THE AEROSOL GREY MACHINE

With few exceptions, debut albums are littered with averageness. It appears here that VDGG is already well-aware of where they stand and have a good grasp of their direction. After being well aquainted with other band efforts in both of their eras, I found this to be quite a suprise, expecting it to be a lesser effort after seeing how lowly it is ranked here.

Keep in mind that this is no Godbluff or Pawn Hearts. Much of the brilliance, or perhaps oddness, that is the hallmark of VDGG's sound is missing here. Hammill's lyrics are not nearly as depressing or disturbing, for one. And his voice is perhaps the most "listenable" of his career (as in no wild shrieks). We have obvious psyche/hippy type influences here as well, which can be good or bad depending on your taste, although it isn't in overload.

Of note here is the production, which is just awful. It's two shades short of being a black metal album in terms of production quality. The instruments seem dull, and the record overall feels lacking in vibrance in parts where the sound should ring through. However, the songwriting and its potenial is all there. I would not start here for VDGG, but would recommend it as the 2nd album to look for should you not care for one of the other releases.

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