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Van der Graaf Generator: Present

 A l b u m   D e t a i l s


Label: Virgin Records
Released: 2005.06.07
Time:
 37:34 / 65:26
Category: Progressive Rock
Producer(s):
Rating:
Media type: CD Double
Web address: www.vandergraafgenerator.co.uk
Appears with: Peter Hammill, David Jackson
Purchase date: 2008.08.29
Price in €: 19,99





 S o n g s ,   T r a c k s


CD1: Songs
[1] Every Bloody Emperor (P.Hammill) - 7:03
[2] Boleas Panic (D.P.Jackson) - 6:50
[3] Nutter Alert (P.Hammill) - 6:11
[4] Abandon Ship! (G.Evans/P.Hammill) - 5:07
[5] In Babelsberg (P.Hammill) - 5:30
[6] On the Beach (P.Hammill/D.P.Jackson) - 9:20

CD2: Improvisations
[1] Vulcan Meld (H.Banton/G.Evans/P.Hammill/D.P.Jackson) - 7:19
[2] Double Bass (H.Banton/G.Evans/P.Hammill/D.P.Jackson) - 6:33
[3] Slo Moves (H.Banton/G.Evans/P.Hammill/D.P.Jackson) - 6:24
[4] Architectural Hair (H.Banton/G.Evans/P.Hammill/D.P.Jackson) - 8:55
[5] Spanner (H.Banton/G.Evans/P.Hammill/D.P.Jackson) - 5:02
[6] Crux (H.Banton/G.Evans/P.Hammill/D.P.Jackson) - 5:50
[7] Manuelle (H.Banton/G.Evans/P.Hammill/D.P.Jackson) - 7:51
[8] 'Eavy Mate (H.Banton/G.Evans/P.Hammill/D.P.Jackson) - 3:50
[9] Homage to Teo (H.Banton/G.Evans/P.Hammill/D.P.Jackson) - 4:45
[10] The Price of Admission (H.Banton/G.Evans/P.Hammill/D.P.Jackson) - 11:21
 

 A r t i s t s ,   P e r s o n n e l


Hugh Banton - Organ, Bass Guitar, Engineer, Producer
Guy Evans - Drums, Liner Notes, Engineer, Producer
Peter Hammill - Electric Guitar, Electric Piano, Vocals, Engineer, Producer
David P. Jackson - Flute, Saxophone, Soundbeam, Photography, Engineer, Producer

Paul Ridout - Design, Photography
Gail Colson - Management
 

 C o m m e n t s ,   N o t e s

2005 CD EMI 573676

Most fans thought it would never happen, but Guy Evans, David Jackson, Hugh Banton and Peter Hammill have reunited as Van der Graaf Generator. This is not a nostalgic reunion to relive past glories, however, but a coming together of new experiences and fresh perspectives for the creation of a brand-new studio album, Present. The studio sessions provided 16 new Van der Graaf works spread out over two CDs. One CD consists of rehearsed songs/structured pieces , the second CD features an hour's worth of improvisations. After an absence of more than 25 years, British four-piece Van Der Graaf Generator return with a full length studio album. The band were one of the pioneers of the art rock movement during the 1970's and their progressive rock sound is eerily similar here on their latest offering. Disc two of the set is entitled 'Improvisations' and features over an hour's worth of demo sessions.

Recorded at Pyworthy Recrory, North Devon, February 15-21, 2004.


Most fans thought it would never happen. But Guy Evans, David Jackson, Hugh Banton and Peter Hammill have reunited as Van der Graaf Generator. This is not a nostalgic reunion to relive past glories, but a coming together of new experiences and fresh perspectives for the creation of new music as well as new live performances, the rebirth of a phoenix! During the studio sessions the muse was so generous that the result was 16 new Van der Graaf works spread out over a double CD. Present is being released by Virgin/EMI who have resurrected the Charisma label for the occasion. ''One CD consists of the songs/structured pieces which we consciously rehearsed - 'Every Bloody Emperor,' 'Boleas Panic,' 'Nutter Alert,' 'Abandon Ship!,' 'In Babelsberg' and 'On the Beach.' The second CD features an hour's worth of improvisations. These have always been a feature of Van der Graaf playing and are quite whacky.... I recommend taking these at about a half an hour at a time-it's really like being locked in the room with us.'

