Trisector

Van der Graaf Generator never seem to fail. The have compressed the tracks down to more consumable lengths while maintaining their very distinctive sound and song structures. There is not a song here that is out of place in the Van der Graaf catalogue. If you ever liked Van der Graaf you will not be dissapointed in this album.

The new 3 piece as showcased on last years tour is a powerful beast. Don't get me wrong, Jaxon was a huge piece of the sonic jigsaw, but as 3 the remainder do more than justice to the proud tradition, and push it forward into the 2010s. Hammill is compositionally astute, and Banton is sublime. As for Evans....what a drummer. He ranks amongst the greats of British drummers, with a power to match Bonham and a deftness to match...to match..well, to match anyone at all. Gentlemen, I loved this album on the first listening. I know it will grow as well. The writing is concise, melodic, frightening, subtle, brash, expansive, challenging... It is, ladies and gentlemen....Van d3r Graaf Generator! Classic!

Now that VdGG are functioning as a three-piece - with the absence of David Jackson on saxaphone - the new VdGG album is noticably different from previous releases. The main difference is the shorter song lengths. On Trisector there are nine songs of which only one is over 10-minutes long, but what a song, 'Over the Hill' is just one of the stand out tracks on this release. The band have really got to grips with being a three-piece after their 2007 tour which first introduced us to the songs, 'Lifetime' and 'All That Before'.
As stated in other reviews this album does have some simpler musical passages than you'd expect to find on a VdGG album but it also contains some of their most complex playing to date. Hugh Banton's organ work is phenomenal throughout and Guy Evans' drumming is in a class of its own, with Peter Hammill's guitar and soaring vocals rounding off the sound.
This new VdGG release is the start of a new phase for the band and if you get the chance to see them on their upcoming tour you won't be disappointed. They are, quite simply, the best British band you've never heard of.