1973's 'no pussyfooting' is a classic example of two artists at the top of their respective games collaborating to create something magnificent.in this case it was king crimson guitarist robert fripp (inventor of the famous 'frippertronics' technique) and brian eno, legendary roxy music synthesizer twiddler.
it's a majestic minimalist experiment that has little or no concern with the typical elements of rock. no rhythm section and no vocals, just a black gibson les paul guitar and some machines. it's ice-cold, eerie, sophisticated cover photo gives clues to the music within.
the entire album consists of two side-length pieces, entitled 'the heavenly music corporation' and 'swastika girls'. 't.h.m.c' is a grand, sweeping piece that shows off the stark contrast between the two artists. it's like hot and cold: the icy, relentless pulsing of eno's revox tape reels and synths, and the dense, earthy rumble of fripp's extended solos. it's stunning.
at first, 'swastika girls' seems like a bit of a let down compared to the last twenty minutes, but it's not. again, the contrast is startling. eno's synths glitter and sparkle like the sun on water, twinkling until the last second. fripp's gibson enters quietly after around seven and a half minutes, building in intensity until it sounds like the turbo-charged turbine engine we heard on the first track.
admittedly, the thought of an album with only two tracks each lasting twenty minutes and being entirely instrumental puts a lot of people off. i know that my parents and my mates hate this album, and that a lot of people dismiss this kind of music as wallpaper music, but i was stunned by it straight away. i love 'no pussyfooting' and you need only listen to a few seconds of the middle section of track one (the part where fripp almost paraphrases hendrix at woodstock '69) to know that this is anything but background.
'no pussyfooting' is apparently not the easiest cd in the world to get hold of, but it is well worth seeking it out, as is fripp & eno's second effort, 'evening star', which follows in the same formula but is a bit more concise.
five stars, without a doubt. *****
