Van der Graaf Generator | ||
| Allmusic Biography : An eye-opening trip to San Franciscos Haight-Ashbury during the summer of 1967 inspired British-born drummer Chris Judge Smith to compose a list of possible names for the rock group he wished to form. Upon his return to Manchester University, he began performing with singer/songwriter Peter Hammill and keyboardist Nick Peame; employing one of the names from Judge Smiths list, the band dubbed itself Van der Graaf Generator (after a machine that creates static electricity), eventually earning an intense cult following as one of the eras preeminent art rock groups. Despite the early involvement of Judge Smith and Peame, the group found true success as a vehicle for Hammill, whose dark, existentialist lyrics made him the focus of considerable attention. After the release of the 1968 single "People You Were Going To," Judge Smith left Van der Graaf Generator, which by then consisted of Hammill, keyboardist Hugh Banton, bassist Keith Ellis, and drummer Guy Evans. The group soon split, and in 1968 Hammill entered the studio, ostensibly to record a solo album; however, he ultimately called in his ex-bandmates for assistance, and when The Aerosol Grey Machine appeared, it did so under the Van der Graaf Generator name. Although Ellis was replaced by Nic Potter and woodwind player David Jackson, the reconstituted group continued on for 1969s Least We Can Do Is Wave to Each Other. After 1970s H to He, Who Am the Only One, Potter departed; the Generator recorded one more LP, 1971s Pawn Hearts, before Hammill left for a solo career, putting an end to the group. After five solo efforts, however, Hammill again re-formed Van der Graaf Generator in 1975 for Godbluff. Following a pair of 1976 albums, Still Life and World Record, Banton and Jackson exited; as simply Van der Graaf, the band recorded The Quiet Zone with new violinist Graham Smith. After a 1978 live set, Vital, the group officially disbanded, although most members made appearances on Hammills subsequent solo records. Twice during the 90s, Van der Graaf reunited for one-off gigs, and in 2005 released a reunion album, Present. Without Jackson, the trio of Hammill, Banton, and Evans recorded Trisector, which appeared in 2008. They appeared in concert frequently in 2009, and released another studio album, A Grounding in Numbers, in 2011. An album of studio jams and outtakes titled ALT followed a year later. The trio returned in 2016 with their 13th studio effort, Do Not Disturb. | ||
 | Album: 1 of 29 Title: The Aerosol Grey Machine Released: 1969-09 Tracks: 11 Duration: 53:16 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Afterwards (04:53) 2 Orthenthian St. (06:18) 3 Running Back (06:32) 4 Into a Game (06:56) 5 Aerosol Grey Machine (00:48) 6 Black Smoke Yen (01:18) 7 Aquarian (08:25) 8 Necromancer (03:29) 9 Octopus (07:41) 10 People You Were Going To (02:47) 11 Firebrand (04:07) |
| The Aerosol Grey Machine : Allmusic album Review : Beginning as a Peter Hammill solo effort following the dissolution of the first Van Der Graaf Generator, this quickly recorded album brought Hammill together with producer John Anthony and caused the reformation of the band (which immediately thereafter shifted personnel once again). A raw, energetic effort that sometimes did little to show off the young Hammills talents, the album nevertheless has some fine moments that hint at the possibilities for future releases. The fact remains, mind you, that the second album, The Least We Can Do Is Wave to Each Other, is far superior. [CD versions of this album appeared in 1996 and 1997, both including additional material such as the first (and very rare) Van Der Graaf Generator single, and the previously unreleased VDGG recording of "Ferret and Featherbird."] | ||
 | Album: 2 of 29 Title: The Least We Can Do Is Wave to Each Other Released: 1970-02 Tracks: 6 Duration: 43:48 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Darkness (11/11) (07:27) 2 Refugees (06:22) 3 White Hammer (08:15) 4 Whatever Would Robert Have Said? (06:07) 5 Out of My Book (04:07) 6 After the Flood (11:28) |
| The Least We Can Do Is Wave to Each Other : Allmusic album Review : Peter Hammill has always had an abiding interest, it seems, in the blurred boundary between the mystical and the scientific, and between the rational and magical mind; this is certainly evident on the debut Van Der Graaf Generator album, even though Hammill had yet to really begin focusing himself on what it was that was driving him (despite the fact that the bands very name referenced a device that resembles a bastard mix of scientific apparatus and shamanic totem). The Least We Can Do brings those concerns to the fore with ferocity, with time out for a couple of more personal pieces ("Refugees" and "Out of Our Book"). Hammills lyrics, delivered with all the passion and intent he can muster, reference mysticism, numerology, astrology, various religious pantheons, the Malleus Maleficarum (leading Hammill to conclude, a bit too hopefully, that magic needs to be gray to be balanced), Robert van deGraaf himself (in "Whatever Would Robert Have Said?"), the future of humanity, and surviving ecological catastrophe. This being the start of the 1970s, the hopeful notes are drowned out by the tidal wave of fear, sadness, and despair, despite which, the music does tend to be rather uplifting, thanks to the undercurrent of barely restrained majesty VDGG tended to have (possibly thanks to Hugh Banton, who had been rather used to communicating with God via church and cathedral organs; he brought that expertise to a position more normally occupied by determined B3 thumpers engaged in battle with show-horse guitarists). The main thing that The Least We Can Do is in need of now is a good remastering job (and the addition of a few leftover tracks, such as the "Refugees" single version and its B-side.) [The Virgin CD transfer is a lazy example of taking an album master and making a CD master from it, leaving the album lacking dynamic range and sounding a bit muffled.] | ||
