For those not in the know, Pat Mastelotto (of King Crimson, Mr. Mister, XTC, others) and his wife Deborah have made (and just released via 7D Media) the ultimate Crimson for Lovers package entitled Too Much Happiness: A Romantic's Guide To King Crimson.

Distilled from Deborah's experiences traveling with the band that “never has a line to the women restrooms”, and inspired by singing at the TOAPP music camp with Adrian Belew, Tony Levin and 100 campers (many appear on the album) the Covid quarantine provided down time for the couple to record 12 King Crimson classics.

Unexpectedly lush with orchestral, bluesy arrangements and a Pop Prog twist, that lay somewhere between sexy and slutty, heat up the hot tub and get down with this puppy this upcoming Valentine's Day!

1. 'Two Hands'
2. 'Matte Kudasai'
3. 'Heartbeat'
4. 'Moonchild'
5. 'Inner Garden'
6. 'One Time (Eyes Wide Open)'
7. 'Peace'
8. 'Book Of Saturday'
9. 'Exiles'
10. 'Elephant Talk'
11. 'People'
12. 'Sleepless'

This quite innovative and musically sonic new album opens with the light and dreamy 'Two Hands' and backs that up with the rather more methodical 'Matte Kudasai,' the gentle pop bounce of 'Heartbeat,' the cinematic, mid-'50s imbibed 'Moonchild,' and then we get both the Accordian-imbued 'Inner Garden' and the hipsway of 'One Time (Eyes Wide Open).'

Next up is the storytelling of 'Peace' which is itself followed by the endearingly plaintive 'Book Of Saturday,' the sweepingly organic 'Exiles,' the Leonard Cohen-esque 'Elephant Talk,' with the album rounding out on the pop flow 'People,' closing on the light industrial ebb of 'Sleepless.'

Too Much Happiness: A Romantic's Guide To King Crimson features 21 performers from across the world, most of whom participate in the annual MUSIC MASTERS Three of a Perfect Pair camp (TOAPP), held in The Catskill Mountains in New York State.

The TOAPP camp brings together current and former King Crimson members Adrian Belew, Tony Levin and Pat with musicians and King Crimson fans from around the world for an up-close-and-personal view into their creative processes.

“The album has amazing contributions from all the musicians involved, especially the TOAPP artists,” Pat explains. “We experimented together and since they were already lifelong Crim Heads, they were totally into reconfiguring the classic performances or developing totally new parts. So, get ready. You’ll hear some fantastic detail in their playing.”

The recording features lead vocals by Deborah and drumming and production by Pat. They chose the material and co-arranged it together.

“We compiled King Crimson songs and searched for the romanticism in them, then re-arranged them,” Deborah adds. “The addition of a girl singer automatically changed the feel of those songs and placed them in a different genre."

"Our idea was to create a way for people, especially women, to appreciate the beauty of King Crimson’s music without the fear and sometimes resistance attached to the word ‘prog’ getting in the way. We slowed the songs way down and stripped them back to their essential lyrics and melodies.”

“In the Crimson tradition, we approached every song as if it was brand new,” Pat adds. “At first, it involved tinkering with 20-plus songs in hotel rooms using iPhone apps to choose what worked best for us. We first focused on the lyrics."

"The words had to resonate and the arrangements had to develop a prog-meets-pop twist to meet my hopes. We had no desire to duplicate the original arrangements. In fact, just the opposite."

"I was trying to discover where else they could go to expose sweetness, sort of like the old days of cassettes and giving a loved one a mixtape. It’s a gift to fans and a family of former Crims."

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