THE AEROSOL GREY MACHINE

Originally planned as a Peter Hammill solo album before Van der Graaf Generator signed to Charisma, The Aerosol Grey Machine was only released as a VdGG album as part of a deal to release Hammill from his contract with Mercury Records. As such, it could be seen to be a companion piece to Fool's Mate - a collection of Hammill compositions that are of good quality in this context but wouldn't have worked on an "official" VdGG album. The lyrics to the likes of Orthenthian St. and Aquarian take an optimistic tone that stands in stark contrast - particularly considering the sailing imagery of Orthenthian St. - to the apocalyptic tone of the first "true" VdGG album, The Least We Can Do Is Wave To Each Other, though musically some of the songs - in particular, album closer Octopus - point the way to future Van der Graaf glory. A fascinating album for anyone interested in Hammill's work, but hardly in the top tier of either his solo albums or VdGG's work.