PH. EMI. 2005.



Eigentlich ist es unmöglich, einem Album der britischen Progrocklegende eine objektiv gerechtfertigte Zensur aufzudrücken. Man könnte die Band um Peter Hammill abtun wie so viele untote Bands, die in den 60er und 70ern groß wurden und noch immer nicht abtreten wollen. Warum man's dann doch nicht tut? Ein big point für VDGG ist, dass sie nach 28 Jahren Abstinenz wiederkommen, ohne groß von altem Ruhm zehren zu können. Klar, geändert hat sich nicht viel. Noch immer zersägt David Jackson mit seinem Saxofon ganze Stahlträger - rostige natürlich. Noch immer liefert er sich einen Wettstreit mit Keyboarder Hugh Banton um die melodische Hegemonie. Und noch immer singt Chef Hammill seine Balladen im gestelzten Wir-Duktus wie ein Prediger auf der Kanzel. Doch spätestens, wenn mit dem Song "In Babelsberg" auch tempomäßig die Post abgeht, wird jeder in den Hammill'schen Musikkosmos mitgerissen, der auf eine Mischung aus Rock, Jazz und Elektronik steht. Fast schon klassischen Jazzrock bietet die zweite CD des Albums mit improvisierten Instrumentalstücken. Für die Punk-Ikone John Lydon war Hammill in den 70ern der einzige Rockmusiker, den er noch ernst nehmen konnte. Der Grund: VDGGs konsequenter (aber durchaus nicht ganz freiwilliger ...) Verzicht auf den ganz großen Erfolg. Hammill ist diesen Weg bis heute gegangen.

(jw) - Kulturnews



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 it's 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 group's 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 it's 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 disc's worth of impromptu improvisations that Evans himself very accurately compared to "being locked in a room with Van Der Graaf Generator." He's right, it is. And, once you remind yourself that their claustrophobia remains one of the most exhilarating sounds in rock history, you'll be throwing the key away yourself. VDGG never made a less than fabulous album in their lives. And they're not about to start now.

Dave Thompson - All Music Guide



Popular mythology has been kinder to Van der Graaf Generator than most of their better known, financially more successful, brethren. Perhaps the fact that Hammill's lyrics and delivery exhibited raw psychosis and the quartet delivered everything with bare-knuckles intensity - punk aggro before there was such a thing - allowed the band to depart the scene and not be an easy target for sneering music-journalists in the 80s and 90s. Almost 30 years down the road since the last official Generator album, Peter Hammill and company - the classic four-piece lineup - return with what is probably the most anticipated new prog-rock album in at least a decade, maybe longer.

The line-up of Banton, Evans, Hammill and Jackson made its last appearance on World Record in 1976. After that a mutated version of the group built around Hammill, Evans and a returning Nik Potter on bass recorded briefly as Van der Graaf. The new album, Present, fits nicely in between World Record and Quiet Zone/The Pleasure Dome. Not as complex nor as overtly bonkers as the former, and not as close to a Hammill solo album in disguise as the latter, this live-in-the-studio set of tunes easily recaptures the armed to the teeth spirit of yesterday, while glaring through suspicious eyes at a horizon of dark social malevolence, political malfeasance, and moral ambiguity. In other words, it's business as usual for the home team.

Opening the package for Present is a delight in itself. The front-cover is a black and white silhouette of the band members heads in profile with lettering and color scheme to echo the classic mid 70s album Godbluff. All of them facing to the left hints at the inside cover of Pawn Hearts. Inside the 2-disc set we find that the credits and the disc label show the resurrection of The Famous Charisma Label just for this project. Nice to see the Mad Hatter symbol again. As it should be. Too bad it isn't bigger, however.

