''Present'' is the ninth studio album by British

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. In ...

band

Van der Graaf Generator Van der Graaf Generator are an English progressive rock band, formed in 1967 in Manchester by singer-songwriters Peter Hammill and Chris Judge Smith and the first act signed by Charisma Records. They did not experience much commercial success i ...

, released in 2005. It was the band's first studio album since '' The Quiet Zone/The Pleasure Dome'' in 1977, and the first with the 'classic' line-up since ''

World Record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

'' in 1976. The

Charisma Records Charisma Records (also known as The Famous Charisma Label) was a British record label founded in 1969 by former journalist Tony Stratton-Smith. He had previously acted as manager for rock bands such as The Nice, the Bonzo Dog Band and Van der ...

label was re-activated for its release, as well as a re-issue series of Van der Graaf Generator's catalogue and

Peter Hammill Peter Joseph Andrew Hammill (born 5 November 1948) is an English musician and recording artist. He was a founder member of the progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator. Best known as a singer/songwriter, he also plays guitar and piano and ...

's solo releases from 1972-86. For many years the band's lead singer and principal songwriter

had rejected the idea of a VdGG re-union, but in 2004 (following two unannounced re-unions at Hammill concerts), work began on an official re-union album. ''Present'' was the result. It consists of one disc of compositions (five songs plus an instrumental, "Boleas Panic"), and one disc of studio improvisations. The band had always improvised in the studio throughout their history, but never before (except for the bootleg-quality '' Time Vaults''), had any of these improvisations been officially released. In 2005, the band embarked on a successful re-union tour. Only two songs from ''Present'' were played on the tour: "Every Bloody Emperor" and "Nutter Alert".

Track listing

Disc 1

#"Every Bloody Emperor" (Hammill) - 7:03 #"Boleas Panic" (Jackson) - 6:50 #"Nutter Alert" (Hammill) - 6:11 #"Abandon Ship!" (Evans, Hammill) - 5:07 #"In Babelsberg" (Hammill) - 5:30 #"On the Beach" (Jackson, Hammill) - 6:48

Disc 2

All written by Banton, Evans, Jackson, Hammill #"Vulcan Meld" - 7:19 #"Double Bass" - 6:34 #"Slo Moves" - 6:24 #"Architectural Hair" - 8:55 #"Spanner" - 5:03 #"Crux" - 5:50 #"Manuelle" - 7:51 #"'Eavy Mate" - 3:51 #"Homage to Teo" - 4:45 #"The Price of Admission" - 8:49

Personnel

;Van der Graaf Generator *

– vocals, guitar, keyboards * David Jackson – saxophone, flute *

Hugh Banton Hugh Robert Banton (born April 1949) is a British musician and electronic organ builder, most widely known for playing organ and keyboards with the group Van der Graaf Generator. Career Banton was born in April 1949 in Yeovil, Somerset, into a ...

– organ, bass *

Guy Evans Guy Randolph Evans (born 17 June 1947) is an English drummer and a member of the progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator. Career Whilst at the University of Warwick (1965–68), Evans played in the university band which was called The ...

– drums, percussion

Reception

The album was named as one of ''

Classic Rock Classic rock is a US radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the mid 1990s, prima ...

''‘s 10 essential

albums of the decade.''Classic Rock'', February 2010, Issue 141.

References

External links

Van Der Graaf Generator - ''Present'' (2005) album review by Dave Thompson, credits & releases
at

AllMusic.com AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

Van Der Graaf Generator - ''Present'' (2005) album releases & credits
at Discogs.com
Van Der Graaf Generator - ''Present'' (2005) album to be listened
as stream at Spotify.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Present Van der Graaf Generator albums 2005 albums Charisma Records albums