camaleonti nelle ombre della notte come rimangono io ce lho firmato da pietro mi è costato una botta di paura Peter Hammill - Chameleon In The Shadows of The Night (1973) A1 German Overalls - 0:00 A2 Slender Threads - 7:05 A3 Rock and Rôle - 12:05 A4 In the End - 18:46 B1 Whats It Worth - 26:10 B2 Easy to Slip Away - 30:13 B3 Dropping the Torch - 35:38 B4 (In The) Black Room/The Tower - 39:51 All tracks composed by Peter Hammill Personnel Hugh Banton - keyboards Guy Evans - drums Peter Hammill - guitars, keyboards, vocals David Jackson - saxophone Nic Potter - bass Chameleon in the Shadow of the Night Studio album by Peter Hammill Released May 1973 Recorded February and March 1973[1] Genre Progressive rock, Psychedelic Rock Length 50:20 Label Charisma Producer John Anthony Professional ratings Allmusic 3/5 stars Piero Scaruffi (7/10) Chameleon in the Shadow of the Night was the second solo album by British singer-songwriter Peter Hammill. It followed in the aftermath of the breakup of Hammills band Van der Graaf Generator, although (as with many of Hammills solo albums from this period) the other members of Van der Graaf Generator all perform on the album, blurring the distinction between solo and group work. The album was produced by John Anthony at Rockfield Studios, Wales, for the first time using pre-recorded parts done by Peter Hammill in his home studio in Worth. For final mixing the then much better equipped Trident Studios were used. The album was released in May 1973 on Charisma records. Some of the songs (German Overalls and In the End) relate to Van der Graaf Generators decision to split, following an exhausting, demoralising and poverty-stricken experience of being a touring rock band. German Overalls even name-checks bandmates Hugh Banton and David Jackson. Hammill has continued to perform Easy to Slip Away in concert to the present day. The song relates to him losing touch with student housemates Mike and actress Susan Penhaligon (who were also namechecked in the Van der Graaf Generator song Refugees). The complex and atmospheric (In the) Black Room/The Tower was originally planned for inclusion on Van der Graaf Generators album following Pawn Hearts, an album that because of the bands split never came to be. It features all of Van der Graaf Generators ex-members up to that point, excluding Chris Judge Smith and Keith Ellis. Another recording of it is included on Time Vaults. The song was later performed on stage by Van der Graaf Generator when the band reformed in 1975, and also during their 2005 reunion. Recensione di Lucio Lazzaruolo (movimentiprog) (4 stars) Chameleon è stato un disco atteso, il primo dopo lo scioglimento dei Van der Graaf. All’epoca - e sembrano passati trecento anni, non trenta - la Phonogram (poi Polygram) fece stampare le traduzioni (in un italiano incerto…) dei testi nella busta interna che conteneva il disco. Ricordo che circolavano pure dei maxi poster di Hammill con il logo di Chameleon, la sua foto e una frase tratta da German Overalls: At the fall of curtain let this be my ghost. Molti dei pezzi di questo disco Hammill li aveva già suonati in tour come supporter delle Orme in Italia e qualcuno anche coi VdGG prima dello scioglimento, come si può evincere dall’ascolto dell’antologico The Box. German Overalls ha un incipit illuminante: “Mannheim in un pomeriggio piovoso, senza soldi e amici, solo la tequila può mettere fine al tedio…mi sento un profugo” e una prosecuzione che non potrebbe essere più chiara: “Che ci facciamo qui?...E’ tutto reale o sto diventando una bestia da circo? “ In questo e in alcuni altri brani è espressa in maniera diretta la frustrazione della vita on the road, i disagi dell’essere lontano da casa, lo scarso riconoscimento economico che ha accompagnato i VdGG nei loro primi anni, la stanchezza per la vita on tour: “Ne ho abbastanza di aeroporti, taxi….e di cercare una serratura nelle ore piccole”. Musicalmente Hammill mostra di prediligere una dimensione essenziale, quasi scarnificata, e quindi in chiara contro tendenza rispetto non solo ai complessi arrangiamento del suo gruppo ma anche e soprattutto rispetto alle mode imperanti del progressive dell’epoca. La stessa dimensione caratterizza Slender Threads, canzone nella quale ancora prevalgono i toni intimisti. I temi del doloroso distacco, della disillusione, dell’alienazione, delle frustrazioni della vita del musicista super impegnato emergono con evidenza in Easy to slip away. In questo pezzo sono rievocate le figure di Mike e Susy già presenti nella celeberrima Refugees: i rosei orizzonti di quella canzone sembrano svaniti (l’ovest è dove i colori si trasformano dal grigio in oro, l’ovest è il posto che amo, l’ovest è la casa dei profughi), tutto si ingrigisce nella