Online discussion before the album's release gave away the fact that disc 1 would be the songs, and disc 2 would be a bonus set of improvisations from the album sessions -- sort of a full-band "Long Hello". So what do we have?

First, it's important to understand how the album was created. A one-week bashing session at Pyworthy Rectory was recorded by the group, this being the result. It is very much a band flying by the seat of its pants affair, acting as its own engineer and producer. It's not a great recording -- don't expect a sonic masterpiece a la John Anthony -- with the mix having a slightly muffled quality, especially Evans' drums. It's more like an extremely good set of high-grade demos, where the arrangements and parts have been fully realized, but the overall sound quality isn't top drawer.

Second, these tunes evolved quickly, though some of them might have been brought in by Hammill with a degree of structure in place. They're more song-oriented than vintage generator, shorter and not as prone to time-sig shifts, very quiet/very loud jumps, etc. If one is expecting hyper-prog-rock, one will likely be disappointed.

Third, purists may sniff at the modern digital keyboards in use. On the whole, as a results oriented man, I find Banton's pair of Roland's in burning Hammond and churchy modes to be highly effective organ emulations. But Hammill's DX-7 electric piano and clavinet tones are too pretty and clean. Someone get this man a Hohner, a Wurli, or at least a bad-tempered fuzz-box to push the signal through!

The album opener "Every Bloody Emperor" sets the tone immediately with the band easing into a spot-on Hammill observation about the nature of power and how it corrupts. Timely, without getting so specific that Hammill names Bush and Blair, but its obvious which lying swinish rulers are in his mind as he mournfully intones a litany of deceit, lamenting the destruction of the democratic ideal, and the rise of militaristic jingoistic empire. This is a steady builder, elements adding to the arrangement in much the same way as "The Undercover Man" did opening Godbluff. Right off the bat, as Hammill sets his lyrical gun-sights on big game, it's encouraging to see that each member of the team is more than up to the task of playing his role in the reunion.

Surprisingly, up next is a Jackson-written instrumental ("Boleas Panic"). Crafted around gritty, soulful, sax work and almost Church-like organ, this 6/4 piece, works well continuing the dark mood of the opener. Banton's face surely shone with glee as he cranked the intensity level midway. As good as it is, one can but only wish Hammill had penned some words, given the shortness of disc 1 (37 minutes) and the length of the second (instrumental improv) disc. On further thought, it really is the only place for it, as far away from the rest of the instrumentals as possible, without opening the album.

Track three is the one that grabbed me immediately, positively screaming that it's an instant VdGG classic. Is the protagonist of "Nutter Alert" an acquaintance of Hammill? A blathering fan, relative of an earlier energy vampire? Or is the man singing about himself, seeing something baleful in the mirror that he doesn't like? Either way, as the band swings through the quasi-blues slow rock arrangement, and Hammill snarls his disdain, long-time fans will feel right at home. Banton even manages to drive his Roland virtual Hammond into the kind of dirty-Leslie terrain beloved by heavy organ aficionados.

More 400lb gorilla mayhem follows in "Abandon Ship!", with Meurglys III cranked up, and Hammill wryly commenting on the desperate need for the aging hip to cling to youthful modes of living, expression, dress, etc. Some of it is, of course, self-depreciating in its knowledge that Hammill and company are fighting their own rearguard action against the relentless encroachment of age, memory-loss and infirmity. If it hasn't dawned on the listener before now that these guys are having fun, by the end of this tune it should be apparent that the generator still take music seriously...but not themselves.

"In Babelsberg", the second heavy guitar-led workout, is probably the closest track to vintage prog-rock VdGG output. One has to accept Hammill's playing style and tone, which can be off-putting. It's very garage-prog, and hasn't evolved much over the last three decades. But it serves the shut-up or I'll smack you aggression of the piece. This muscular tune could easily have found a home on one of the mid-70s VdGG albums, fueled by wailing vocals, and more blistering, squonking sax and organ. But it's not a nostalgic piece at all, despite its discussion of events in "another Berlin", being musically as harsh and fierce in delivery as most modern metal bands, just smarter and more cerebral in subject matter.

