Review: Beat – Neon Heat Disease: Live In Los Angeles (2025)

Neon Heat Disease – Live In Los Angeles is Beat’s first live album – and a tribute to King Crimson’s music from the 1980s.

In the early 1980s, King Crimson made three studio albums with Robert Fripp, Bill Bruford, Tony Levin, and Adrian Belew. The trilogy Discipline (1981), Beat (1982), and Three Of A Perfect Pair (1984) marked a complete stylistic reinvention for the band. Drawing on minimalism, gamelan, prog, and new wave, the trio of albums crystallized everything into controlled chaos, where virtuoso precision and polymetric intensity intertwined in a way that no one else had even attempted.

This lineup only shone for a moment. When Fripp ended the band in the mid-1980s, its legacy remained legendary. Crimson returned in the mid-1990s with a radical new look, but the quartet of the 1980s never returned to the stage together.

In 2014, Fripp surprised everyone by reuniting King Crimson – but without Adrian Belew. The decision came as a heavy blow to Belew, and for years he commented on the situation with open bitterness. Over time, however, feelings cooled, and in 2019 the seeds of a new band, Beat, were sown.

Belew noticed that the 40th anniversary of Discipline was approaching and suggested a reunion of the 1980s Crimson, which would focus solely on the music of that era. Fripp was not enthusiastic, as his own King Crimson was still active at the time. Bruford had already retired from drumming in 2009 (he made a return in 2022), but Belew decided to pursue the idea anyway.

He contacted Steve Vai, who was known both for his virtuoso guitar playing and his deep appreciation for Crimson of the 80s. Vai became the natural choice to replace Fripp. When the COVID pandemic temporarily halted plans, the project had time to mature – and when the world reopened, Tony Levin and Tool drummer Danny Carey, a well-known passionate admirer of Bruford and King Crimson, had also joined the band. Belew and Carey were old acquaintances, as Crimson played as the opening act for the hugely popular Tool in the early 2000s, and Carey has also appeared on Belew’s solo albums. Belew and Vai, on the other hand, did not know each other beforehand, even though both had earned their stripes playing in Frank Zappa’s band.

Thus, Beat is a quartet of four extremely experienced musicians who had more than enough muscle and firepower to do justice to Crimson’s challenging material – and enough of their own identity to ensure that it wasn’t just a hollow tribute. The project received Robert Fripp’s blessing, and if I understand correctly, the band’s name, Beat, was also his suggestion.

Tony Levin, Steve Vai, Adrian Belew and Danny Carey
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Recorded in November 2024, Neon Heat Disease – Live in Los Angeles includes almost all the material from Crimson’s three studio albums from the 1980s. Only five songs are missing (but why was ”Heartbeat” included…?). The opening track, ”Neurotica,” sets the tone: the playing is energetic and lively, but controlled—just as the spirit of the original material demands. However, the musicians’ personalities shine through appropriately, giving the music a new angle simply because Vai and Carey are now involved.

The musicians mostly stick to the structures of the original compositions, but take liberties especially in the solos. At times, Vai breaks away with his lightning-fast style, which may annoy the strictest Fripp purists, but I welcome the fact that he adapts the material to suit himself. He does, however, repeat Fripp’s most iconic patterns with sufficient fidelity. Carey’s drumming is clearly heavier than Bruford’s, but it works – not as better, but as a different approach. I was a little surprised to find that Carey imitates Bruford’s 1980s electric drum sounds quite faithfully in many places. Carey and Belew also play a sweet little drum duet together.

Beat rarely manages to directly surpass the original versions, but every now and then it succeeds. For example, the studio version of ”Larks’ Tongues in Aspic, Part III,” which was a bit bland, now really comes to life. The band stretches the song’s boundaries in a wild direction, and the solos have a ferocity that was not heard in the original version.

The average age of the band is an impressive 70, but their playing is anything but stiff. Even the quartet’s oldest member, Tony Levin, attacks the bass and Stick with a ferocity reminiscent of musicians half his age. Belew’s singing voice has also remained astonishingly well preserved. The precision of the playing and the clinical shine of the sound may not quite reach the level of King Crimson’s latest live releases, but Beat is a different beast altogether: whereas Fripp’s latest Crimson sounds like a chamber orchestra amplified by three drum kits, Beat is a nimble and gritty rocking quartet.

In my opinion, you get the best value for your money when you buy the Neon Heat Disease version that includes two CDs and a Blu-ray disc. Addition of music this set contains the entire concert on video, with audio tracks in both 5.1 surround sound and 24-bit stereo. The stage show is sparse, in true King Crimson style; the quartet, dressed in flamboyant attire (even Carey has put on a collared shirt!), focuses on playing, and that alone is enough to hold the audience’s attention when the visual presentation is so smooth. There are enough cameras, and the editor generally picks out the essential moments for the screen. There are also interesting interviews in which Belew, Vai, and Levin talk about the background and implementation of the project. The high-quality, beautifully shot concert film is an excellent accompaniment that makes the release a comprehensive experience.

For casual King Crimson listeners, Neon Heat Disease is not a must-have purchase, but for fans of 80s Crimson, it is definitely worth listening to as an alternative interpretation. Beat does not try to be the new King Crimson, but celebrates one of its most fascinating phases – with dignity, skill, and obvious love. Beat’s concerts have been a great success, and it will be interesting to see whether its members return to their normal day jobs or whether this quartet still has a future. If so, hopefully with brand new studio material.

Best tracks: ”Neurotica”, ”Neal Jack And Me”, ”Larks’ Tongues in Aspic, Part III”, ”Waiting Man”, ”The Sheltering Sky”, ”Sleepless”, ”Indiscipline”, ”Thela Hun Ginjeet”

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.
Author: JANNE YLIRUUSI

Read also: Review: King Crimson – THRAK (1995)

Tracks

  1. Neurotica 4:25
  2. Neal And Jack And Me 6:16
  3. Heartbeat 3:57
  4. Sartori In Tangier 4:00
  5. Model Man 3:15
  6. Dig Me 3:33
  7. Man With An Open Heart 3:01
  8. Industry 10:00
  9. Larks’ Tongues In Aspic 5:53
  10. Waiting Man 8:15
  11. The Sheltering Sky 14:19
  12. Sleepless 5:55
  13. Frame By Frame 3:54
  14. Matte Kudasai 3:39
  15. Elephant Talk 4:59
  16. Three Of A Perfect Pair 4:09
  17. Indisicipline 8:45
  18. Red 5:54
  19. Thela Hun Ginjeet 6:44

Tony Levin: bass, Chapman Stick, backing vocals Danny Carey: drums Steve Vai: electric guitar Adrian Belew: electric guitar, vocals, guitar synthesizer

Producer: Scrote
Label: Sony Music

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