sorda routine del musicista che recita la parte dell’eremita, preso da viaggi, concerti e che raramente esce di casa. La speranza è che tutto ritorni come una volta, “ma è così facile dimenticarsi l’uno dell’altro. I brani suonati al piano, e non solo in questo disco, si fanno preferire. In Easy to slip c’è pure un tocco di mellotron, che non guasta, su di un arpeggio vagamente beethoveniano. Il brano che personalmente preferisco è però In the end. In questo pezzo Hammill sembra parlare a cuore aperto ai suoi vecchi amici del gruppo, prima in maniera sommessa (Vi ho promesso di non lasciare traccia, ….), la sensazione di aver bisogno di fermarsi e la paura di averlo fatto in ritardo (Have I done it all too late?). I toni diventano sempre più concitati, si invoca un rapporto più vero coi suoi compagni d’avventura (Sarai ancora mio amico alla fine, quando non riuscirò a scrivere ancora una canzone?) e infine c’è il dubbio (contrario) di aver troncato tutto troppo presto. Altre cupe meditazioni le troviamo in Dropping the torch e What ‘is worth, mentre In the black room è un retaggio, molto riuscito nella parte finale, del passato più recente e glorioso. Rewiew by The Christopher Currie (tranglos) Chameleon In The Shadow Of Night was Peter Hammills second solo album, after Fools Mate (1971). Whereas the former release had been criticized (and still is) for the supposedly lightweight nature of the material, Chameleon is seen as marking a quantum leap for Hammill -- moving from short, pop materials to more adventurous conceptual works. I have some difficulties with this argument. Notwithstanding the fact that Hammill had already explored more elaborate themes with Van Der Graaf Generator, the praise often given to Chameleon ignores one of its fundamental problems: whereas Fools Mate generally managed to avoid lyrical bathos (probably by virtue of the time restrictions), Chameleon often sees pH running headlong into the overwrought lyrical traps which would eventually define his career. This album is a more impressive work than FM, when viewed as a conceptual whole -- but the very dominance of the albums conceptual framework is responsible for dragging Hammills lyrics into tedious realms, on some occasions. But perhaps this is an unfair way to start this review. After all, Chameleon is a very solid album, and its deficiences pale when compared to the albums high points -- especially the ways in which Hammill is able to evoke an urgent mood, through a combination of sparse music and edgy vocal lines. Moreover, its the album which clearly defined the path for Hammills subsequent solo career -- a combination of personal, singer- songwriter/folky works, and a slightly modified form of the dirgelike material which VdGG was famous for (usually involving the same musicians, of course). The supporting cast plays its role well -- and Guy Evans, in particular, is very impressive throughout the work (Ive long thought of him as one of the more underrated drummers in the prog medium -- this album provides further proof of his merits). Besides which, some of the tracks here feature impressive lyrics, including (In The) Black Room and the albums opening track, German Overalls. German Overalls is sung from the perspective of an English band stranded in Germany (autobiographical?), mostly featuring Hammills stark lyrics over a strummed acoustic guitar. pH captures the foreign setting quite nicely, and even manages to work a bizarre singer/soldier comparison into the lyrics [some might argue that this track provided the inspiration for Marillions Slainte Mhath]. Hugh Banton takes a brief solo following a reference to the German lords of traditional cathedrals. It all works together very well, getting the album started on an impressive foot. The next two tracks arent quite as impressive, albeit only just. Slender Threads features Hammills stately vocal setting, as he describes a bout with image-obsession after seeing the picture of an ex-lover in the pages of the Evening Standard. The title apparently refers to both clothing-wear and mental stability, the latter theme marked by some amazing work in the high vocal range. The first part of the track comes off as somewhat awkward, though the elaborate character study eventually pays off. This track, too, is based on an acoustic guitar setting. Rock And Role is more of a band piece, essentially Van Der Graaf Generator without Hugh Banton. These lyrics, too, focus on obsessional desire, this time in the form of a self-effacing letter to the object of Hammills affections. David Jacksons first saxophone lead is surprisingly weak, although he manages to redeem himself towards the end -- Evans is at his best. The track conveys the impression of being a rejected piece