ProjeKct Two - Space Groove

KC a mother-in-law might like -- and so should you!
From Joe P of Snohomish, Washington on 10/25/2008.

I came to Space Groove backward - having already heard the ProjeKcts box set, and two complete P2 concerts. It was the unedited concerts that finally showed me what P2 really had going, and why it was notable in its own right - not just a dry run for P3, P4 and the Double Duo.

Consequently, SPACE GROOVE sounds a little tame in comparison. But what am I saying?! This is where it began -- the first ProjeKct to put anything together, and a surprise even to them. SPACE GROOVE is nothing less than a document of the KC band rediscovering and redefining itself on the fly, in ways it did not know it could move.

As for the tameness factor - well yes, compared to what came later; acts of discovery are rarely full of confidence and bravado. But we are consequently gifted with a version of KC which you actually could play when the in-laws are visiting without suggesting they should leave.

My wife, in fact, found in this CD a doorway to tolerating my avid ProjeKct appreciation. And that, my friends, is not at all a bad thing.

Let it be music
From Paul Engle of Phoenix, Arizona on 6/19/2006.

This recording forces the "boxed in" listener to actually go beyond listening and move towards the next level of hearing the music. Robert Fripp is a musical genuis, and those that allow the music to live through this recording are on the same wavelength. Here is a perfect example of what Mr. Fripp tries to develop in his daily diaries. The development of understanding what music really is. Mr. Fripp has the uncanny ability to allow music to be itself and serve its purpose, not his. Sit back, hear the music and allow the music to be itself. If one can accomplish this Space Groove is a masterpiece.

Earthbound for modern ears.
From Finbar Conlon of Toronto, Ontario on 5/19/2006.

The packaging: Pure genius. Reading Adrian Belew's story in the liner notes while you listen is the only way to enjoy this album!
The music: Reminds me of the spacy jazz-funk of Herbie and the Head Hunters I grew up on and loved so well. (Before discovering Crimson.) If you dig this, I recommend Herbie Hancock's 70's masterpieces: Head Hunters, Thrust and Flood. Jammy stuff, like this. If you can sit through Space Groove without getting bored, I'm certain you'll find the extended pieces like Chameleon, Palm Grease and Hang Up Your Ups quite rewarding.

Grows On You
From Joseph McFarland of Manassas, Virginia on 12/23/2004.

I didn't care for this release through many plays, over a span of greater than a year. I was looking for more excitement in the guitar playing, Fripp or Gunn moving towards a peak. I found the sound here a bit too laid-back and underdeveloped, and even said some critical things in web reviews about Adrian's V-drumming.

Well, sorry for that. I get it now. After listening to this and the group's "Live Groove" several times over, and in close proximity to works by each of the other ProjeKcts, I "get it" now and appreciate this music.

The most interesting element in this band, pretty consistently, is Adrian's drumming. He flails at those skins (pads?) with a real artistry that is inspirational to a drummer such as myself. His beats tend to fragment and syncopate in ways that are entirely uncommercial and jazz-inflected, and which bring me great pleasure.

I suppose Fripp and Gunn were deriving that pleasure during these sessions also, but hadn't yet really figured out the best way to play to it. As the band developed later, documented on "Live Groove" and on a KCCC release that I haven't heard yet, each player made more significant contributions and ProjeKct Two turned into a strong little musical unit.

Meanwhile, this release drifts, but it drifts with a pleasant and creative type of swing courtesy of Adrian. I get it now, and I enjoy it now, and it sometimes makes my day.