Van der Graaf Generator Reunion

After the "classic" line-up got together and played "Still Life" at the end of Peter Hammill's solo gig at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in February 2003, the guys started thinking about playing and recording together again. In September, after a summer of email exchanges, they held a band meeting at west London's Novotel Hotel and planned a get-together for February 2004 at Pyworthy in North Devon.

Peter Hammill's heart attack threatened to scupper these plans but having made a speedy recovery they went ahead. This wasn't an exercise in nostalgia and no old Van der Graaf material was played all week but instead a serious amount of jamming went on and work done on several new numbers.

During the summer of 2004, Hammill, with input from the other three, worked to put together a double CD of new material for release in April 2005. Apart from the Royal Festival Hall concert of 6th May the band plan further gigs in Italy in June, and during the summer in the UK and Europe.

Described in the press release of November 29th as a "reunion" rather than a reformation, VdGG will perform songs "ancient and modern", and further recording is expected in the autumn of 2005.

Peter Hammill in the press release: "I was getting constant offers regarding a reunion, including one from the South Bank. Until then I had never taken them seriously; but now it seemed as though there might be some interest. We talked and we realised that we met more often at the funerals of former members of our road crew. So if it was to be undertaken, it should be while all four of us were still alive!"

Further information about the new album: Present.

The Manchester Evening News, 15th February: "Van der Graaf convened in an old rectory in Devon 12 months ago, recording a double album, titled Present, to be released in April."