Customer Reviews

Trisector

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As a long time fan of VDGG [early 70's],I was overjoyed when the band decided to reform for the Present album a few years ago, and I immediately purchased Real Time the moment that it became available. Both of those albums, in my opinion, were incredible, particularly Present, which showcased the bands experimental side, and featured the usual incredible lyrics and vocals of Peter Hammill, and the manic saxophone of David Jackson. I became a bit concerned when finding the new album, Trisector, at my local brick and mortar, when I realized that Mister Jackson was no longer performing with the band, which I was aware of by reading interviews and such after the last tour. Would I miss the saxophone too much? Would the band be the same band that I fell in love with so many years ago? Well, the answers are emphatically Yes and Yes! I absolutely miss the squonk and squeal of Jackson's saxophones and feel that their absence has taken a bit of the bite out of the songs. With that being said, the music on this album is so great, that it transcends even that feeling of loss. The band is firing on all cylinders on Trisector, even occuring to me that the band sounds rejuvenated. If you had told an unknowing me that the band members are all sixty-somethings, I never would have believed you. Hammill, Banton and Evans mesh as well as they ever have, and the power behind their musicianship is evident from the first note. The only reason for the four stars instead of the five is because I can only imagine how much more wonderful[yes, it's possible...barely] this album would have been with David Jackson on board. Kudos to the old timers, they've pulled it off again.

Okay, I admit I was a little apprehensive upon pulling off the shrink-wrap, knowing that Dave Jackson isn't on this release. But after hearing Trisector, I honestly believe this is one of their best. Hammill, Banton and Evans have really stepped things up and have made sure that no holes were left where DJ was. This is a varied collection and will no doubt keep your attention. There are even a couple of songs in 4/4 time.
The theme here seems to be the coming to grips with getting older and facing the inevitable, but by no means in a depressing way. A prime example is The Final Reel, a song about an elderly couple deciding to end it all while they're still able to make the decision for themselves. It's handled in a sweet and poignant way.
Highlights abound; the spirited playing throughout, the amazing Over the Hill, that literally had me catching my breath and gave me goosebumps, All That Before, a song relating to absentmindedness that actually brings humor to the subject and there's so much more.
If you're a VDGG fan that's worried that you might not like this because DJ isn't on it, don't be. I promise that you'll be more than happy to own it. I think anyone who enjoys good intelligent music that's well-played will love this CD. Here's hoping there are more releases to come.

I believed that, without saxman David Jackson, VDGG in this trio format would be below their standards, but i was wrong. Most of the songs are great, really. Banton`s organ sounds incredible, Hammill still sings beautifully and guy evan`s drums are as strong as ever.
The compositions are very well constructed with intricate tempos and deep moods.This cd is full of energy and VDGG fans will be delighted. I consider it way better than Presence. You will not be dissapointed if you are into quality prog.

************ MASTERPIECE STATUS ************
This extraordinarily fine work belongs in EVERY collection of listeners who enjoy progressive rock of the old school variety. Not that it has no contemporary appeal, which the Opeth fan I sat next to at VdGG's Pittsburgh show will proudly attest. I don't need to repeat the high compliments many other reviewers here have already made clearly. But for the VdGG beginner like I was when I first heard _Trisector_, what reference points could be helpful?

The album opens with an instrumental Surf-Psych sort of play thing called "The Hurly Burly" which isn't really progressive but certainly avoids the mainstream too. For me the album proper begins after that.

The other 8 cuts are basically of three different types. There are 4 up-tempo, intense almost fiercesome short-form prog ROCK numbers that initially brought to my mind the shorter rave-up early ELP songs like "Knife Edge", "Bitches Crystal" and "Living Sin."
There are another 3 quite mellow, contemplative balladesque numbers where the Peter Hammill lyrics are almost painfully introspective. They remind me of the BEST of the other-worldly ballads from Peter Gabriel's solo records like "Wallflower", "Mercy Street" and "Biko".
The remaining, long piece, "Over The Hill" is pure Van der Graaf Generator and obviously harkens back, both stylistically and lyrically to their formative years, but does NOT just yearn for them. It presents pretty much everything they've gone through as a process, important for its own sake, not just for their "legacy." In 12 1/2 minutes it manages to include and INTEGRATE vastly differing musical styles into a cohesive and emotionally compelling miniature epic which has me strangling myself to keep from screaming about how brilliant it is, while my wife's trying to sleep! BTW, she likes this record too. Her favorite is the ballad "Lifetime."

