Van Der Graaf Generator

Peter Hammill, a one-of-a-kind musical visionary and a member of British prog rock icons Van Der Graaf Generator, is announcing a new studio album, due out September 25 on Esoteric Antenna Records. The album, titled "Tears In Time", will…

Label: Cherry Red RecordsRelease date: March 10, 2023Live album length (2CD): 108.30 minGenre: Progressive RockRating: 9/10 Of all the prog-rock pioneers of the old British school, the singular heralds of post-apocalyptic visions…

Soon after forming in the second half of the sixties, Van Der Graaf Generator became a band that pushed musical boundaries with its progressive vision and unbridled pioneering swagger, throwing the doors wide open for the progressive rock…

"This year marks 50 years since the album that "saved" Van Der Graaf Generator's career and clearly set the compass needle for the band's further evolution. An album that arrived ahead of its time and, with its avant-garde weirdo swagger,…

"Live At Rockpalast" is a stunning live recording that catches the maestro Hammill and his three bandmates in unbelievable live form, right in the short-lived window just after the reunion.

»Time Vaults« is a collection of unfinished rarities and obscurities, meant first and foremost for the most devoted VDGG fans, who won't be bothered by the poor sound quality of the demos or the odd half-baked songwriting idea.

Everything ends eventually. If »Do Not Disturb« really is the last VDGG album, as Hammill hinted, it can be called a pretty much ideal finale to the magnificent career of these prog rock titans, who have been written off more than once.

»Maida Vale« is quite the rarity these days, having come out on the obscure label Band of Joy Records, but a true fan of the band will still find their way to this rare yet utterly fascinating document with a little effort.

»After The Flood« is a brilliant collection of 'dusty' BBC archives, some of which are seeing the light of day for the very first time, so as a whole it offers a feast of listening pleasures for every single Van Der Graaf Generator devotee.

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…

The superb live document »Vital« offered a great glimpse of a VDGG lineup bursting at the seams with untamed energy and fighting spirit, which makes it all the harder to believe it was the prog legends' last show before their (temporary)…

Sure, in 1977 Van Der Graaf were running without two of their four key 'generators', but they were still conducting enough energy to make another excellent record in "The Quiet Zone/The Pleasure Dome", one that set itself apart from their…

Even though »World Record« often gets looked down on a bit next to its predecessor »Still Life«, it was hardly a weaker effort. With it, the classic Van Der Graaf Generator lineup delivered its last studio masterpiece for a long, long time.

At a time when progressive rock had hit the peak of its popularity, Van Der Graaf Generator were still at the height of their creative powers. "Still Life" was one of the creative high points of the classic VDGG lineup.

On »Present«, Van Der Graaf Generator rose from the ashes like a phoenix. They seized their last chance to return to the scene after almost three decades, and against all expectations made an album that stands shoulder to…

Strip away the influences of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century classical music and the early twentieth, and the roots of progressive rock reach back to the first half of the sixties, to what is now the United Kingdom.

"One of the biggest surprises was a superb rendition of Hammill's solo masterpiece »Flight«, which comes from the album »A Black Box«. Along with »Meurglys III« and »A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers«, it was one of the epic suites of the…

Despite a slew of technical complications, Van Der Graaf Generator still came out of their Udine show as winners.

The "ALT" project is the ultimate improvisational switch-off, made first and foremost for the longtime fans of this legendary progressive rock trio. They've always had a soft spot for this kind of totally unpredictable sonic experiment from…

"Mr. Hammill, one of the greatest and most unique vocal authorities of the second half of the 20th century, showed up solo this time in the middle of Trieste's Teatro Miela."

Master Hamilll completely blew us away once again, proving that he may be the only singer on the entire planet who can create such an intense atmosphere with nothing but the power of his voice that you don't miss a backing band even a…

"Seeing these unyielding prog rock legends live in Italy is always an extraordinary, unforgettable and deeply emotional experience, because these thunderous heralds of the post-apocalypse have always enjoyed the greatest respect among…

Peter Hammill, the legendary singer and songwriter, occasionally also a guitarist, pianist, poet, writer and above all a philosopher, who earned his worldwide fame as the soul of prog rock giants Van Der Graaf Generator, spoke to Rocklin

Author: Peter PodbrežnikPhotos: Aleš Podbrežnik Venue: Teatro Comunale / Vicenza / ItalyConcert date: 08.04.2011Attendance: 2000Ticket price: €40.00 (advance) / €48.00 (day of show) The British titans of prog rock Van Der Graaaf…

Even after more than four decades, Van Der Graaf Generator are still the guarantee of prog rock innovation to the nth power, and the trio keeps building on the sonic direction it has been charting over the past three years.

"VDGG made us happy with a fantastic show, pretty much as expected, and the real feat was how an elated individual in a sea of seats managed to stay seated at all. "

A rebirth of prog rock greats couldn't have gone any better than "Godbluff", another masterpiece that belongs among the very best achievements in the history of modern experimental music.

Author: Peter Podbrežnik Location: Piazza Unita d'Italia / Trieste / ItalyConcert date: 02.08.2009Attendance: 1Ticket price: €0.00 (free admission) It doesn't happen all that often that a band of world stature, one that's also a bona…

"Pawn Hearts" is a legendary album in every sense, still the yardstick of perfection in highly experimental music and one of those records everyone should hear at least once in their life.

Author: Peter Podbrežnik Location: Gouveia / PortugalConcert date: 13.04.2008Attendance: 5000Ticket price: 400 Gouveia is a small town somewhere between Lisbon and Porto that has been hosting an art rock festival since 2003. The event has…

The comeback of Van Der Graaf Generator, legends of innovation and pioneers of the darker side of progressive rock, kicked off a few years ago with a new tour, their first in over 25 years, and the release of the excellent album "Prese

Label: Charisma RecordsRelease date: 12/14/1970Production: John AnthonyAlbum length: 47:15 minGenre: Progressive RockRating: 9.5/10 With their third album, “H To He, Who Am The Only One,” Van Der Graaf Generator wrote themselves…

With their third album, "H To He, Who Am The Only One", Van Der Graaf Generator finally and for all eternity etched their names among the greatest innovators in the history of British progressive rock and created one of the b

Van Der Graaf Generator are a band that still stirs up the spirits today with their visionary albums, packed with complex progressive rock anthems that offer a lyrical glimpse into the complexities of the human soul and contain numerous

""The Least We Can Do Is Wave To Each Other" is one of those albums that was, in a way, at least ten years ahead of its time. Over the following year Hammill would push the band to the very limits of what it could do, and with the next two…

»Real Time« is the long-awaited double live recording of a historic show, marking the magnificent return of one of the best and most revered prog rock bands of all time, Van Der Graaf Generator. Zbra

"The Aerosol Grey Machine" is by no means a revolutionary debut, and it's even the least conspicuous record in their history, but it's more mature than many a first album from their peers, which says a lot about the remarkable consistency…

Van Der Graaf Generator's first album was originally conceived as a solo project by the already widely recognizable singer (and occasional guitarist) Peter Hammill, who wanted to realize his musical and philosophical visions, which were far