Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Van Der Graaf Generator
Label: Esoteric Antenna
Release: 2015
Runtime: 142:12
Rating: 4.5/5
»Merlin Atmos« is the latest live album from English prog-rock champions Van Der Graaf Generator (VDGG for short), recorded on their 2013 tour. Anyone who caught that tour probably still remembers that VDGG were rocking one of the best setlists of their long and incredibly prolific career, if not the best. For the first time since 1972, when a rare »miracle« happened during a performance for Belgian television, the band played the super-epic »A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers« in its entirety on tour, and it’s the main attraction of the whole of »Merlin Atmos«. Besides that epic about a lonely lighthouse keeper, there are two more masterpieces from the solo career of VDGG’s unofficial chieftain, singer/guitarist/poet Peter Hammill: the opening »Flight«, which tells the story of a tragic plane crash in a stunningly dramatic way, and the hellish »Gog«, where the vocal thunderer is once again torn apart by rage as he screeches out individual verses and chases away biblical demons.
The newer chapters of VDGG’s career are represented very successfully by standards from »Trisector« (2008) and »A Grounding in Numbers« (2011), such as »Lifetime«, »All That Before« and »Bunsho«. The tour on which »Merlin Atmos« was recorded was special for another reason too: in 2012, right before the shows, VDGG released the album »ALT«, but because of its purely instrumental, improvisational nature they didn’t play anything from it, so alongside the seventies classics the emphasis fell more heavily on material from »Trisector« and »A Grounding in Numbers«.
True fans will of course want the special double version of the album, where the bonus disc is called »Bonus Atmos« and contains seven additional tracks. In terms of intensity, five epics undoubtedly stand out among them: the visionary masterpiece »Over the Hill«, the post-apocalyptic manifesto »Scorched Earth«, the poetic super-epic »Meurglys III, The Song Writer’s Guild«, which they’ve trimmed down a bit this time, the immortal »Man-Erg« and the fatalistic revelation »Childlike Faith in Childhood’s End«. The latter is practically the perfect closer for this live document and a successful recreation of the concert experience on that tour.
A phenomenal setlist and an incredible zest with which the titans of progressive rock play some of the best chapters from their own and Hammill’s solo careers are the key reasons why »Merlin Atmos« is a must for every loyal VDGG devotee. It’s also the third officially released live album from the current VDGG lineup, which has operated as a trio since 2006, and a superb document of what three people can unleash on a stage. The only minor minus of this otherwise excellent live record is that, in certain sections of the older standards, you still miss the wind contributions of David Jackson, the charismatic saxophonist/flautist and former member of the classic VDGG lineup, who can’t be fully replaced even by some of Banton’s very clever organ tricks and the odd Hammill guitar effect. Still, this unbending trio of prog-rock pioneers deserves all the honor and glory for still being in such remarkable shape at their age and for being able to play even the most demanding works from their extremely rich musical treasure trove without breaking a sweat.
Line-up
Peter Hammill – vocals, guitar, piano
Hugh Banton – organ, bass pedals
Guy Evans – drums
Production
Van Der Graaf Generator
Track list
CD1:
1. Flight (21:30)
2. Lifetime (5:11)
3. All That Before (7:46)
4. Bunsho (5:48)
5. A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers (24:05)
6. Gog (6:39)
CD2:
1. Interference Patterns (4:28)
2. Over the Hill (12:36)
3. Your Time Starts Now (4:14)
4. Scorched Earth (10:14)
5. Meurglys III, The Song Writer’s Guild (15:24)
6. Man-Erg (11:30)
7. Childlike Faith in Childhood’s End (12:37)