 | Album: 3 of 29 Title: H to He, Who Am the Only One Released: 1970-12 Tracks: 5 Duration: 47:18 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Killer (08:22) 2 House With No Door (06:37) 3 The Emperor in His War-Room (08:18) 4 Lost (11:17) 5 Pioneers Over C. (12:42) |
| H to He, Who Am the Only One : Allmusic album Review : The foreboding crawl of the Hammond organ is what made Van Der Graaf Generator one of the darkest and most engrossing of all the early progressive bands. On H to He Who Am the Only One, the brooding tones of synthesizer and oscillator along with Peter Hammils distinct and overly ominous voice make it one of this British bands best efforts. Kicking off with the prog classic "Killer," an eight minute synthesized feast of menacing tones and threatening lyrics, the album slowly becomes shadowed with Van Der Graafs sinister instrumental moodiness. With superb percussion work via Guy Evans, who utilizes the tympani drum to its full extent, tracks like "The Emperor in His War-Room" and "Lost" are embraced with a blackened texture that never fades. The effective use of saxophone (both alto and tenor) and baritone from David Jackson gives the somberness some life without taking away any of the instrumental petulance. H to He is carpeted with a science fiction theme, bolstered by the bleak but extremely compelling use of heavy tones and the absence of rhythms and flighty pulsations. This album, which represents Van Der Graaf in their most illustrious stage, is a pristine example of how dark progressive rock should sound. | ||
 | Album: 4 of 29 Title: Pawn Hearts Released: 1971-10 Tracks: 3 Duration: 45:06 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Lemmings (Including Cog) (11:39) 2 Man-Erg (10:21) 3 A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers: A) Eyewitness - B) Pictures/Lighthouse - C) Eyewitness - D) S.H.M. - E) Presence of the Light - F) Kosmos Tours - G) (Custards) Last Stand - H) The Clot Thickens - I) Lands End (Sineline) - J) We Go Now (23:05) |
| Pawn Hearts : Allmusic album Review : Van Der Graaf Generators third album, Pawn Hearts was also its second most popular; at one time this record was a major King Crimson cult item due to the presence of Robert Fripp on guitar, but Pawn Hearts has more to offer than that. The opening track, "Lemmings," calls to mind early Gentle Giant, with its eerie vocal passages (including harmonies) set up against extended sax, keyboard, and guitar-driven instrumental passages, and also with its weird keyboard and percussion interlude, though this band is also much more contemporary in its focus than Gentle Giant. Peter Hammill vocalizes in a more traditional way on "Man-Erg," against shimmering organ swells and Guy Evans very expressive drumming, before the song goes off on a tangent by way of David Jacksons saxes and some really weird time signatures -- plus some very pretty acoustic and electric guitar work by Hammill himself and Fripp. The monumental "Plague of Lighthouse Keepers," taking up an entire side of the LP, shows the same kind of innovation that characterized Crimsons first two albums, but without the discipline and restraint needed to make the music manageable. The punning titles of the individual sections of this piece (which may have been done for the same reason that Crimson gave those little subtitles to its early extended tracks, to protect the full royalties for the composer) only add to the confusion. As for the piece itself, it features enough virtuoso posturing by everyone (especially drummer Guy Evans) to fill an Emerson, Lake & Palmer album of the same era, with a little more subtlety and some time wasted between the interludes. The 23-minute conceptual work could easily have been trimmed to, say, 18 or 19 minutes without any major sacrifices, which doesnt mean that whats here is bad, just not as concise as it mightve been. But the almost operatic intensity of the singing and the overall performance also carries you past the stretches that dont absolutely need to be here. The band was trying for something midway between King Crimson and Genesis, and came out closer to the former, at least instrumentally. Hammills vocals are impassioned and involving, almost like an acting performance, similar to Peter Gabriels singing with Genesis, but the lack of any obviously cohesive ideas in the lyrics makes this more obscure and obtuse than any Genesis release. | ||
 | Album: 5 of 29 Title: Godbluff Released: 1975-10 Tracks: 4 Duration: 37:31 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 The Undercover Man (07:25) 2 Scorched Earth (09:48) 3 Arrow (09:45) 4 The Sleepwalkers (10:31) |