from the Pawn Hearts period, which it may well have been. In The End is almost a high point of the album, as Hammills lyrics provide the image of a mysterious journey towards a lakeside -- either in remorse for a past deed, or as the prelude to a period of suicidal contemplation (perhaps both). Subtle allusions to Edgar Allan Poe appear in the early moments of the piece (Ulalume may be the most obvious point of reference), and this extended psychological study is a remarkably vivid picture of the characters desire for the logical end to his nervous energy ... until the last section of the song, that is, which comes off as remarkably weak in comparison to all that came before it. I suppose that this could be a part of the overall plot -- the character eventually leaves the area without knowing why -- but it doesnt do the song any favours. (Remember what I said about lyrical bathos. Those comments apply here.) The music on this track is strongly based on early 20th-century piano music (think Russian influences), and works extremely well throughout the piece. The next few tracks seem slightly underwhelming, and may have been intended as developmental pieces towards the final track. What Its Worth is another psychological study into existential being, with Hammill again juxtaposing suicidal and happy-go-lucky perspectives (and using the metaphor of a park gardener, for some odd reason). Strummed guitar again figures prominently, though an uncredited flute presence (probably Jackson) helps things a bit. Easy To Slip Away is a powerful glimpse into personal loneliness, and a follow-up of sorts to VdGGs Refugees (especially as Hammill laments his separation from the Mike and Susie figures of that song). Unfortunately, his overwrought lyrical tendencies get the better of him here, as well; thankfully, the piano and saxophone setting carries the song throughout. Dropping The Torch, viewed on its own, is the weak link of the album, with Hammill painting an image of a man building a tower, brick by brick, and locking himself within. Rather obvious in its use of metaphor, the song is merely good, as opposed to anything special. But, of course, Dropping The Torch isnt meant to be viewed in isolation -- a few minutes into the song comes THE BREAK, wherein (In The) Black Room suddenly bursts forth in its full horror. This track is easily the lyrical high point of the album, with Hammills themes of obsession and isolation bursting towards a breaking point (the music is also incredibly good, especially in the keyboard and drum lines). Hammills study into aging and repressed desire is nothing short of remarkable, in this context. The Tower appears as a quasi-diversion here, as the protagonist brings himself into the passage of symbolic death and rebirth -- his eventual return to the Black Room sees him still holding an aggressive mind, still isolated, but ultimately renewed in his strength. The track describes what it, in itself, achieves -- the triumph of solitary contemplation. And its utterly successful. Chameleon may not be Hammills best album (though its close). Given that all pH albums tend to be a bit uneven at some level, it may be as good of an introduction as anything else. Devoted fans should obviously grab it, assuming they havent already done so. Rewiew by streetmouse (rateyourmusic) (4 stars) Like so many, I found myself lost in the rather dense and personal world Peter Hammill creates, and then it occurred to me that I was listening not only with the wrong ears, but in the wrong time. Like Brian Eno, who washed an atmospheric background on which Roxy Music laid their songs, Peter and his visions were at the core of Van Der Graaf. It was only by thinking of Peter prior to Van Der Graaf that I was able to have and savor my moment in the sun. I need light when listen to Peter Hammill, especially here on Chameleon In The Shadow Of The Night, I need to be able to see the leaves of the trees turn in the breeze, the grass ripple, and hear the distant bark of a dog. I had been home from Vietnam for but a few short months when Chameleon crept into my life, filled with with Peter’s unaccompanied guitar and piano, obsessed with lost faith, lost love, a loss of self, the bending of space, and even questioning the nature of existence, all things that were sweeping through my heart. I’d just returned from one of the most dense and complicated places in the world, my head was reeling as I attempted to peal back the layers of the last two years only to find myself getting more lost and confused. I found a simplicity in this album that was balanced by some rather abrasive vocals that oddly caused me to both smile and exhale with a sense of relief and satisfaction ... finding that I wasn’t the only person who’s