Share the post "Album review : VAN DER GRAAF – Vital (2 CD Remaster)"
Cherry Red [Release date : 29.03.24]
The year after England won the world cup, English musician Chris Judge Smith took a “summer of love” trip to San Francisco’s Haight Ashbury, a pivotal point on the Flower Power map.
It is not explained why he returned with the words, Van Der Graaf Generator on his lips. But that’s what he called the band he formed in 1967, with singer songwriter, Peter Hammill and keyboard player, Nick Peame.
The abrasive progressive rock of VDGG was the very antithesis of the soft rock sounds emanating from the USA’s west coast, so how that visit influenced his band name decision remains a puzzle. We can only guess that he spent his time listening to Captain Beefheart.
A little over ten years later, after releasing 8 studio albums, the band recorded their first live album, Vital (1978) at the Marquee Club in London.
It turned out to be the band’s Swan Song. It disbanded later that year.
The recording has now been remastered from the original tapes, and will be released this month as a 2 CD package.
Of the sixties progressive bands who came to the fore by pursuing rock, jazz and experimental sounds, Van Der Graaf (as it came to be known) was often mentioned in the same breath as fellow art rockers, King Crimson. But it was Hammill’s dark, existentialist lyrics, and the band’s musical ferocity that marked them out as exceptions to the norm.
Centrepiece is the ‘Plague Of Lighthouse Keepers/The Sleepwalkers medley, a 14 minute truncation of the originals’ combined 34 minute duration. Zappa-esque time changes and conflicting instrumental match ups piece the song together skilfully. Merged like this, it becomes an hypnotic stream of consciousness. Darkly hued and razor edged.
Elsewhere, Hammill’s lyrics artfully illustrate that there’s a difference between life lessons and lectures, and indeed most songs are a (very large) snapshot of his honestly spoken world view,
While songs like ‘Ship of Fools’, ‘Still Life’ and ‘Pioneer Over C’, are full of aggressive, grinding, churning progressive rock, they are fitted out with piercing lyrics with many targets. The collective foolishness that plagues humanity, and the notion that immortality would come at an unaffordable cost, are but two.
Clearly, it’s never less than challenging at times. But for the band’s many fans, who expect a lot, this live gig went down a treat. ***1/2
Review by Brian McGowan
Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK
Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.
In 2023 he signed a recording deal with Sony in Canada and released a new single on 15 September.
Latest session: Sunday 14 April
Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio
David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast on 7 April 2024.
UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). This show was first broadcast 2 April 2024.
How to Listen Live?
Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)
Listen via Windows Media Player. Click or tap here and “open file”
Listen via other media player (eg. VLC) Click or tap here and “open file”
Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.
More information and links at our radio website where you can listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com
Power Plays w/c 15 April 2024
ENMY The Ledge (FiXT)
KAROBELA Get Hard (indie)
KATH & THE KICKS Neptune (indie)
THE BEE TELLERS River Poem (Black Sand Records)
LAUREN FREEBIRD Like A Bomb (indie)
Featured Albums w/c 15 April 2024
09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003-2023
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2023
14:00-16:00 KATARINA PEJAK – Pearls On A String (Ruf Records)
To see our Tweets you need to be logged in to a Twitter account
Popular (last 10 days)
Share the post "Album review : VAN DER GRAAF – Vital (2 CD Remaster)"
PDF - you can delete unwanted sections