| Godbluff : Allmusic album Review : Following the release of Pawn Hearts, bandleader Peter Hammill took time out to develop a solo career, choosing to focus his energy on darkly introspective works that seemed to be intended to examine the personal consequences of his life. When it came time for reuniting the members of Van Der Graaf, this change in direction had its effect on the bands post-1975 music. While the musical structures continued to be complex and dense, there seemed to be far less accent on the demonstration of musical skill than had formerly been the case. Indeed, the album opened with daring quietness, with David Jacksons flute echoing across the stereo space, joined by Hammills voice as he whispered the opening lines. There was sturm und drang to come, but the music had been opened up and the lyrics had developed more focus, often abandoning metaphor in favor of statement. Godbluff was a bravura comeback -- only four cuts, but all were classics. | ||
 | Album: 6 of 29 Title: Still Life Released: 1976-04 Tracks: 6 Duration: 55:32 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Pilgrims (07:12) 2 Still Life (07:24) 3 La Rossa (09:52) 4 My Room (Waiting for Wonderland) (08:02) 5 Childlike Faith in Childhoods End (12:32) 6 Gog (live) (10:29) |
| Still Life : Allmusic album Review : VDGGs second step on the mid-70s comeback trail saw Peter Hammill attempting to meld the introspective and the cosmic throughout, though this did not stop him from taking a dead run at a grandiose concept or two -- the consequences of immortality on the title track, and the grand fate of humanity on the epic "Childlike Faith in Childhoods End." The theme of humane cooperation informs the opening "Pilgrims," while "La Rossa" is an epic tale of desire fulfilled (a story that would be concluded on Hammills solo album, Over). The true highlight, however, is the beautiful, pensive "My Room (Waiting for Wonderland)," with its echoes of imagination and loss. Hammill did not achieve such a level of painful beauty again until "This Side of the Looking Glass" on Over. | ||
 | Album: 7 of 29 Title: World Record Released: 1976-10 Tracks: 5 Duration: 52:30 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 When She Comes (08:02) 2 A Place to Survive (10:04) 3 Masks (06:56) 4 Meurglys III, the Songwriters Guild (20:51) 5 Wondering (06:36) |
| World Record : Allmusic album Review : Released in the latter half of 1976 as a half-hearted attempt at some sort of commercial focus in the U.K. and U.S., World Record suffers from several ailments: there was much tension in the band at this point, particularly between leader Peter Hammill and keyboardist Hugh Banton. In the end, the band would split apart, with Banton and wind player David Jackson leaving, while Hammill and drummer Guy Evans recruited replacements. World Record is very much a divided record, sounding beautifully clean, but lacking in both performance and focus. Evans plays as well as ever, but without the creative spark of earlier records; Hammill, meanwhile, was responsible for the rambling, scattered "Meurglys III (The Songwriters Guild)," a lumbering piece named after one of his guitars. Of the cuts present, the best are the operatic "Masks," which mines one of Hammills favorite themes, that of identity, and "Wondering," written in collaboration with Banton. "Wondering" is beautifully hymn-like until the very end, when it suddenly becomes querulous and uncertain, ending the album both with a note of hope and a desperate question. | ||
 | Album: 8 of 29 Title: The Quiet Zone / The Pleasure Dome Released: 1977-09-02 Tracks: 9 Duration: 43:28 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Lizard Play (04:29) 2 The Habit of the Broken Heart (04:40) 3 The Siren Song (06:04) 4 Last Frame (06:13) 5 The Wave (03:14) 6 Cats Eye / Yellow Fever (Running) (05:20) 7 The Sphinx in the Face (05:57) 8 Chemical World (06:10) 9 The Sphinx Returns (01:16) |
 | Album: 9 of 29 Title: Vital Released: 1978-07 Tracks: 5 Duration: 45:03 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Ship of Fools (06:44) 2 Still Life (09:43) 3 Last Frame (08:59) 4 Mirror Images (05:48) 5 Plague of Lighthouse Keepers / The Sleepwalkers (13:47) |
 | Album: 10 of 29 Title: Time Vaults Released: 1981 Tracks: 10 Duration: 45:21 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 The Liquidator (05:24) 2 Rift Valley (04:39) 3 Tarzan (02:09) 4 Coil Night (04:12) 5 Time Vaults (03:33) 6 Drift (I Hope It Won’t) (02:41) 7 Roncevaux (06:55) 8 It All Went Red (04:07) 9 Faint and Forsaken (02:46) 10 Black Room (08:51) |
| Time Vaults : Allmusic album Review : Since bootleggers were fetching high prices for Van Der Graaf Generator rarities compilations from fans, VDGG leader Peter Hammill decided to compile ten of the best tracks and give them an official release. Since some of the tracks were never even completed, some present-day overdubbing was required, but according to Hammill in the liner notes, "all dubbing was completed in nine hours, in order to stay true to the spirit of the venture." And although the listener is warned that these are not studio quality recordings, the overall sound is consistently good. Besides, most of the people who would buy this album in the first place are the VDGG fanatics, who will be happy just to acquire this material. Most of the material is worthwhile and deserves to be heard, such as "The Liquidator," "Rift Valley," and "Coil Night" (why these strong compositions were never put on an album is a mystery). But a few tracks will test casual fans patience, such as the overly long title song, which quotes musical phrases from the Christmas standard "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer." | ||
