Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)It was a thrilling visual document of Crimson's stunning return to form after a too-long hiatus, and it was an exploration of the then-fairly-new DVD format that's much more difficult than it needs to be. My rating is an average: five stars for the performance & extras, three for the "user-tailored interactive experience" of navigating the damn thing. Deja Vrooom is probably a proposition for the already-converted, so anyone new to this band and/or this lineup would be well-advised to check out Thrak or Vrooom Vrooom first.
First the cons. Rather than listing options, the menus cycle through them as if it's a memory game. The novelty of using a KC title for each function ("The Mincer" for a short essay on critics, "Vector Patrol" for choosing custom settings) is cute but too confusing. The video quality isn't spectacular and there's an occasional lighting-halo effect around the players; it's not terrible, but could be much clearer. On the other hand, this kind of raw powerful music really wouldn't be served by a slick super-sharp video anyway.
Pros: the performance itself is a stonker. The six-man lineup injects new life into older KC material and shows a smoothness & cohesion even beyond their studio recordings. It's always fascinating to watch just *how* everybody makes all that noise with their instrument of choice (or instrumentS in the case of Tony Levin - check that electric double-bass!). The impeccable skill and grace with which it's all pulled off is of course extraordinary. Extra points for the multiple camera angles available on some tracks.
Extras: a few of Tony's road movies (nice though inessential), Robert Fripp's essays on The Evil Music Industry (informative but I'll wait for the Cliffs Notes), an extensive band history/discography up to 1997, plenty of extra photos & artwork, and a "Schizoid Man" custom-mix feature. There's a mention of 'hidden features,' but apart from a solo RF Soundscape accessed through the TV-listing page, they must be well buried indeed.
Buy it? If you like this phase of the band, absolutely. The live visual aspect always adds another dimension to this music, even if Fripp still avoids anything brighter than a 100-watt lightbulb, and I say it's still well worth dealing with the other nuisances to get to it.
(Tracklist: Circular Improv - Vrooom Vrooom - Frame By Frame - Dinosaur - One Time - Red - B'Boom - Thrak - Matte Kudasai - Three of a Perfect Pair - Vrooom/Marine 475 - Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream - Elephant Talk - Indiscipline - Talking Drum/Larks' Tongues in Aspic II - People - Walking on Air.)
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