My favorite progressive albums are rich in variety, which _Trisector_ has in abundance. The miraculous thing about it is how fabulously these 60-somethings master the best aspects of each experiment.

Good composition, thoughtful lyrics and short tunes make Trisector work. Hammill, Banton and Evans created a decent effort. Don't fret: Although David Jackson is missed, you can listen throughout and think of which guitar or key parts may have been written for Jaxon.
Yes, I am reminded of Van Der Graaf from H to He through World Record.
Trisector is good, but, I miss the "epics"!

2008 and It took me a few weeks to really grow to absolutely love this record. The 3 piece absolutely blow the mind that Mr. Banton, Evans & Hammill have actually done this. The last track (We are ) Not hear is as worth a song as any Hammill has ever written with his fabled band. Mr Jaxon on sax is obviously missed but the new record has all the right contemporary ingenious everything that VDGG has always had! Keep going Lads!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Most bands that just keep going on (or reappear after an extended hiatus) often seem like they're doing little more than cashing in on their used-to-bes. The energy and compositions of this disc (just as committed, if not as epic) suggest something more is at work for this trio. Certainly, more of Hammill's extended reflections on the existential condition of aging continue to make his lyrics some of the most compelling and effective around, but the (sometimes) ferocity of the music itself reads and feels like the same kind of hopeful defiance that marked, say, "Still Life," and "Childlike Faith in Childhood's End." Not to give credit only to Hammill for the disc, still I think it's to his credit (and the rest of his bandmates) to see that that vision, defiance, and steadfast staring into the abyss of the end of one's life couldn't be played or composed by him by himself anymore--he needed Guy Evans' sensibility on drums, and Hugh Banton's prodigious ability on keyboard.

But having said all that, how is the disc?

"The Hurlyburly," at 4'38", opens the album with train noises, tuning up, and the band fiddling around on their instruments before dropping into a straightforward, instrumental rocker. In all, it sounds more like a somewhat lazy, amped up jam session; in particular, the "looseness" that characterizes much of Hammill's solo guitar playing sounds sloppy, hesitant, or simply too repetitious. Not a very promising start, but the piece is short, and when not listened to closely fills up the background well enough.

"Interference Patterns," at 3'52", provides a 1000% contrast, opening with a broken up, linear keyboard line that sounds like a handsome hello backward to Gentle Giant. Bass joins the keyboard pattern, which squirrels back and forth between two different time signatures, as Hammill begins to bend and twist his typically intelligent lyrics to fit the keyboard pattern--itself creating a kind of interference pattern. At this point, it's already clear that this song will get an immediate second playing, but then at 1'42", suddenly the music erupts into a crazy multidirectional keyboard carnival, hectic doubled notes and drums thrumming out. A stand-out track that already makes the disc worth buying.

"The Final Reel," at 5'49", is a gentle, somewhat bleak narrative about a worn out Jack and Jill, who see their time has come and decide to skip the final reel, as it were. This is a slow building song, the moves almost imperceptibly from a kind of loungy-beginning, to a jagged, harmonically knotted up finish. If Hammill had any doubts about calling up his old bandmates to help out with more music, this song should put it to rest--it's very easy to hear the Hammill-solo version here, ably and cunningly fleshed out by Evans' and Banton's considerable musical experience and insight.

"Lifetime," at 4'47", is the only Hammill-only composed song. Again, one can hear the Hammill vs. VDGG contrast easily; Hammill's lyrics float in the middle, noodling a bit on guitar, while lush keyboard accompaniments provide a boundary and a cushion for that, and Evans simply sits on his high-hat, until the more expansive coda that rounds out the song. Pretty, serviceable, the sedate moodiness of this piece makes it sink somewhat into obscurity.

"Drop Dead," at 4'52", gronks out a fuzzy guitar line to chase off any indolence leftover from the last piece, and drops square into another straight-forward jam-session sounding rocker. Certainly, the super-energetic bass line here (apparently by Banton), the way the keyboard solo(s) are layered from foreground to background, and the petering out of the ending is not without interest, but this is another piece that tends to fare best as background music.

