
The band's fandom often overlaps with Frank Zappa's due to the two artists' similarly uncompromising attitude towards their music as well as Adrian Belew's involvement with both. Likewise, Belew and Fripp's work with David Bowie creates a fair bit of overlap.
Because of Fripp's collaborations with David Sylvian, there's a significant overlap between King Crimson fans and fans of Sylvian, as well as Sylvian's former band, Japan. It also helps that former Japan keyboardist Richard Barbieri is a member of fellow prog rock band Porcupine Tree, which also counts Gavin Harrison as a member.
Fans of Peter Gabriel and early Genesis tend to overlap with King Crimson fans due to Robert Fripp and particularly Tony Levin's involvement in Peter's solo career, as well as Bill Bruford's brief stint as Genesis' touring drummer.
There's a particular overlap between King Crimson and Talking Heads, due to Fripp's appearance on "I Zimbra", Adrian Belew playing on Remain in Light and its supporting tour, and David Byrne's pseudonymous guest spot on Fripp's solo piece "Under Heavy Manners". Punk-skeptical prog fans appreciate Talking Heads for their experimentalism, while 80's King Crimson's vivid Talking Heads influences encourage prog-skeptical post-punk/new wave fans to check them out in turn.
Genius Bonus: While it may seem like a Word Salad Title at first glance, "Larks' Tongues in Aspic" actually refers to a dish that's highly prized as a delicacy in culinary circles: the tongues of lark birds embedded in gelatin made from meat stock. Essentially, the name is a roundabout way of calling both the album Larks' Tongues in Aspic and the eponymous pentalogy the musical equivalents of gourmet dishes.
Growing the Beard: Not the band as such, but John Wetton; he was a great bass player but at best a capable singer. However, Fripp said that he regarded Wetton's singing on "Starless" as being the moment when Wetton came into his own as KC's singer. Unfortunately it's the last track on the last studio album Wetton appeared on, but better late than never.
Some of the band's early lyrics (particularly "Epitaph") have been cited as feeling uncomfortably relevant again in the wake of the events of 2016 and 2017. Lake's death in 2016 has further contributed to this.
The fact that King Crimson's fourth lead singer John Wetton passed away on January 31, 2017 not too long after Greg Lake's death in December, 2016. Made even worse that much like Greg, Wetton died of cancer.
Limited Special Collector's Ultimate Edition: Starting in 2010, there have been ten massive boxsets produced, each limited to a single production run of between 3000 and 7000 copies:
A six-disc box set for the 40th anniversary of In the Court of the Crimson King in 2010;
A 15-disc boxset commemorating the 40th Anniversary of Larks' Tongues in Aspic in 2012;
2013's The Road to Red, A 24-disc collection of material of the three-piece (Wetton/Bruford/Fripp) 1974 lineup;
2014's Starless, a 27-disc collection of material of the 1973-1974 lineup that released Starless and Bible Black;
2015's THRAK BOX, a 17-disc collection of material of the "Double Trio" lineup of the mid-1990s.
2016's On (and Off) The Road 1981-1984, a 19-disc box documenting the Fripp / Belew / Levin / Bruford years.
2017's Sailor's Tales, a 27-disc boxset that covers the 1970 to 1972 lineups that recorded and toured behind the albums The Wake Of Poseidon , Lizard & Islands;
2019's Heaven & Earth, a 24-disc box that covers the "Double Duo" of 2000–03, the brief 40th anniversary tour of 2008, and every single ProjeKct recording ever madenote With the sole exception of ProjeKct Three's one 2003 show in Alexandria, Virginia, for some reason;
2020's The Complete 1969 Recordings, a 26-disc set that covers... everything the band recorded in 1969note As well as a few (remastered) Giles, Giles and Fripp demos from The Brondesbury Tapes (1969);
The eight-disc deluxe version of 2022's In the Court of the Crimson King: King Crimson at 50 documentary. Including:
The film itself;
An edit of the original cut of the film (initially titled Cosmic FuKc: Prog Rock Pond Scum Set to Bum You Out);
The final performance of "Starless" in December 2021;
Trailers and additional short films;
Live and studio performances from the 50th anniversary tour;
A 38-minute short film, Gentlemen of the Road, with additional backstage footage not present in the main movie;
The film's soundtrack (plus additional music), much of it previously unreleased.
Not In the Court of the Crimson KingExplanation Tied to Fripp-posting, various uploads of the band's debut album before Fripp ceased his Denial of Digital Distribution often carry titles claiming that the album either isn't In the Court of the Crimson King or that it's actually by a different artist, with commenters often playing along.
"It just works".Explanation A carryover of a JoJo's Bizarre Adventure meme, in which the phrase is used to Hand Wave the abilities of the character Diavolo's Stand, King Crimson. Because of the name, quoting the phrase is common among JoJo fans who also listen to the band, which Robert Fripp himself eventually acknowledged.
Br00f Wh00pExplanation Refers to the Br00f's infamous whoop on "Fracture", which is a minor meme in the fandom.
Tony LevinExplanation Among fans, it's common to post comments that are literally just Tony Levin's name on uploads of "Sleepless", thanks to Levin being the one who plays the song's distinctive slap-bass.
🌞larls🌞 burger Explanation A variant◊ of the Fortniteburger meme that spread around the circlejerk in mid-2021 (though it originated on Discord), resulting in an influx of spam in the comments of Toyah Willcox's (Robert Fripp's wife) YouTube videos. Fortunately, it died down after a few days.
Most Wonderful Sound: John Wetton's monstrous fuzz bass tone. Notably prevalent in the second half of "Starless".
Paranoia Fuel: "Sleepless", from Three of a Perfect Pair — it's about fear, paranoia and nightmares, so it naturally counts as this. Don't listen to it with the lights out. Several of their instrumentals evoke this feeling, too, with the aforementioned "Fracture" and "The Bermuda Triangle" being particularly creepy examples.
Signature Song: "21st Century Schizoid Man", "Larks' Tongues in Aspic (Part Two)", and "Red" are the frontrunners, with honorable mentions being "The Court of the Crimson King", "Pictures of a City", "Starless", and "Matte Kudasai".
Sweet Dreams Fuel: "Prelude: Song of the Gulls", "Islands", "Trio", "Matte Kudasai", “Cadence and Cascade”.
Tear Jerker: Crim has a bunch to these, but the saddest probably has to go to "Starless". It starts sad, then it gets frightening, and it ends up as tragedy.
Also "Epitaph", the song portion of "Moonchild", "Prelude: Song of the Gulls", "Islands", "Exiles", "The Night Watch", "Trio", "Fallen Angel", "Requiem", "Matte Kudasai".
Ur-Example: Heavier moments make them overlap with Progressive Metal, especially on the album Red. "21st Century Schizoid Man" and "Larks' Tongues in Aspic (Part Two)" are also good examples of this, and are frequently covered by progressive metal groups. King Crimson would later come to fully embrace progressive metal in the late 90's post-THRAK (which combined the Discipline-era sound with the growing prog metal scene), fully carrying it into their repertoire with The Construkction of Light in 2000.
With "Starless", they basically invented Post-Rock.
Win Back the Crowd: The announcement that they would put up all of their albums for streaming on June 10, 2019 to commemorate their 50th anniversary won over a lot of people turned off by Fripp's infamous anti-internet stance.
. It has since been adopted by Yes fans as well.