 | Album: 11 of 29 Title: Second Generation: Scenes from 1975-1977 Released: 1986 Tracks: 9 Duration: 1:08:20 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 The Undercover Man (07:25) 2 Scorched Earth (09:48) 3 Sleepwalkers (10:32) 4 Pilgrims (07:12) 5 Still Life (07:24) 6 When She Comes (08:02) 7 Sirens Song (06:03) 8 Cats Eye / Yellow Fever (Running) (05:20) 9 Wondering (06:32) |
| Second Generation: Scenes from 1975-1977 : Allmusic album Review : "What kind of music do you play? They never had an easy answer. This was some of it." Peter Hammill, as ever, being sincerely non-committal about style and influence, yet managing to be securely on target at the same time. Second Generation is set up as the second half of an overview of Van Der Graaf Generator, but it definitely has a bias; three of the four cuts comprising Godbluff are included here, while Vital is completely ignored, right down to the exclusion of the studio version of "Ship of Fools" (later included on I Prophesy Disaster). VDGG fans will find reasons to quibble, certainly -- the track selections are sometimes questionable, and the lack of proper remastering shows in the unfortunately muddy tone of many of the tracks ("Siren Song" and "Cats Eye/Yellow Fever/Running" fare better than most, with a certain degree of crispness and a nice tight bass). The exclusion of "Vital" and "Ship of Fools" is also a definite minus. However, as something of an introduction to VDGG, this, with First Generation, serves fairly well, though the set has been superseded, to some extent, by A Introduction (2000) and Box (2000). | ||
 | Album: 12 of 29 Title: First Generation: Scenes from 1969-1971 Released: 1986 Tracks: 7 Duration: 1:11:08 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Darkness (11/11) (07:27) 2 Killer (08:17) 3 Man-Erg (10:21) 4 Theme One (02:55) 5 Pioneers Over C (12:39) 6 A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers (23:07) 7 Refugees (06:19) |
| First Generation: Scenes from 1969-1971 : Allmusic album Review : Trying to assemble a Van Der Graaf Generator overview really is a much harder task than might be expected; the group may have produced few albums in total, but deciding what can be excerpted from each one is a nightmare. The result for First Generation is that The Least We Can Do Is Wave to Each Other is almost ignored, Pawn Hearts is missing only "Lemmings," and H to He Who Am the Only One has the two obvious high notes ("Killer" and "Pioneers Over C") grabbed. The Aerosol Grey Machine is utterly ignored, as are the two single B-sides ("W" and "The Boat of Millions of Years"), although "Theme One" is included. The track order is a mess, with neither chronology nor tone being taken into account; "Refugees" closes the album, for example, having frittered away the energy generated by the ionized conclusion of "A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers." Great music, as always (and poor mastering), but not the best foot forward, certainly -- Second Generation is considerably better. Also, as of late 2000, a much better introduction can be had in the shape of An Introduction to Van Der Graaf Generator, a single-album companion to the four-disc Box. | ||
 | Album: 13 of 29 Title: I Prophesy Disaster Released: 1993-08-31 Tracks: 10 Duration: 1:10:45 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Afterwards (04:57) 2 Necromancer (03:36) 3 Refugees (single version) (05:24) 4 The Boat of a Million Years (03:50) 5 Lemmings (Includes Cog) (11:37) 6 W (04:26) 7 Arrow (09:45) 8 La Rossa (09:50) 9 Ship of Fools (03:46) 10 A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers / The Sleepwalkers (13:32) |
 | Album: 14 of 29 Title: Maida Vale - The Radio One Sessions Released: 1994 Tracks: 8 Duration: 1:11:12 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Darkness (07:21) 2 Man-erg (11:08) 3 Scorched Earth (09:42) 4 Sleepwalkers (10:01) 5 Still Life (07:22) 6 La Rossa (10:01) 7 When She Comes (08:10) 8 Masks (07:24) |
| Maida Vale - The Radio One Sessions : Allmusic album Review : For reasons unknown, experimentalists Van Der Graaf Generator released only a single live album during their tenure as a band (and it didnt feature their most well-known and popular lineup). Of course, plenty of bootlegs of the classic four-man lineup (Peter Hammill -- vocals/piano/guitar, Hugh Banton -- organ/bass, Guy Evans -- drums, David Jackson -- sax/flute) have circulated, but no official live releases until now. The folks at Band of Joy have compiled eight tracks performed on BBC Radio from 1971 through 1976 by the above-mentioned lineup, and VDGG fans couldnt have asked for a better compilation. Although all the tracks on Maida Vale are long, thereby meeting "prog-rock" criteria, VDGGs music helped influence the whole late-70s electronic movement (i.e., David Bowie, Brian Eno). VDGG stresses texture in the sound, as heard on the albums best tracks, "Darkness," "La Rossa," and "Masks." A worthy purchase for any music fan interested in hearing 70s experimental music at its most interesting. [Liner notes are done by VDGG founder Peter Hammill.] | ||