"Only in a Whisper," at 6'44", balances bright cymbally drums against lightly "plucked" keyboards with Hammill's slightly reverbed voice gradually howling in the center of things. As with "Lifetime," there's an intriguing kind of disconnect between the vocals and the music; like Bowie's "Station to Station," the intersection of the music and the vocals is pretty tenuous--Hammill croons and wails fluidly, while Banton and Evans put out jangly, snappy music. At least until toward the end, when the vocals reverb even more and the music melts along with it. Perhaps a set up to ...

"All that Before," at 6'29", comes thrashing like some kind of royal caravan right through the proceeding mood, slow rising arpeggios, and power chords setting a powerful and immediate impression. This introduction then drops into a driving, rhythmic keyboard riff that seems vaguely like "Interference Pattern," (in part for the way Hammill wittily mashes his syllables into the limited space of the time signature. The topic is a fairly hilarious take on impending senescence.) But then, 57 seconds into the piece,, the theme is restated with massive guitar backing, and the piece takes on epic overtones. The riff returns again at 1'41," with keyboards to add to the aggressiveness. Then, even sweeter, keyboard and guitar solos start floating over the top of the main riff, sliding howling lyrics, the opening riff into the mix as well ... And the song is only half done. There's absolutely no question here that the band massively overindulges in repeating this riff; they go back to it no less than a million times, and I don't care. Consider that these guys are pushing 60, and it is clear how this song is THE anthem telling death it can just f* off and wait. All the better that it's about impending dementia then ... the end even melts away and apart, with trebly keyboards a la the earliest VDGG, and even Hammill's now ages-old wondering "Who am I". Has a very different ring now, than at 20.

"Over the Hill," at 12'29", is the obvious compositional epic, still exploring the effects of time. Opening with a classic VDGG organ, vocals, drum arrangement, a few skittery disjointed notes taunt of bridges to come before returning to the opening mood again. At 3'21", the edgy keyboard lines return and finally accelerate, only to simply pass away after two minutes with a restatement of the opening music in a much more symphonic vein briefly. A moodier bit in piano, bass, and drums eases along for a bit, giving way to another restatement, that itself is shredded to pieces by a heavy, rabid skysaw of a line. They could have kept that up for longer as well, but it halts and returns to the opening them yet again. (If the description sounds a bit piecemeal, the piece is too; the parts don't seem to hang together implicitly). Things build, becoming grand (and even sounding a bit like Radiohead for a moment) before trailing off--a proper sense of somberness returning.

"(We Are) Not Here," at 4'04", booms out with another jagged, linear keyboard line in a varied time signature, with Hammill's voice rising up and floating over the top with a broodingness that the rest of the album has not had. (It wasn't necessarily missed though.) Ghostly foreshadowings accompany the vocals, then at 2 minutes, whole choruses of smooth, high harmonized voices counterpoint the main vocal, adding to the eeriness of the piece. (This is definitely a vocal extravaganza, as the rest of the album has not been.) At 3 minutes, the choir of voices takes over ... the music breaks apart, and the train sounds return to close out the disc. Another stand-out piece.

In all, a very solid disc, though I find that the stronger pieces make the rockers or more sedate pieces seem tepid by comparison. But even if I had to program out everything but "Interference," "All that Before," "Over the Hill," and "(We Are) Not Here" the disc would be well worth it. Definitely glad I got it.

Always a little offbeat, melodramatic, and "dark" VdGG to most of us that have followed them to be one of the most stimulating bands ever.

So, they are around 60 years old and still producing the best "growling," innovative tunes ever. This latest release, TriSector, is no different. I really was upset that David Jackson was no longer with them but I can't think when I've heard music so full with just three musicians.

In fact, some of the moods that I felt when I first heard Pawn Hearts and H2He have come back. Please, VdGG, tour in the states with King Crimson, Tool, ANYBODY!

Having followed the band since the early 70's, I couldn't be happier about the developments of the past few years. It seems as if Hammill's heart attack was the galvanizing spark that breathed new life into what had become little more than a memory of a once great band.
The reunion concert captured on Real Time(wish I'd been there...)amazed me with it's confident swagger and muscular playing. Rather than sounding like a nostalgic indulgence the songs felt contemporary and exciting, as if they extracted the DNA of the music and made it anew.
All of which leads me to this album with it's stripped down line-up - sans Jaxon which would lead you to expect a somehow diminished sound - and wow, they've done it again, mixing new colors out of the old palette.
The songwriting is strong and varied, the melodies indelible, the band are tight and yet relaxed and I can't stop listening to it! I even love the fact that they stop Lifetime, just as it gets going - an understated nod to the possibility that life can stop at any moment? -where before they might have taken the whole song off in another direction.
Some have criticized the straight ahead rockers -Hurlyburly and Drop Dead, but personally I find it refreshing to hear the band just rockin out and having fun. That's not a word you usually associate with VDGG...
Favorite tracks -Interference Patterns and Over The Hill -both classic VDGG songs, jam packed with goodies.
If you are a long-time fan, buy this and be happy they still have the energy and commitment to keep pushing and growing.
If you've never heard them before, start with Pawn Hearts and make your way up to this, it'll make more sense that way.
Very Good Album!

