Pop Music Reviews : King Crimson: Back Into Its Progressive Future

Who says progressive-rockers lack humor?

“I’m a dinosaur, somebody is digging my bones,” sang King Crimson’s Adrian Belew on Thursday at the Wiltern Theatre, the line serving as a winking nod at the fact that the band had its genesis during prog’s late-’60s Jurassic period.

But those were pretty lively bones Thursday--and plenty of people were digging them. This was the first of a nearly sold-out three-night stand at the Wiltern, behind the fine new album, “Thrak,” which ended Crimson’s 11-year hiatus.

The response of the crowd--a mostly male mix of aging audiophiles and scruffy young post-grads--was overwhelming, leading itself to a little humor, including one fan futilely attempting to dance to the odd time signatures of the dense, thunderous ‘70s instrumental “Red.”

Of course, there was no Barney-like cuddliness from these reptiles. Under the stewardship of guitarist Robert Fripp, long the lone remaining founder, the band has been marked by icy intellect and passionless precision--accented by Fripp performing seated, largely in shadows, at the rear of the stage.

Belew, who joined in the early ‘80s, counters that a bit with his occasionally Lennon-esque vocals and ballads. But it’s still Fripp’s vision that runs through the inventively intricate musical patterns and lush washes of electronically processed effects. Coldblooded it may be, but it’s plenty to make Crimson one of the few prog dinosaurs worth saving from extinction.

* King Crimson plays tonight at the Wiltern Theatre, 3790 Wilshire Blvd., (213) 380-5005, 8 p.m. Some $30 tickets are available.