life seemed to be a mystery, filled with anger, remorse, and that period of suicidal contemplation. Though not actual suicide mind you, but the conception of creating a fresh start, wiping the slate clean, and reforming myself by sheer will, or moving on. I, like Peter soon realized that was impossible, that the only way to survive, and not get drawn into the wasteland, was to come to terms with who I was, the things I’d done, what I’d seen, and how I felt about all of it. I was so caught up in Peter’s minimalist approach, that it actually took years for me to discover that some of the songs where epic, complex, and so beautifully counterbalanced the others that it was impossible to separate or compartmentalize them ... these songs could not exist in their own right, they needed the whole to fully express the individual ... and I think that’s what I missed most, I was home, I was safe, I was in America, but I felt lost and alone, in a sea of faces I did not know. Recensione scritta di alan clark (DeBaser) (3 stars) È il 1973, e Peter Hammill ha da poco lasciato i Van Der Graaf. Dopo Fools Mate, primo suo album solista in cui riproponeva vecchie canzoni dei Vdgg mai pubblicate, ora Peter torna con il suo secondo album da solista che dovrebbe essere il primo vero album. Dovrebbe , poichè questo cd è veramente molto, forse troppo, eterogeneo, con canzoni che sono simili, solo, a blocchi di due-tre... Ma andiamolo ad descrivere. German overalls, Dropping the torch, Slender threads e What is it worth sono canzoni appunto simili, tutte voce\chitarra acustica (qualche volta interviene sparutamente il sax di Jackson qua e là come in German overalls ma per il resto regna la rigida formula voce-chitarra). Discorso uguale ma opposto per In the end ed Easy to slip away, in cui invece passiamo alla formula voce-pianoforte. E questi sembrano essere proprio gli episodi più riusciti del disco: soprattutto In the end è un pezzo eccezionale in cui dopo le prime strofe la voce di Hammill nel ritornello si eleva nellaria volando e facendo volare insieme al suo crudele piano. Quasi altrettando bella è Easy to slip away proiettata in viso direttamente con un giro di piano cattivo e bellissimo, eppoi proseguita con uninvocazione ancora una volta ai vecchi amici Mike e Susie della celeberrima Refugees dellalbum The least we can do.... È una supplice preghiera questo ritornello, che Hammill, perduto e disperato, getta al cielo in nome di una salvezza di cui è sempre alla ricerca... Disperatamente bello Rock and role, che, come il titolo fa presupporre, è un pezzo rock, il più devastante del disco, lunico forse insieme a In the black room, in cui hammill usa la formazione al completo (evans alla batteria, potter al basso, jackson al sax e banton alle tastiere). Suggestiva la parte in cui hammill canta At impossible speeeeed... In the black room è lunico pezzo veramente prog dellopera, ed inizia facendoci letteralmente sobbalzare, poichè segue una tranquillissima Dropping the torch ed inizia senza stacco con questultima ma con un mostruoso riff di sax per poi continuare con un martellante giro di piano. La canzone poi si evolve nella seconda parte The tower in cui in cui Hammil si diverte ancora a farci venire degli infarti urlando allimprovviso Rats run, Snacks coil. La canzone si chiude con In the black room II con il flauto suadente di Jackon. In conclusione un album come ho detto a blocchi, che è ancora di transizione nella carriera del musicista di Manchester, almeno secondo me. Un pò di omogeneità in più avrebbe fatto senzaltro bene allinsieme. Review by Greg Prato (ALLMUSIC) (3 stars) Boasting much stronger compositions than the preceding Fools Mate, Chameleon in the Shadow of the Night is regarded as one of Peter Hammills best albums. Although Hammill is still in piano/acoustic guitar mode, the passion in his vocals is nearly unparalleled. But what separated Hammill from other early-70s folk-rockers was that he had a knack for injecting art rock into his compositions and singing his mellow songs in a rough (rather expectedly laid-back) style. The opening track German Overalls could be compared to David Bowies early acoustic period, as well as Whats It Worth (the latter containing flute work that complements Hammills acoustic strumming nicely). But Hammill successfully slips back into rock territory with Rock and Rôle, which contains some great, dirty sax work. The albums production is very straightforward (nearly without any studio enhancement), which helps bring out the intensity of Hammills stark arrangements. Chameleon in the Shadow of the Night could fall into the concept album category, since the theme of growing old seems to be repeated throughout. Review by Peter Pan (progarchives) (4 stars) Chameleon