The last of the songs is perhaps the closest on the disc to a throwaway, being more of Hammill solo tune dressed up in a band arrangement. "On The Beach" is delicate VdGG balladry for cartoons, if you will, with humorous reference to the Silver Surfer, and perhaps a gentle nod to the poignancy of Nevil Shute's epic Cold War apocalypse novel. Perfect placement as a comedown after the lurching violence of "In Babelsberg", letting the rocket ship's engines cool down as the band fades into the tranquil sounds of crashing surf.

I guess that disc 2, the improvisations, will not get anywhere near as much play as the songs on disc 1. It would be fair to say that not many bands have ever managed to successfully do rock-based improv. Really only King Crimson's mid 70s lineup springs to mind. But what's presented here shows that VdGG are quite good at it. Surprisingly so, given the fact that they haven't played together (other than once in a blue moon pickups) in close to 30 years. Most importantly, the improvs show that a wealth of untapped ideas were developed in these sessions that didn't show up in the six songs on disc 1. At one level it's self-indulgent jamming, but on another it provides insight into the creative process that spawned the completed songs. To do this effectively requires not only technical ability but enormous trust in the collective mind. Otherwise the results are in danger of leading to Spinal Tap Mk II's "Jazz Odyssey". Fortunately the quartet knows enough about improvisation to let the two jazzers in the outfit lead the way, which Evans and Jackson do with great aplomb. It's all good in its own way (with the rubbish buried safely in a locked vault one hopes). Outstanding improvs? For me they were "Vulcan Meld", "Slo Moves", "Crux", "'Eavy Mate" and "The Price Of Admission". But the best bit of all was the scorching middle four minutes of "Architectural Hair" which fairly peels the paint.

When all is said and done, Present is a better than hoped for album, though not on par with the best work under the moniker Van der Graaf Generator. It shows a deft acknowledgment of their collective past while offering hope for a possible continued collective future. It is amazing that these guys are pushing sixty, but they're still very much fueled by fire! I'm astonished at how un-mellow these men are, refusing to go quietly into that dark night, instead opting to rant, rave and rock like they're still 25. Amen to that! If you love Hammill and Van der Graaf Generator, and aren't expecting Pawn Hearts part deux you should get a lot of mileage out of this album. I did.

SpeedSoft.com



Im Zeiten, in denen alternde Rockfans ihre von Tränen der Glückseligkeit verschleierten Augen vor den Peinlichkeiten ihrwer wiedervereinten Helden verschließen, darf ich mit dieser Scheibe wohl eine der wenigen wiedervereinigten Truppen präsentieren, die ihrem altehrwürdigen Namen auch heute noch gerecht werden.
Van der Graf Generator - PresentVan der Graf Generator - PresentDenn was Van der Graaf Generator auf "Present" abliefern, ist kein von Zeitgeist oder modernen Produktionsmöglichkeiten zerfleddertes Zerrbild ihrer früheren Stärken und auch kein lediglich um die Originalbandmitglieder verlängertes (an Fischer Z konnte man früher ja schon sehen, dass zusätzliche Originalmitglieder nicht einmal notwendig für eine solche Reunion sind) neues Solo-Album des Masterminds Peter Hammill. Nein, "Present" klingt schräg und anstrengend wie seinerzeit "The least we can do is wave to each other", "H to He" oder auch die Werke der zweiten Phase "Godbluff" etc. Und eben auch genauso aufregend, einfach als wäre die Band nie weg gewesen, als hätten sie seither wöchentlich, ja fast täglich zusammengespielt. Hammills singender Erzählstil zieht einem immer noch ins einen Bann, David Jacksons Saxophon krächzt erregend zu den überwiegend dramatischen Songs und säuselt dann fast lyrisch bei "On the Beach". Dazu liefern Hugh Banton (org, bs) und Guy Evans (drm) das gewohnt vielschichtige Fundament, das den VDGG-Sound so charakteristisch macht. Die Songs sind wie eh und je alleine schon wegen ihrer Längen radioimkompatibel, und die Songs pendeln zwar um wiederkehrende musikalische Motive, simple kollektive Wiederholungen sucht man jedoch vergebens, die Songs entwickeln sich dynamisch und melodisch ständig weiter und es gibt bis heute neben den frühen Genesis um Peter Gabriel (damals ebenfalls beim "Famous Charisma Label" unter Vertrag) wohl keine vergleichbare Band, die klassische Popongsstrukturen so konsequent ignorierte, wie VDGG. Aber "Present" bietet nicht nur eine CD mit neuen Werken, als Zugabe gibt es eine gut einstündige Instrumental-CD dazu, auf der das Quartett weitgehend im musikalischen Spannungsfeld zwischen Soft Machine und Miles Davisschem Jazz-Rock seine improvisatorische Kraft beweist. 27 Jahre nach ihrer (zweiten) Trennung als Band kehren Van der Graaf Generator am 06.05. in London auf die Bühnen zurück. Alles andere als ein triumphales Echo wäre nach diesem phänomenalen Album eine Überraschung.