 | Album: 15 of 29 Title: The Masters Released: 1998 Tracks: 10 Duration: 45:13 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Saigon Roulette (04:41) 2 Gentlemen Prefer Blues (02:59) 3 Tropic of Conversation (07:17) 4 Tarzan (02:09) 5 Rift Valley (04:39) 6 The Liquidator (05:24) 7 Coil Night (04:12) 8 Roncevaux (06:55) 9 It All Went Red (04:07) 10 Faint and Forsaken (02:46) |
 | Album: 16 of 29 Title: Now and Then Released: 1998-09-01 Tracks: 8 Duration: 35:52 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Saigon Roulette (04:41) 2 The Liquidator (05:24) 3 Gentlemen Prefer Blues (02:59) 4 The Main Slide (04:04) 5 Tropic of Conversation (07:17) 6 Spooks (05:11) 7 Tarzan (02:09) 8 The Epilogue (04:04) |
| Now and Then : Allmusic album Review : This compilation, which originally appeared in 1985, contains some Van der Graaf Generator tracks that were cut between 1983-1984, along with others recorded nearly a decade earlier. While the band had split in 1984 and Peter Hammill had pursued a prolific solo career, the remaining members -- Guy Evans, Hugh Banton, and David Jackson -- recorded a number of tracks for reasons that remain unclear (perhaps to see if there was enough magic to continue without Hammill as a lightning-rod frontman). Whatever the reasons, it is clear from the sound of this music that little, if any of it, was seriously considered for release. The earlier-period cuts, “The Liquidator” and “Tarzan,” feature Hammill on vocals and guitar, and were recorded between the Pawn Hearts and Godbluff albums. They appeared previously on the Time Vaults compilation. The other six cuts, all instrumental, dont reflect VDGG at all; most contain more basic rhythmic and harmonic constructions with actual grooves and vamps. The exceptions are the Jackson piece “Gentlemen Prefer Blues,” which is effectively a sax solo, and the experimental improvisation "The Main Slide." The other tracks are throwaways. This one is for collectors only. | ||
 | Album: 17 of 29 Title: An Introduction: From the Least to the Quiet Zone Released: 2000-11-13 Tracks: 9 Duration: 1:07:25 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Darkness (11/11) (07:27) 2 Refugees (06:22) 3 Killer (08:22) 4 Theme 1 (02:56) 5 Man-Erg (10:21) 6 Sleepwalkers (10:26) 7 Still Life (07:24) 8 When She Comes (08:02) 9 Sphinx in the Face (06:00) |
 | Album: 18 of 29 Title: The Box Released: 2000-11-13 Tracks: 34 Duration: 4:43:14 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 People You Were Going To (live) (03:32) 2 Afterwards (live) (04:45) 3 Necromancer (live) (04:11) 4 Refugees (live) (06:19) 5 Darkness (11/11) (live) (06:52) 6 After the Flood (live) (10:59) 7 White Hammer (08:15) 8 House With No Door (06:37) 9 Killer (08:22) 10 Lost (11:09) 1 Theme 1 (live) (03:01) 2 W (04:28) 3 A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers (23:03) 4 (In the) Black Room/The Tower (live) (11:47) 5 Lemmings (live) (16:42) 6 Man-Erg (live) (11:09) 1 La Rossa (09:52) 2 Arrow (edit) (08:53) 3 Still Life (07:24) 4 My Room (edit) (07:29) 5 Sleepwalkers (10:26) 6 Pilgrims (07:05) 7 Childlike Faith in Childhoods End (12:24) 8 Scorched Earth (live) (10:13) 1 Masks (07:01) 2 Meurglys III (edit) (16:47) 3 When She Comes (08:02) 4 Wondering (06:42) 5 The Wave (03:14) 6 Cats Eye/Yellow Fever (live) (04:49) 7 Chemical World (06:11) 8 Door (03:28) 9 Sci-Finance (live) (06:16) 10 The Sphinx in the Face (live) (05:33) |
| The Box : Allmusic album Review : The sad fact about box sets is that theres always a fan out there who thinks they could have compiled a better one. An even sadder fact is that theyre often correct, and the very notion of anthologizing Van Der Graaf Generator was a fraught one for that very reason. More, perhaps, than any other band of the early-70s prog era, VDGG polarized their fans as much as the bands blatantly inhospitable sound outraged outsiders. They cut just eight studio albums, and all eight possess a wholly different character, all the more so since the band actually broke up midway through the sequence. Past compilations, then, sensibly dealt with one or other of those eras -- The Box, contrarily, swallows the entire beast whole, 34 tracks over four stuffed discs, and it gets full marks for courage, whatever its other sins may be. Unfortunately, there are quite a few other sins. From the collectors point of view, the most apparent flaw is the absence of any genuinely new material. Leaving aside two songs drawn from past posthumous collections, in official terms a dozen tracks are previously unreleased, including eight BBC radio sessions dating back to 1968, and four live performances from an August, 1975, show in Rimini, Italy. Unfortunately, not only have these long been available on two of the precious few VDGG bootlegs in circulation, but theyre also taken from precisely the same source tapes, with apparently little effort made to clean them up. Its disappointing, too, that the especially hiccup-heavy 1968 session should be preferred over even a fleeting examination of the groups earliest strivings -- the original demos which the (genuinely luxurious) booklet discusses, the maiden "People You Were Going To"/"Firebrand" 45, the Aerosol Grey Machine debut album. On