Fripp and Eno - No Pussyfooting
From ETWiki
Originally released: 1973 Personnel
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Tracks
- 20'54 The Heavenly Music Corporation => Reviews
- 18'43 Swastika Girls
Reviews
Reviews are listed in chronological order within each section. Please retain a chronological order when adding new reviews.
Entire Release
Date Submitted: 30-Apr-98
By: Michael W. Flaherty (z946128 at rice dot farm dot niu dot edu)
"The title of this historic album perfectly conveys the feel of these two long tracks. Robert Fripp and Brian Eno, popular "rock stars", shed all of the trappings of early 70s rock and found something, if not completely new, certainly different. The history of this session has been well documented, but the music rises far above the trappings of being simply "of historical value".
"Each track is primarily Mr. Fripp's guitar work fed through Mr. Eno' machines and treatments. They combine the sonic beauty of Eno's later work with the more aggressive and musically complicated approach of Fripp. The result is an uncanny blend of darkness and the meditative beauty that each of these gentelmen continue to explore today. This includes their ability to build thoughtful, meditative trances without resorting to the simplicity of repeated triads. There is space for thought, but there is also a continual (and unobvious) building of the musical landscape that demands the acute listener's attention.
"While not exactly ambient, Frippertronics, or Soundscapes, this album is the beginning of all of those things. It records an incredibly brave artistic step for both players, and stands not only among the most important, but also among the best works of either Brian Eno or Robert Fripp.
"(Note: While the cover etc. is of historical interest, be aware that this complete album is available on The Essential Fripp and Eno, which includes tracks available nowhere else. See my comments under that release in this web site.)"
Date Submitted: 5-Jan-99
By: Theodore F. Zimmer (fyodor at mixcom dot com)
"For those of you who are into frippertronics but have never heard No Pussyfooting, YOU MUST BUY THIS ALBUM. I was an avid fan of frippertronics (and discotronics for that matter) and owned Let the Power Fall and God Save the Queen. I bought No Pussyfooting without really knowing much about it and let me tell you, I was completely blown away. Although recorded years earlier, this album is lightyears ahead of any frippertronics album, in fact, frippertronics has almost become boring to me after hearing the Fripp/Eno combination(although I still have a soft spot in my heart for frippertronics). This amazing and never-heard-before music puts me into what seems like a chemically-induced trance where the music surrounds me. These soundscapes are extremely thought provoking. Upon hearing them, I find myself pondering the deepest and most important aspects of my life. To me, that is a sign of great music. Your emotions are affected and you think. Not many musicians can do that to you, but Fripp is a master of it. And unlike frippertronics, where you cannot really tell if a guitar is being played, you can appeciate the quality of Fripp's guitar playing. He uses that recognisable Robert Fripp heavily sustained heavenly tone and plays some of his greatest guitar solos which are remeniscent of his solo on "Exiles" from Larks. I am not really sure whether Eno plays any actual music on this album, but his presence and studio techniques surely are just as important to this album as Fripp's guitar playing. All I can say is God bless Robert Fripp and (Brian) Eno."
Date Submitted: 12-Feb-02
By: Richard Vasiliy (tijemart at yahoo dot com)
"Record rating 10.
"Overall rating 12.
"Best song: I like both songs - sometimes I prefer the 1st one, sometimes I prefer 2nd one...
"Worst song: ...that’s why I cannot call the worst one.
"...This album must be called "revolutionary" by some reasons:
"1) NO PUSSY FOOTING were recorded by well-known "ingenious pair". The 1st was the young ex-keyboardist and ex-sound-engineer of Roxy Music, the creator of Ambient Music and other avantgarde musical directions - Brian Eno. And the 2nd was also the great experimentator (or The Great Deceiver, you may say) and "the incredible guitarist", the leader of King Crimson, who recently made its last line-up free, well-known by you Robert Fripp. Thus this album were recorded by two great members of great bands, and this fact can name NO PUSSY FOOTING revolutionary.
"2) The musicians used absolutely new record-technologies for the album: The Double Tape (produced by engineering genious of Eno), provided to repeat the instrumental sound many-many times, that gives for the musicians a lot of wonderful possibilities, and also one of the main principles on here is the new "Fripp’s method of guitar-playing (the new method of guitar-tuning).
"3) "The principle of Hidden Music" that will be widely used by Fripp on King Crimson records lately (for example, on TraKaTTaK), and particularly on his solo "Frippertronics" and "Soundscapes" records. Such music is very complexy. That’s why it’s so underrated. This kind of music is not for usual listeners; it’s necessary to be well-prepared before listen it. NO PUSSY FOOTING consists on two lengthy compositions. How I’ve already said, their melodies are hidden by perfectly atmospheric, abstract and madnessly-cycling sound. The 1st one THE HEAVENLY MUSIC CORPORATION is more Frippish, but the 2nd one SWASTICA GIRLS (what means Swastica Girls???!!!!?!?!!?!?!?!!!!?!) is more Enoish. By your 1st impressions you can have some reasonable questions: "What’s the idiotism? What kind of degenerative and rubbishly music is it? Why must I listen such boring, senseless and endless material?" But, hey, use your brains in and pay some more attention for this "endless noodling" (how somebody may say), and if you have some abstract sense, you will dig in this kind of music and in this album. Listen how magically Fripp’s guitar sounds with its cold-passionary circulating! Listen how wonderfully the waterfall of Eno’s keyboards pouring! THE HEAVENLY MUSIC CORPORATION is more unstructured and calm, it reminds me an equable southern relief under the warm orange sun. SWASTICA GIRLS is the predessessor of Eno-typical structural ambient music, based on neurotical waltzing rhythm of his keyboards (Crazy Piano!). it even reminds me the waltzing sections of Beatles’ FOR THE BENEFIT OF MISTER KITE.
"Though this album has the lack (but I cannot consider it as the lack): it’s too extraordinary. Hey, it’s joke, of course! Simply it’s hard to listen such music very oftenly; to me, I rarely have the necessary mood to listen this album, I listen it no more than ten times per year. NO PUSSY FOOTING is too specific album, it basically depends on impressions and feelings of listener for definite moment. To my opinion, it’s even the most hard-listenable record of 70s. NO PUSSY FOOTING is the great innovative album but...it’s hard to say, bat I cannot give to this album the rating higher than to King Crimson’s ISLANDS and IN THE WAKE OF POSEIDON, ‘cos I love them more. That’s why I give overall rating 12 for NO PUSSY FOOTING."
The Heavenly Music Corporation
Date Submitted: 31-Mar-02
By: William Collen (rubidium84 at hotmail dot com)
"This track could be the most far-out piece of guitar work you'll ever hear. Fripp has produced some amazing solos, and while this one may not be the most accesible, it could be the most virtuosic. the ending is magnificent - those low notes at loud volume can really shake the glassware (you might want to secure your fine china before playing it!). For the last couple of months I've only played this track if I wake up in the middle of the night. It sounds so eerie and complex, and playing it while in a half-conciuos state brings out all sorts of things you wouldn't hear otherwise.
"Overall fabulous genius. 6 out of 5."
