The British group Van Der Graaf Generator, around singer, keyboardist and guitarist Peter Hammill, has always occupied its own place in (progressive) rock since its foundation in 1967. At odds with symphonic contemporaries such as Yes and Genesis, their music often sounded dark and claustrophobic, led by Hammill's shrill and broken singing voice and dark philosophical lyrics. Music that emanates a
… dark and mesmerizing beauty. A Grounding In Numbers is already the third album since the re-establishment of this band that has been reduced to a trio. If Vital had not already been the title of a live album from 1978, this eleventh studio album would not have been out of place. Van Der Graaf Generator sounds more vital than ever in a collection of strikingly short songs full of adventurous, charged and pointed art rock. The lead role is again for Hammill whose voice has matured and is more calm than before. The fact that the group still has so much eloquence after forty-four years is an achievement in itself. (MR)more