the plus side, several of these performances are spectacular, regardless of sound quality. VDGG were never going to top the pristine majesty of the studio take of "Refugees" (from 1970s The Least We Can Do Is Wave to Each Other album), but a 1971 radio session at least shows them trying. The closing "The Sphinx in the Face," from the bands 1977 John Peel broadcast, too, is a magnificent indication of the oft-times chilling energies at the groups disposal. But the highlight has to be the churning live rendition of "In the Black Room/The Tower," a song best associated with vocalist Peter Hammills solo output, but drafted into the VDGG arsenal following their 1975 reunion. A vicious, Byronic nightmare set to trauma-inducing turbulence and oft-times impossible time signatures; even with bootleg hiss and ambient crackle, its like stepping barefoot into a snuff movie. The gig itself must have been terrifying. VDGGs first incarnation bows out midway through disc two with the purgative "A Plague if Lighthouse Keepers," the side-long monolith which highlighted 1971s Pawn Hearts album. Perhaps surprisingly, we get the regular LP version here -- surprisingly, because an astonishing live rendition exists, taken from a Belgian TV performance and, in its own way, it is actually superior to the official take -- plus, how many other rock bands are there who could so cleanly execute a multi-layered, multi-part 23 minute opus from memory? Probably about as many as would announce their comeback with the likes of "Lemmings" and "Man Erg," excerpts from the Rimini concert which informed the audience that whatever else may have changed during VDGGs absence, their ability to grind skulls between slabs of sonic cement was not one of them. Yet it cannot be denied that such moments become few and far between as discs three and four progress. Hammill, the bands chief lyricist, was conducting his own solo career parallel to the final VDGG albums and, while nobody would ever accuse him of keeping the best songs for himself, the fact that he did have another outlet ensured there was no longer anything to counteract his bandmates long-held penchant for excruciatingly convoluted art rock -- a balance, of course, which was crucial to the original groups versatility. Of course there are still moments of sublime magic: the neo-classical vastness of "Wondering" would have dignified any earlier VDGG album, while "Sleepwalkers," "The Wave," and another live performance, "Sci-Finance" (from the groups final release, the in-concert Vital), all offer further insights into the passions which the groups memory still stirs. But too much of these final discs sounds are portentously overbearing today; too much is simply way too much, and the discerning ear retreats back to discs one and two -- or, better still, to the original albums from which the best cuts were culled: The Least We Can Do and Pawn Hearts, of course, but also the savage majesty of 1971s H To He, Who Am the Only One, and, yes, even to Aerosol Grey Machine. Place those four albums in a box together, and you might never need to buy another record again. You certainly wont be needing The Box. | ||
 | Album: 19 of 29 Title: Present Released: 2005-04-25 Tracks: 16 Duration: 1:42:55 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Every Bloody Emperor (07:03) 2 Boleas Panic (06:50) 3 Nutter Alert (06:11) 4 Abandon Ship! (05:07) 5 In Babelsberg (05:30) 6 On the Beach (06:48) 1 Vulcan Meld (07:19) 2 Double Bass (06:33) 3 Slo Moves (06:24) 4 Architectural Hair (08:55) 5 Spanner (05:02) 6 Crux (05:50) 7 Manuelle (07:51) 8 Eavy Mate (03:50) 9 Homage to Teo (04:45) 10 The Price of Admission (08:48) |
| Present : Allmusic album Review : Re-forming no less than 27 years after the band last broke up, Van Der Graaf Generator were never going to put together the usual kind of reunion record. For a start, the reunion itself is largely in the eye of the beholder -- various permutations of the band have played together on a number of occasions over the past three decades, which means that its their own understanding of what the Van Der Graaf Generator name signifies that dominates this album, rather than any of the motives and moods that normally dictate such affairs. The fact that this understanding dovetails exquisitely with the groups own reputation and legend should not surprise listeners. Messrs. Hammill, Jackson, Banton, and Evans have safeguarded their own chemistry well, and, from the opening swirl of "Every Bloody Emperor," it is clear that the void between "then" and "now" has neither dented nor tarnished the uniqueness of the VDGG sound. It is remarkable that, of all the idols and icons of the 70s whose influence has been spread across the last few years of "new" rock acts, VDGG remain all but untouched by anyone. But its also true. With all the key ingredients in place -- the dislocation of sax and organ duets, a voice that can travel from zero to banshees in 60 seconds, and percussion that rolls with every punch that is thrown, who else could swing from the low-key loquacity of "On the Beach" to the abrasive swagger of "Abandon Ship!," from the rollicking barrage of "Nutter Alert" to the staccato panic of "In Babelsberg," and then wrap the package up with an entire discs worth of impromptu improvisations that Evans himself very accurately compared to "being locked in a room with Van Der Graaf Generator." Hes right, it is. And, once you remind yourself that their claustrophobia remains one of the most exhilarating sounds in rock history, youll be throwing the key away yourself. VDGG never made a less than fabulous album in their lives. And theyre not about to start now. | ||
