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Van der Graaf Generator - The Aerosol Grey Machine

Artist:	Van der Graaf Generator
Title:	The Aerosol Grey Machine
Label:	Fie FIE9116
Length(s):	54 minutes
Year(s) of release:	1969/1997
Month of review:	05/1997

Line up

Hugh Banton - piano, organ, percussion
Keith Ellis - bass
Guy Evans - drums, percussion
Peter Hammill - vocals, guitar
Jeff Peach - flute

Tracks

1)	Afterwards	4.58
2)	Orthenthian St.	6.19
3)	Running Back	6.36
4)	Into A Game	6.57
5)	Ferret & Featherbird	4.34
6)	Aerosol Grey Machine	0.46
7)	Black Smoke Yen	1.27
8)	Aquarian	8.21
9)	Giant Squid	3.19
10)	Octopus	7.57
11)	Necromancer	3.30

Summary

The first album of Van der Graaf Generator was released in the US in 1969. In Europe it was only released very late in 1974. This European pressing did contain the track Necromancer, while Giant Squid was not present on this pressing. New to this release is an old version of Ferret and Featherbird also to be found on In Camera. Also note that on the vinyl versions Orthenthian St. is a two part track.

The music

After all this talk on releases and whatever happened let's now talk of the music on this what was originally supposed to be the first PH solo album. Compared to the other VDGG albums, even compared with the follow up The Least We Can Do...., is that it sounds a lot more sixties than whatever else was done by the band.

Now, I'm rather a fan of the band and this album should be seen as a historic document, a way of seeing how things led up to the later more chaotic and confronting VDGG. Although I like it less than most VDGG albums, this is not because I think the band is watered down or tired (something that I did find sometimes on the very late VDGG/VDG albums), but the style is still so much influenced by the sixties, that it sometimes seems a different band, although already a good one. Most of the tracks can stand the test of time and for instance Into A Game is quite a heavy track with very busy drumming and the second part sounding rather improvised. The titletrack is a very odd track and cannot be considered seriously and also the following psychedelic tracks Black Smoke Yen and Aquarian can not really capture my attention.

Necromancer is a bit of a doubter because the chorus is a bit well naive, but at leats part of this track it has also some very good moments.

On the other hand there's at least one track Octopus that already advented was what to follow later: desperate, frightening, frightened and dissonant, it holds what VDGG later stood for.

Conclusion

With an extensive booklet on the story of the band and this album this is a necessary release to all those VDGG and PH fans out there. Although by far not the strongest album of the band this is still a nice album, that is more in the vein of PH solo and also still very much with the roots in the sixties, than anything they did later. The music isn't too loud or claustrophobic and confronting as that later work, but the bite in the vocals of Hammill is already present when they render his heartfelt songs. Nostalgia rides again.

Next time they might try to find that early VDGG single Firebrand/People You Were Going To and include it in some package. They missed that opportunity here.