Emerson, Lake & Palmer

How can such a talented band be so godawful boring???

I like Prog Rock...Genesis, King Crimson, Yes, Camel...but dear gawd ELP is boring as all hell...I have tried Tarkus, Brain Salad Surgery, Pictures At An Exhibition...

There are only 2 ELP albums worth owning (barely).

Emerson, Lake & Palmer - this one is mostly good, Knife Edge, Lucky Man, etc.

Trilogy - the title track of this album is what they should have sounded like all the time, plus it has the song "From The Beginning" which is my favorite Lake track.

The rest of their catalog, talk about hit or miss...and usually miss.

The song "From The Beginning" is quite good...I just can't get into them as a whole...

It's basically because Keith Emerson sucks, he has chops...but he can't write to save his life. So it left ELP in a bit of a predicament. They were basically the 70's equivalent of Dream Theater.

So each album was usually split up this way: A few really pompous Emerson instrumental tracks, at least 1 classical piece "redone" and then whatever acoustic tunes Greg Lake had handy.

The majority of their good songs are the tunes that Lake wrote.

But, compare "In The Court Of The Crimson King" and "In The Wake Of Poseidon" with ANYTHING Lake recorded with ELP for the rest of his career...he never came close.

I have tried to get into Emerson Lake and Palmer and they bore the piss out of me, some of their albums such as 'Brain Salad Surgery' and the first self titled album as a few good songs.

I have 'Tarkus' on CD and it is ok but I lose interest after all.

I will one day grab the one shot Emerson, Lake and Powell album, which was more on the poppier side as was Emerson and Palmer's other one shot band that featured Robert Barry called 3, their one album that I own is not bad.

Karn Evil 9 has to be one of the coolest songs ever.

Quote :

They were basically the 70's equivalent of Dream Theater.

I should bitch-slap you for that comment. DT has good vocals, good melodies, heavy riffs...they tend to noodle a little much at times, but melodically they are strong.

sorry. I hate Dream Theater though (especially the vocals). I've tried numerous times over the years to hear "something" that clicked with me, just never did.

But then again I don't like Queensryche anymore either, maybe it's just the standard prog-metal sound I'm tired of. None of these bands ever really push any boundaries which is what progressive is supposed to be all about.

but that's just my own personal take on it

See, I think they did push boundaries...DT moreso than Ryche...DT works to incorporate current musical stylings into their own sound...if you listen to 'Images & Words' and compare it to 'Black Clouds...' it sounds very different while retaining DT's trademarks (ie, long songs & virtuosity)...James sings differently, they riff differently, the melodies are different...part of being progressive is taking what's there and making it your own by adding your own personality to it, which I think DT do to fine results...

About the only ELP albums I ever owned were a best of, and Emerson, Lake & Powell.

So bassically, they can just play Touch & Go then get the hell out of my face

The S wrote:

See, I think they did push boundaries...DT moreso than Ryche...DT works to incorporate current musical stylings into their own sound...if you listen to 'Images & Words' and compare it to 'Black Clouds...' it sounds very different while retaining DT's trademarks (ie, long songs & virtuosity)...James sings differently, they riff differently, the melodies are different...part of being progressive is taking what's there and making it your own by adding your own personality to it, which I think DT do to fine results...

Here's the thing. I totally respect the talent level in the band...and I like some of their side projects (Platypus, Jelly Jam), but something about their overall vibe just doesn't gel with me. I've seen them in concert (on the Images & Words tour) and they were great live, but just never really got in the mood to listen to the albums.

Fair enough...

Back to ELP/Greg Lake for a second...this is a GREAT song and was one of my favorites as a kid.

One of the better ELP songs. God, Keith Emerson is such a wanker.

Brain Salad Surgery has grown on me...I guess I need to keep letting the others sink in...

Shawn, if in the right mood 'Brain Salad Surgery' and their self titled album sound very good, and has good songs on it, but for the most part most of their music leaves me cold. It also could be that I think Keith Emerson is a wanker.

I own 3 ELP records.

Emerson, Lake & Palmer (primarily for Knife's Edge & Lucky Man)
Trilogy (for the title track and From The Beginning)
Emerson, Lake & Powell (for Touch & Go)

I haven't felt the need to repurchase any others.

There's no denying that my first attempt at listening to them was really boring...but for some reason Brain Salad Surgery sunk in a little...

Shawn wrote:

There's no denying that my first attempt at listening to them was really boring...but for some reason Brain Salad Surgery sunk in a little...

I think music like their's, is music you have be in right frame of mind to take in, also 'Tarkus' is a good album and so for me three albums and I am pretty much done with the band.

I am not a fan or at least a huge fan since I only like three (4 or 5 if you include the one shot Emerson, Lake and Powell album, and the 3 album that Keith Emerson and Carl Palmer did with Robert Berry)