In The Shadow Of The Night from 1973 can be seen as the first real Peter Hammill solo album, the predecessor Fools Mate being a collection of pop songs. With Chameleon Peter Hammill digested the split of Van der Graaf Generator. The first song of the album, German Overalls, is one of the saddest songs Ive ever heard, giving an impression of some of the reasons for the dissolution of the band. Mannheim: rainy Saturday with no money nor friend; only Tequila can end the boredom. Try to reach London for a pocket of hope (...) What are we doing here?German overalls is the first of a few songs to come in which Peter wrote about life on tours. Later he enjoyed touring and standing on the stage, as he revealed in an interview. But the mammoth VdGG tours at the beginning of the 70s seemed to be a horrible experience by many aspects. After there was no more Van der Graaf Generator, Peter Hammill did not lose contact to the musicians, but had to figure out how o record music without a band, without extensive studio sessions in superb locations like Trident Studios in London. This was the birth of Sofa Sound and Peters efforts in the emerging subject of home recording. The backbone of this album are in fact home sessions from Peter Hammill recorded on a TEAC 4-track tape machine, at the time new on the market, and affordable to a musician whose groundbreaking and innovative work with one of the icons of progressive rock music, VdGG, had left him with no money! In the booklet of the remasterd Chameleon Peter explains that there was lot to learn for him in terms of sound, arranging and composing. For mixing and overdubbing attributions from himself (vocals) and from VdGG musicians (organ, saxes, drums) Peter Hammill could book Trident and engineer David Hentschel for a short time. The songs have a wide range from typical VdGG-style dramatic tunes like (In the) Black Tower to solo arrangements with only voice and guitar. The remastered edition of Chameleon In The Shadow Of The Night includes bonus tracks, which sound Peter touts as strange and brutal. But remastering has made them hearable again without modernizing them. Chameleon In The Shadow Of The Night shows someone searching for his personal and musical future. It offers some nice but unusual compositions. Not everyones taste but authentic and rewarding. Rewiew by George Starostin (starling.rinet) (3 stars) This is not music, I might say, and in a certain sense it certainly is not. There is no immediate entertainment value here at all; only after memorizing it second by second, which should take half of your lifetime, you could actually enjoy it in a personal manner for the other half of your life. By far the only memorable musical moment on it is the gruff punkish riff of Rock And Role which wasnt even invented by Hammill. And the general feeling about it is that Hammill just took some freshly written lyrics, sang them and put them to a sonic background. But remember that this is - from now on - typical Hammill, its his chosen path and you have to take it or leave it. As is the regular thing for me, lack of memorable melody forces to pay attention to the lyrics, the way they are delivered, and the actual message of the given song or album. And this is where Hammill truly has no equal: Roger Waters efforts, pretty similar in overall nature, seem like the scribblings of a child next to either this album or anything that follows. The lyrics here are among the absolutely best lyrics ever written by a rock poet; they qualify as solid poetry indeed, and demonstrate both a complete mastery of the form and enough attention being paid to the actual substance. Throw on Peters declamation worthy of a Roman orator indeed, and youll begin to understand the essence and reasons for the actual existence of what is known as the Hammill cult. Let me just remind you, in a few words, the basic Hammill ideology. It puts points on individualism and escapism; the world is essentially a stinkin rotten place full of dangers and threats, where your basic average intellectual sensitive guy like Peter Hammill gets ravaged by the grinding cogs of society and feeling himself lonely and helpless before the Leviathan of the mob and, might I say so, his own karma. (Actually, I dont see any Buddhist references in Hammills works, but his ideas are often so close to the basics of Hinayana I really wonder about that). The only way to escape this is, well, either just going deep inside oneself or, better still, simply living life as it is, kinda like following the karma-yoga route of Krishnaism. (I know, I know, this sounds muddled up, but Hammill doesnt write songs for the average bloke, so I have to co-operate). The first part of this ideology, then, is responsible for the dark