Dominik Engel - Bloom.de



Along with King Crimson (at least in their mid 70s incarnation), VDGG were the prog band it was (almost) OK to like, and certainly one of the very few that exerted any influence on the punk movement.Certainly fans of Jethro Tull or Yes were unlikely to find much cosmic solace in the dark, labrynthine psychodramas that Peter Hammill and his chums turned out in the 1970s. VDGG music was brash, complex, difficult; their performances were driven less by instrumental flash or laser light shows than sheer, desperate energy and an uncompromising intellectual clarity.

And now they're back. This line-up (Hammill, Hugh Banton, David Jackson, Guy Evans)last recorded together thirty years ago, but you wouldn't know it. Recorded pretty much live, this powerful, sometimes ragged music recalls old glories and turns up quite a few new ones too; it's the sound of a band rediscovering themselves and liking what they find.

Disc 1 is given over to songs and opens with "Every Bloody Emperor", a stinging attack on the increasing distance between our leaders and their subjects. As ever, Hammill's polemics are passionate but unclouded by sentiment,and there's an extra kick to his considerable vocal prowess given by the presence of his old bandmates.

When Banton's trademark bass pedals surge into earshot and Hammill whips out his guitar for a spot of skronk, things step up a gear. "Boleas Panic", "Nutter Alert", "Abandon Ship" and "In Babelsberg" are the match of anything this lineup came up with back in the days of Godbluff or Still Life. Muscular,literate and visceral, this'll have long term fans grinning from ear to ear as Hamill spits out dense wordplays over lurching, shuddering riffs or hymnnal atmospherics.

The band's sonic fingerprint remains as distinctive as ever. Jackson remains one of the few saxophonists ever to have done anything worthwhile in a rock context, while Banton's skills mark him out as possibly the only keyboard player in the prog world to have the rare combination of taste and sensitivity as well as technique. Evans is both primal and octopoidal, while Hamill is still one of the most distinctive and intelligent voices in British rock music, period.

Disc 2's improvisations are no less involving. Though VDGG aren't quite the match of, say, Crimson in that department, there's an audible openness and trust between these four fifty-somethings that's a rare thing these days. They're still willing to push the envelope a little, and bless them for that. More please.

Peter Marsh - 20 April 2005
BBC.co.uk
 

 L y r i c s

Every Bloody Emperor

By this we are all sustained: a belief in human nature
and in justice and parity...all we have is the faith to carry on.
        
Imperceptible the change as our votes become mere gestures
and our lords and masters determine to cast us
in the roles of serfs and slaves
in the new empire's name.
        
Yes and every bloody emperor claims that freedom is his cause
as he buffs up on his common touch as a get-out clause.
        
Unto nations nations speak in the language of the gutter;
trading primetime insults the imperial impulse
extends across the screen.
Truth's been beaten to its knees; the lies embed ad infinitum
till their repetition becomes a dictum
we're traitors to disbelieve.
With what impotence we grieve for the democratic process
as our glorious leaders conspire to feed us
the last dregs of imperious disdain
in the new empire's name.
        
