A recipe for Van Der Graaf Generator's "Pawn Hearts": Prog Review #26
Van Der Graaf Generator - Pawn Hearts
This cover is a fitting visual representation of the beautiful confusion of the finished product.
Van Der Graaf Generator's Pawn Hearts is a peculiar dish, at once overly familiar and an acquired taste. Full of familiar and tired prog ingredients thrown together in a stew, Pawn Hearts retains a distinct if somewhat confused character.
But if you've grown tired of the same old Close to the Edges and Courts of the Crimson King, Pawn Hearts can be a nice way to spice up your menu. Beware: this is a difficult recipe, and poor execution can result in a bland, overcooked mess.
To make Pawn Hearts, you'll need the following ingredients:
Twinkly keyboards
Half an ELP of baroque organ
2 King Crimsons of squawking sax bursts and aimless improvisation
1 and 1/4 Gabriels of vocal dramatics
A few dashes of beautiful melody
Virtuosity to taste
Begin by laying down a thick crust of keyboards, organ, and drums. Next, spread a mostly even layer of one King Crimson sax. Fold in the vocals, making sure to leave large gaps for instrumentals and atmospheric effects in the transitions. Sprinkle the second sax with a heavy hand in isolated pockets. Flavour with melody and improvisation, making sure to balance unevenly in favour of the latter.
Yes, divide into one side-length portion and two half-sides. Flip once.
Arrange components of the dish so that each portion's sweet and mild elements sit jarringly between the sharper and more baffling ones.
We have now dared to sear the sky - “Lemmings”
The Dish
Done right, the "Lemmings" begin bitter, bland, and chaotic, but serve as a fine appetizer for the "Man-Erg," a sweet, robust dish with a much more appealing harmony of flavours and texture. Toward the centre of the second portion, sudden pops of sour taste emerge. These should pass quickly. Deeper flavour will soon emerge. Savour as the three distinct "Man-Erg" flavours merge into a lovely finish. Share leisurely with "A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers," a complicated and brooding bunch. Renowned storytellers, it's their cadence most of all that makes them so attractive. The passion, intensity, and conviction in their tone more than compensates for the nonsense they spout. Beware as these melancholic mariners can grow increasingly moody and incoherent. Never quite unmanageable, they always find ways to sober up and conclude their tales with resonant poignancy.
Serve in lilting rhythms with a small side of crunchy guitar.
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King
Rush - Moving Pictures
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
Yes – Close to the Edge
Genesis - Selling England by the Pound
Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick
Can - Future Days
Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
Yes - Fragile
Rush - Hemispheres
ELP - Brain Salad Surgery
Pink Floyd - Animals
Genesis - Foxtrot
King Crimson - Red
Gentle Giant - Octopus
Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells
Frank Zappa - One Size Fits All
Premiata Forneria Marconi - Per Un Amico
King Crimson - Larks’ Tongue in Aspic
Camel - Mirage
Rush - 2112
Tangerine Dream - Phaedra
Magma - Mëkanïk Dëstruktïẁ Kömmandöh
The Mars Volta - Deloused in the Comatorium
Van Der Graaf Generator - Pawn Hearts
Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
Genesis - Foxtrot
Camel - Mirage
Yes – Close to the Edge
King Crimson - Red
Gentle Giant - Octopus
Genesis - Selling England by the Pound
Rush - 2112
Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick
ELP - Brain Salad Surgery
Rush - Moving Pictures
King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King
The Mars Volta - Deloused in the Comatorium
Premiata Forneria Marconi - Per Un Amico
King Crimson - Larks’ Tongue in Aspic
Pink Floyd - Animals
Frank Zappa - One Size Fits All
Yes - Fragile
Rush - Hemispheres
Tangerine Dream - Phaedra
Magma - Mëkanïk Dëstruktïẁ Kömmandöh
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
Can - Future Days
Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells
Van Der Graaf Generator - Pawn Hearts
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here