 | Album: 20 of 29 Title: Real Time Released: 2007-03-05 Tracks: 14 Duration: 2:08:40 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 The Undercover Man (08:28) 2 Scorched Earth (10:05) 3 Refugees (06:00) 4 Every Bloody Emperor (07:35) 5 Lemmings (13:19) 6 (In the) Black Room (11:15) 7 Nutter Alert (06:05) 8 Darkness (11/11) (07:19) 1 Masks (06:47) 2 Childlike Faith in Childhoods End (12:33) 3 The Sleepwalkers (10:44) 4 Man-Erg (11:36) 5 Killer (09:54) 6 Wondering (07:00) |
| Real Time : Allmusic album Review : Van der Graaf Generator went through a number of lineups in its eventful life, most of which went by undocumented as live units, at least officially (and even on the bootleg front, VDGG fans have few quality recordings to fall back on). There has been one official live album, Vital, but, as necessary as it was in chronicling the groups transformation into a ferocious stage beast, it features a short-lived incarnation of the band. All in all, what is largely considered the "classic quartet" lineup was never decently recorded on-stage, and would never be. At least, that was the story up until May 6, 2005, when Hugh Banton, David Jackson, Guy Evans and Peter Hammill walked on-stage together for the first time in almost 30 years. Recently re-formed, VDGG had released a new studio album (the more-than-decent Present) and a European tour had been booked. The quartet would get better, meaner and wilder with every show (as bootlegs testify), but the one show that mattered, the one that had to be recorded for posterity (righting the aforementioned wrong in the process) was that historical first reunion at Londons Royal Festival Hall, in front of a sold-out and very international house. Nostalgia was in the air, of course, and it soon became clear that this first reunion tour would be about giving old neglected fans what they wanted and letting younger unsuspecting fans catch up with VDGG as a live force. The set list almost picks up where this particular lineup had left off in early 1977, with the exception of two tracks off Present, here given the typical VDGG live treatment: louder, heavier, grittier. The concert opens with the first two pieces off the groups magnum opus Godbluff, performed with lots of gusto. If "Refugees" suffers from Hammills less-than-delicate vocals, several other songs are rightfully treated, including "Darkness," "Childlike Faith in Childhoods End," "Lemmings" (with improvised introduction), and probably the definitive live version of "(In The) Black Room," a song written for and first performed by VDGG, even though it ended up on one of Hammills solo records. After the encore, "Killer," has burned the house down, the guys come back for a second encore, a lovely rendition of "Wondering," which not only seems to question the reality of the whole experience ("Wondering if its all been true"), but brings the concert full circle as Jackson concludes with a single repeated flute note, just like the beginning of "The Undercover Man" played a little over two hours earlier. Yes, this is nostalgia, but unlike most reunion shows, this one features four men still in full possession of their talent and eager to push onward. Real Time (so titled because nothing has been edited out or added) is a must for the fan and, with such a stellar cross-section of material, an excellent starting place for the newcomer. | ||
 | Album: 21 of 29 Title: Trisector Released: 2008-03-17 Tracks: 9 Duration: 53:44 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 The Hurlyburly (04:38) 2 Interference Patterns (03:52) 3 The Final Reel (05:49) 4 Lifetime (04:47) 5 Drop Dead (04:52) 6 Only in a Whisper (06:44) 7 All That Before (06:29) 8 Over the Hill (12:29) 9 (We Are) Not Here (04:04) |
| Trisector : Allmusic album Review : Usually, the first comeback album is a pretext for a comeback tour; the second comeback album is the real test. And Van Der Graaf Generator passed that test, although fans may argue about that for years. Vintage VDGG this is not (and if youre still hoping for that, well, it wont happen). And, of course, Trisector sounds closer to a Peter Hammill solo album than any VDGG LP from the 70s. After all, drummer Guy Evans has released very few albums (let alone under his own name) during the interim, and organist Hugh Banton has released only one, while Hammill chugged out three dozens or so. Consequently, yes, Hammills songwriting dominates and follows the style of songwriting found on his 2000s albums. And the presence of sax player David Jackson (who left after the Present tour) would have changed very little of that. In this incarnation of the band, Bantons organ is the dominating instrument, either in complex intricate patterns or in soft accompaniment mode. Present, the groups first comeback album, was a slim offering: six songs for a total duration of 35 minutes, and only two of these songs found their way into the live set list. Trisector is more generous (nine songs over 53 minutes) and offers higher highs and lower lows. "The Hurlyburly" is a