Yes and every bloody emperor's got his hands up history's skirt
as he poses for posterity over the fresh-dug dirt.
Yes and every bloody emperor with his sickly rictus grin
talks his way out of nearly anything but the lie within
because every bloody emperor thinks his right to rule divine
so he'll go spinning and spinning and spinning into his own decline.
        
Imperceptible the change as one by one our voices falter
and the double standards of propaganda
still all our righteous rage.
        
By this we are all sustained: our belief in human nature.
But our faith diminishes - close to the finish,
we're only serfs and slaves
as the empire decays.


Boleas Panic

Instrumental


Nutter Alert

It might come in a letter,
darkness falls in a telephone call;
I await the unexpected
with one ear to the party wall.
Is it the pricking of the conscience,
is it the itching of hair shirt,
is it the dictionary definition
of a precipice to skirt?
    It's the nutter alert.
        
Though this face is familiar
something in it has bred contempt;
I never asked for your opinion
or your back-handed compliments.
Oh, but here comes that special nonsense
all the words out in a spurt,
the unhinging of the trolley
as the mouth begins to blurt...
    it's the nutter alert
        
I can see we're in trouble
from that glint in the eye you've got;
there's no sense to the story,
comprehensively lost, the plot.
And how contorted is that logic
you so forcefully exert:
you're a car crash in the making,
head-on, that's a racing cert.
    It's the nutter alert,
    this is the nutter alert.


Abandon Ship!

Oh, the heptagenarians got behind the decks
while the skeleton crew went through the motions.
It was only the medication that was keeping them erect.
Yeh, the devil got the best tunes
so god knows what comes next.
        
And it's difficult to think of anything less magic
than the aged in pursuit of the hip.
At the lifeboat station there's a mounting panic...
they're going overboard for this one -
    abandon ship!
        
Oh, the humanitarians took themselves below
while they tried to debate the latest motion;
meanwhile only the medication served to keep them on the go.
So it's devil take the hindmost:
we sail on the sloop John Doe.
        
And it's difficult to think of anything that's factual
now we find ourselves in Alzheimer's grip;
so at disembarkation it's no names, no pack-drill,
we're all anonymous on this one -
    abandon ship!


In Babelsberg

The city's spread beneath my feet,
but not the one that I was after
while I've been pounding out this beat
the length of the Kudamm.
Street legends on the tourist map,
a fading script in Gothic,
out in the studio they're
rehearsing in drag for a lark.
Come on, let's get lost in the dark.
        
Tale another step, another move, another pace,
what isn't written in the manuscript is a note to play with grace
and if I exit from this story in a way I might retrace
it will have fallen through the cracks when I come back
in any case
another time's another place.
        
The city's spread beneath my feet
from the top of the Mercedes tower
and I can see the darkness closing in
hour by hour.
        
But I can't take another step, no filling in, no cut and paste,
a bankrupt process for the memory, this terrain is laid to waste.
        
No, nothing's written in the history books
that doesn't leave a nasty taste;
so should I start to tell the story
will you put me in my place?
'Cause it'll all be crash and burn
when I return...in any case
another time's another place.
        
Just when did this get broken?
I don't know where to begin -
I got a Ubahn ticket and a Flohmarkt token....
I'm in trouble in the rubble of Berlin
                 
The light is getting dimmer,
the walls of history close in.
In Babelsberg they're hunting
for a different Stimmung
that predates the war.
        
That was before,
that was before,
that was a different Berlin,
that was another Berlin,
that was before in Berlin.


On the Beach

If we had all the time in the world
we might talk about how it used to be.
We could have thrown in our cards
when the going got hard
but evidently we went on interminably.
        
Right now I want to walk towards the sea,
hoping you're still in step with me.
All joking apart let's play it from the heart
because at last even the Silver Surfer agrees:
the wave you brave
rides on a deeper complexity.
        
Ah, come on: surf's up!
        
Even the Silver Surfer agrees.
 

 M P 3   S a m p l e s


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