STILL LIFE

This the second Record of the second trilogy finds VDGG on top of their game. This is a more varied set than Godbluff , the material is also much more complex. Pilgrims (7:07) is a rousing anthem that starts this record off in a rocking and upbeat mood. Maybe this is not the greatest song here but it is a cracking way to start the show.Still Life (7:20) is a different beast in every respect, a sci-fi themes about an unageing but sterile future. This features a very strong melody and highlights Peters unique voice. When the band thumps it it become a heavy rocker. Still life is prehaps not to everyone's taste but it is hard to think of a better example of the darker more introspective aspects of VDGG's work. La Rossa is a more typical VDGG dark rocker, with an interesting lyric. This is quite an upbeat song dealing with passion and control, a great track. My Room (Waiting for Wonderland) (8:09) Kicks off side two. Slower and achingly beautiful this is by far my favorite cut on this record. Jaxon's sax playing is absolutely perfect on this track.Childlike Faith in Childhood's End (12:20) ends the record with a hopeful and very upbeat message about life the universe and everything. This is the most complex tune that VDGG did during their 2nd incarnation and it is a joy to listen to, it may require a couple of run troughs before this music is familiar enough to enjoy. All in all Still life is an excellent record not quite so in the moment or a fresh sounding as Godbluff but the more complex material is worth exploring. The cover art is also very good. It is hard to fault this record which has aged very well, still sounding progressive but retaining its rock roots. As an example of prog rock this must be in any serious collection and earns all five stars without difficulty. As it is this record was the peak moment in the second reincarnation, although the material on World record was pretty good it did not work as well as this or Godbluff. The bonus cut is the excellent Gog, a real brain smasher from the in camera set. However the sound quality is not terrible good. In my opinion this track would have fitted better on the box set rather than hear where the poor sound quality rather damages this near perfect set. Still its nice to own and its a great shame no other better recorded examples of Gog are available.