strange inclusion and definitely a questionable choice for an opener. The 21st century surf music feel of this instrumental might have worked as comic relief toward the middle mark of the album, or even as a coda. Placed at the forefront, it indisposes. The half-point has been given instead to "Drop Dead," an unremarkable rocker that would have felt weak even on one of Hammills rock albums. Those two low points aside, Trisector stands as a strong achievement. "Interference Patterns" and "All That Before" have the complexity and rawness youd expect from this one-of-a-kind prog rock band. "Lifetime" and "Only in a Whisper" are definitely softer than anything VDGG used to do in the 70s, but they are artistically successful songs. The latter, a delicate two-chord affair, provides a slow-boiling showcase for Hammills poignant voice and Evans subtle drumming. The 12-minute "Over the Hill" is almost as epic as the groups music used to be; it will easily become a live favorite. And "(We Are) Not Here" brings the album to a strong though unusual close, with its driving and repetitive motif and its stacked vocals. The songs on Trisector have a tendency to run a bit too long (the ending of "The Final Reel" and "Only in a Whisper," the middle section in "All That Before"), but the songwriting is strong, the attitude is sincere, and the group manages to present a convincing and viable version of Van Der Graaf Generator for the 21st century. The fact that most of the albums songs have been included in the groups 2008 live set shows how much more committed the musicians are to this material, compared to the "lets-give-this-thing-a-try" approach found on Present. | ||
 | Album: 22 of 29 Title: Live at the Paradiso Released: 2009-08-25 Tracks: 11 Duration: 1:48:35 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Lemmings (13:54) 2 A Place to Survive (06:54) 3 Lifetime (05:12) 4 (In the) Black Room (11:43) 5 Every Bloody Emperor (07:28) 6 All That Before (07:41) 1 Gog (07:25) 2 Meurglys III (The Songwriters Guild) (15:55) 3 The Sleepwalkers (11:04) 4 Man-Erg (11:55) 5 Scorched Earth (09:24) |
 | Album: 23 of 29 Title: A Grounding in Numbers Released: 2011-03-14 Tracks: 13 Duration: 48:46 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Your Time Starts Now (04:14) 2 Mathematics (03:37) 3 Highly Strung (03:37) 4 Red Baron (02:23) 5 Bunshō (05:02) 6 Snake Oil (05:20) 7 Splink (02:37) 8 Embarrassing Kid (03:06) 9 Medusa (02:12) 10 Mr. Sands (05:22) 11 Smoke (02:29) 12 5533 (02:42) 13 All Over the Place (06:01) |
 | Album: 24 of 29 Title: Recorded Live In Concert At Metropolis Studios, London Released: 2012-06-04 Tracks: 11 Duration: 1:25:54 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Interference Patterns (04:22) 2 Nutter Alert (05:32) 3 Your Time Starts Now (04:25) 4 Lemmings (14:21) 5 Lifetime (05:09) 6 Bunsho (05:27) 1 Childlike Faith (12:11) 2 Mr Sands (05:20) 3 Over the Hill (12:21) 4 We Are Not Here (04:54) 5 Man Erg (11:50) |
 | Album: 25 of 29 Title: Alt Released: 2012-06-25 Tracks: 14 Duration: 1:01:11 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Earlybird (04:02) 2 Extractus (01:39) 3 Sackbutt (01:53) 4 Colossus (06:36) 5 Batty Loop (01:14) 6 Splendid (03:46) 7 Repeat After Me (07:39) 8 Elsewhere (04:20) 9 Heres One I Made Earlier (05:43) 10 Midnite Or So (03:35) 11 Daccord (02:29) 12 Mackerel Ate Them (04:50) 13 Tuesday, The Riff (02:47) 14 Dronus (10:38) |
 | Album: 26 of 29 Title: Merlin Atmos Released: 2015-02-03 Tracks: 13 Duration: 2:21:31 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Flight (21:09) 2 Lifetime (05:10) 3 All That Before (07:46) 4 Bunsho (05:47) 5 A Plague of Lighthouse-keepers (23:45) 6 Gog (06:39) 1 Interference Patterns (04:28) 2 Over the Hill (12:35) 3 Your Time Starts Now (04:14) 4 Scorched Earth (10:13) 5 Meurglys III, the Songwriters Guild (15:24) 6 Man-Erg (11:39) 7 Childlike Faith in Childhoods End (12:36) |
 | Album: 27 of 29 Title: After the Flood: At the BBC 1968-1977 Released: 2015-04-27 Tracks: 22 Duration: 2:37:44 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 People You Were Going To (03:31) 2 Afterwards (04:44) 3 Necromancer (04:11) 4 Darkness (06:52) 5 After the Flood (10:58) 6 Manerg (11:11) 7 Theme One (02:58) 8 Vision (03:15) 9 Darkness (07:17) 10 Manerg (10:37) 11 W (05:08) 12 Killer (08:09) 1 Refugees (06:19) 2 Scorched Earth (09:43) 3 Sleepwalkers (10:00) 4 Still Life (07:20) 5 La Rossa (09:58) 6 When She Comes (08:11) 7 Masks (07:24) 8 Cats Eye / Yellow Fever (04:46) 9 The Sphinx in the Face (05:34) 10 (Fragments of) A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers / Sleepwalkers (09:28) |
 | Album: 28 of 29 Title: Do Not Disturb Released: 2016-09-30 Tracks: 7 Duration: 48:57 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Aloft (07:19) 2 Brought to Book (07:57) 3 (Oh No! I Must Have Said) Yes (07:44) 4 Alfa Berlina (06:39) 5 Room 1210 (06:47) 6 Almost the Words (07:54) 7 Go (04:35) |
 | Album: 29 of 29 Title: Live At Rockpalast - Leverkusen 2005 Released: 2018-05-25 Tracks: 11 Duration: 1:44:01 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 The Undercover Man (07:07) 2 Scorched Earth (09:39) 3 Every Bloody Emperor (07:36) 4 Lemmings (13:57) 5 Darkness (07:52) 6 Childlike Faith (12:28) 1 The Sleepwalkers (10:36) 2 Nutter Alert (07:01) 3 Man Erg (12:29) 4 Killer (08:33) 5 Wondering (06:38) |