n bleak side of Peters music; the second is responsible for those rays of light that occasionally make their way through the gloom. Chameleon has no rays of light, though. Its depressing as hell, closely following in the steps of Pawn Hearts but much more introspective, meaningful and, dare I say it, accessible. We begin our journey in German Overalls, as Peter walks through the lifeless and stern European cities complaining about the lack of purpose and direction: The Big Wheel never fails to grind around, it drags me up it drags me down, seven senses wonder can this be real, or have I become a performing seal? The lengthy church organ interlude supposedly illustrates the greyness and monstruosity of life even more - cathedrals spiral skywards, I think Im getting vertigo, I think I dont know whats real. Slender Threads carries the disappointment and disillusionment into personal sphere; a song lamenting the loss of purity and kindness as the protagonists beloved one is seduced by the pettiness of show-biz... a usual topic, but expressed oh so well. Im an author and actor too, youre a model in the zoo... Im just thinking on which side of the bars Im looking through, he sadly concludes - another facet of the Hammill philosophy, the relativity of things. Is it the sensitive isolated hero whos the prisoner of this world or is it vice versa? Rock And Role is a bit obscure for me, except that its replete with references to cameras and mirrors, Hammills usual metaphors, and its also one of the angriest songs on the album, featuring the already mentioned punkish riff. Then theres In The End, a witty reflection on suicide, or maybe even wider, a reflection on the validity of active existence in this world. Its just Pete sitting at his piano, nonchalantly making the isolated, incoherent piano phrases escape his fingers as he muses upon matters of war and peace in a rather playful manner: I promise you, I wont leave a clue, no tell-tale remark, no print from my shoe.... And then he switches from piano to guitar and ruminates upon less suicidal, but no less vital manners - Whats it worth to be safe? Whats it worth to be sane? I can throw myself at the garden on my hands, prune the lawn and mow the roses, but I never understand how to go to be free, in the end I only want to be me. The big epic of the album is (In The) Black Room, which isnt one of my favourites. Its perhaps the most Pawn Hearts-ish track of the lot, with VDGG-ish sax jams occupying a large part of the scenery. The lyrics are first-rate as usual, but they dont add much to the seven tracks before it, and the music is pretty boring - the funny thing is, some of the keyboard rhythm tracks seem to borrow the chord pattern from Killer!!! But in an inferior and unmemorable manner. Fortunately, on subsequent albums these straightahead links with the duller moments of the VDGG team would get fewer and fewer. This is why the albums rating is relatively low: it doesnt have the solo Hammill formula worked out to perfection, and the elements that prevent it from perfection are pretty rotten themselves. But lyrically at least, this is a definite five out of five (as is the case with most Hammill albums). The World of Piter Hammil by George Starostin (starling.rinet) While Peter Hammill was indeed a pretty autocratic leader for Van Der Graaf Generator, one of the primary prog bands of its epoch, many people consider his solo career and his VDGG rulership two separate things, and after some listening I am inclined to agree with them. Sure, VDGG itself seemed to go through two epochs (out of which the reborn period of 1975-76 is the closest to Peters solo career), on one hand, and on the other hand, VDGG members frequently used to contribute their playing skills for Peters solo records, but these are still secondary details as compared to the main differences between the band and the guy. Do not be mad at me if I formulate the main difference as such: Hammills solo career is NOT about the MUSIC. Van Der Graaf Generator almost succeeded in inventing an absolutely new kind of musical texture, with organs and saxes replacing guitars and all kinds of weird time signatures and style mixtures. This music could at times be successful, and at times be totally nutty in the bad sense of the word, but it was still a band product, with Hammills dark romantic personality only one of its vital elements. Hammill solo, on the other hand, naturally places the entire emphasis on himself and his personality - with sharper, more concise lyrics, usually sparse arrangements and mind-blowing vocal performances. To put it briefly, VDGG is prog-rock with a light touch of the singer-songwriter shade; Hammill solo is a singer-songwriter with a somewhat stronger touch of