King Crimson’s fourth album, 1971’s “Islands” was, for many years, somewhat underappreciated in Crimson history; regarded simply as one of those albums between undisputed classics “In the Court of the Crimson King” and “Larks’ Tongues in Aspic”. In more recent times, the album has been  reassessed, a process that began with the 2010 new stereo and 5.1 mixes undertaken by Steven Wilson and Robert Fripp and continued with the inclusions of ‘The Letters’ and ‘Sailor’s Tale’ and the title track in the 2014-2021 line-up’s live sets. This shift in attitude towards the album from listeners old and new alike, was confirmed when the 27 disc “Sailors’ Tales” boxed set, which featured extensive live recordings by the “Islands” line-up, became one of the fastest selling of the celebrated King Crimson boxed set series – a fitting testament to King Crimson’s second, albeit short-lived, live band.

 

So, with all of that taken into account, what’s left to be said or heard about the period? 

 

Well, rather a lot as it turns out, as a fully utilised Blu-Ray disc and accompanying CD details: 

Steven Wilson has returned to the album for a transformative Dolby Atmos mix. This work also led to new stereo and 5.1 mixes being prepared. Steven is regarded as the pre-eminent Dolby Atmos mix engineer for classic albums and his long-standing association with, and understanding of, the King Crimson catalogue, makes his work with the band especially sought by fans.

 

King Crimson producer/manager David Singleton has produced a set of Elemental mixes, finding and mixing alternate takes and recordings that result in a curious “What if…?” an approach to the material which has also proved extremely popular in recent years on the King Crimson Blu-Ray releases and as standalone vinyl sets.

 

David and DGM in-house sound engineer Alex R. Mundy have also prepared a full set of recording session mixes for the album, with all presented in hi-res stereo.

 

Two previously released inclusions complete the presentation, the quadraphonic mix of the band’s live set at Summit Studios from 1972 – taken from the long-deleted “Sailors’ Tales” set and, as is always the case with such releases, the original album mix is included in 24/96 hi-res stereo.

 

The CD presents the complete album newly mixed by Steven Wilson and a selection of David Singleton’s Elemental mixes.

 

“Islands” was the sole studio album by the Fripp, Collins, Burrell and Wallace line-up and the last to feature Peter Sinfield as a full creative partner. It was the record that closed one chapter of King Crimson history while quietly sketching the next. Historically, it captured the band in a brief but amazingly fertile formation, with material developed under touring pressure and recorded between live dates. Musically, it is where the group’s early sound was stretched to its limit and began to fracture into something tougher, stranger and more open-ended. While the album contains widely varying types of material across its six pieces - hints of the future present on material such as ‘Sailor’s Tale’ with Fripp’s sharp guitar work and Collins’ searing saxophone sit comfortably alongside the purely orchestral ‘Prelude: Song of the Gulls’ – “Islands” has a cohesive story to tell as a collection of music and a reflection of King Crimson at that particular moment in time, a story that can be heard, most completely, in this release.