The Quiet Zone / The Pleasure Dome

The two faces of Van Der Graaf Generator's final album before their 27-year split, The Quiet Zone/The Pleasure Dome, were greeted by the U.K. New Musical Express magazine with the headline "Hum-Along-a-Hammill" — a testament to the sheer musicality of the record. At a time when Van Der Graaf's stock was at an all-time commercial high through the patronage of sundry punk rockers (Johnny Rotten was an especially vocal admirer), the group might have been expected to turn all instruments onto fiery stun and lay waste to every ear that chanced to come close. Instead, they turned in a record of majestic melody, following the lead laid down by the preceding LP's "Wondering" and moving as far from the old madness and intensity as they could possibly go. Nine songs on a single LP? They'd not been that generous since their debut — which is also (perhaps not coincidentally) this album's own closest relative. The 2005 remaster retains that spirit. No less than three bonus tracks append the original disc, beginning with the studio version of the live favorite "Door" that previously graced the Box box set, then following through with a demo of the tremulous "The Wave" and, finally, "Ship of Fools," the super-scarce B-side to the France-only "Cat's Eye" single. All easily slip into the framework of the main attraction and, though listeners didn't know it at the time, VDGG's farewell was complete.