In 2005, interested parties were rightly floored to learn of the reformation of Van der Graaf Generator over 25 years after disbanding. Upon their first new release, Present, they sounded like they picked up right were they left off. It was all very encouraging, but for me, something was lacking. Peter Hammill was as histrionic in his vocal delivery as ever. The band was in top form musically, but something was missing. I couldn't put my finger on it, but something was leaving me less excited as I felt I should have been. I caulked it up to the obvious fact that it was 25 years later and these guys are in their sixties. I should expect things to be a bit more settled.

Next came the live album Real Time documenting a triumphant return concert at London's Royal Festival Hall. Again, the band performed well, a fine show, but still that emptiness in the pit of my stomach. A solid four stars for each album.

So then came the third release, Trisector. Things promised to be even more problematic. First off, saxophonist David Jackson, a distinctive voice in VdGG since very near it's inception in 1968, left the band. To their credit, all parties kept this private matter private, but one had to suspect that the burden of being a full time professional performing and recording musician turned out, perhaps understandably, to be more than David had anticipated. Not to worry, he continues to, in my opinion, do even more worthwhile work with adults and children with learning and physical disabilities via his Tonewall project. I encourage you to check out the website: [...]

I purchased this release, VdGG's first as a trio, with something of a weary sigh. To be honest, my expectations had by that point been toned down. The first track was a frankly pedestrian instrumental which didn't bode well for what was to follow, but again, I was sort of prepared for that. Then comes the second track, Interference Patters, and WOW!!! Suddenly I could define and explain what had, for me, been missing. The thing about progressive rock bands like King Crimson and VdGG was that while they could be as artsy or fantasy-driven as the rest of the genre, they also possessed the ability follow the muse where it led and to go off on more aggressive, challenging tangents where you felt like a line had been crossed, a barrier broken. Since most all potential readers will be well familiar with the catalog, I'd refer you to two sections from VdGG's best loved album by general consensus, Pawn Hearts. The second theme in the song Man-Erg as well as the next to last section of the side-long A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers features the kind of music and performances I'm trying to relay. Things suddenly go manic, out of bounds and more than a little out of control. This type of thing was once described as `It's not MAD madness, but it's not always calm clarity.'

THAT'S what was missing, that kind of unpredictability that used to make the hairs on the back of your neck bristle. The idea of going perhaps too far, where few, if any had tried before. Once that barrier is broken, the band doesn't have to maintain that intensity in each and every song, though they do it more than once on Trisector in my opinion. But once they've done it, just knowing they can and will as needed gives the entire album a wider depth and more overall contrast. It also adds more than a little excitement.

Hammill's writing and performances are as compelling and emotional as ever. So too the bands arrangements continue to be pretty sophisticated. In several places it takes a moment to figure out a time signature or a chord progression, all of which add to the fun and challenge of getting a grip on this music. Can this style of music be seen as pretentious, even pompous, as many see progressive rock these days? Well....yes, but I guess that's part of its appeal to those of us who like that sort of thing. Hey, when the music's boogie, house, blues, hip hop, party music or good time rock-n-roll, it fills a need. It's fun and to really enjoy it you have to jump in with both feet and go with the flow. If it's classical, modern jazz, avant garde or prog rock, etc, it fills a need. It's fun and to really enjoy it you have to jump in with both feet and go with the flow.

So now, with this album, I feel I can finally join others in celebrating the return of VdGG in full bloom - as fantastic as they were in the day. This one's been going up my Van der chart over the passing months to become at this point, a serious contender for the top 2 or 3 VdGG/Hammill releases. Given the quantity and quality of their output, that's saying a lot. Here's hoping Peter Hammill will continue dealing with subject matter from an older, adult perspective as he did so well in younger days. In that regard, he and the band certainly appear to have all they need to hit a home run.