prog-rock. Ive actually met prog fans who declare Hammills solo output to be better than VDGG, and I can relate. The glam-prog of the band was innovative and exciting (at times), but quite often, it would verge on total absurdness, with Hammill caught so deeply in theatricality that albums like Pawn Hearts came out looking like grossly overdone monsters, complex and enthralling on the outside but totally devoid of emotionality on the inside. Solo, Hammill rarely fell into the same trap - quite often, I get the feeling that with VDGG products, he was just going for relatively cheap shots at the public conscience, but with his solo albums, he really disclosed his personal feelings, throwing off the weird cabbalistic mask and going for the heart. The bad news is that Peter never really gave a damn about melody as such, even less so than in the VDGG periods - you can easily feel the contrast between his first album, Fools Mate, comprised of early-written - and often catchy - art-rock tunes, and pretty much everything else in his catalog. Hes obviously not a fan of choruses, and Id say hes not even a fan of verses: occasionally, his lyrics are sung or declamated without any structure in sight whatsoever, and the time and tempo signatures in his songs change without warning whenever he probably feels the moment to be right. The good news is that when you manage to concentrate on the guys personality alone, his lyrics and vocal intonations, taking the musical background as something secondary thats there for atmospheric backup (much like Dylan, you know), he comes out better equipped than anybody else in the business. When hes not spooking you off with ghost helmsmen (Pawn Hearts again), the lyrics are a gas - most of them are meaningful, dedicated to his beloved themes of sci-fi hell, mundane evil and escapism, opposing the world with its perils and temptations and pain and suffering to the inner peace and quiet to be attained, etc., etc. And, of course, his vocals are outstanding... just recently I met the following definition for Peter: Jimi Hendrix of the vocal, and I pretty much agree with the definition. So, my advice is not to take his music like songs, but take it instead as a series of plays/performances - humming or memorizing these albums is essentially useless, but enjoying them is definitely not out of the question. Monografia di Piero Scaruffi I Van Der Graaf Generator furono per molti versi i piu` originali esponenti del progressive-rock britannico dei primi anni 70. Tanto il sound del gruppo quanto i testi del cantante-filosofo Peter Hammill esprimevano un pessimismo allucinato sul destino delluomo. Dalle loro piece, dilaniate da una tensione esistenziale e da squarci violenti di dolore, emana un senso di angoscia, claustrofobia e paranoia. Rispetto agli altri complessi del progressive-rock i VDGG sembrarono sempre piu` cupi e tetri, quasi gotici. Rifuggirono tanto le velleita` classiche (Nice, Yes) quanto quelle medievali (King Crimson, Genesis), ritagliandosi un universo unico e terribile. Formati alluniversita` di Manchester attorno al cantante Peter Hammill (lepitome della nevrosi), al batterista Guy Evans (apocalittico) e allorganista Hugh Banton (gotico), i VDGG impiegarono qualche anno a fondere quelle tre personalita`. Il gruppo debutto` con i singoli People You Were Going To / Firebrand (Polydor, 1968) e Afterwards / Necromancer (Mercury, 1969). Lalbum The Aerosol Grey Machine (Mercury, january 1969) conteneva gia` qualche lungo brano (Aquarian e Octopus), ma lesecuzione era ancora naive. Il complesso sembrava perdersi non appena si spingeva oltre la ballata Afterwards. La personalita` di Hammill dominava il gruppo, ma cera ancora poco di musicale dietro le sue parole. Il sassofonista David Jackson contribui` a far compiere un passo avanti su The Least We Can Do Is Wave To Each Other (Charisma, 1970), album che contiene soltanto sei lunghi brani. Refugees e` una ballata ben piu` sofferta. Darkness, White Hammer e After the Flood sono veri e propri poemi filosofici che stendono un ponte fra la Mitteleuropa degli anni 30 e la paura dellepoca nucleare. I toni sinistri di quellalbum sfociarono nel H To He Who Am The Only One (Charisma, 1970 - Virgin, 2005), il manifesto romantico dei VDGG. I brani sono soltanto cinque e ben tre superano i dieci minuti. I testi e le melodie di Hammill sono accompagnati da armonie intricate, laboriose, fatte di sobbalzi ritmici e di disturbi di sottofondo che ne aumentano la drammaticita. Un jazz-rock, figlio bastardo di Miles Davis, assume tinte maschie e terribili. Il riff truce ed ossessivo di Killer (un tour de force dei fiati) immerge nellatmosfera macabra di un poema sul Male, prima di essere spazzato via dalle frasi epiche dellorgano. Struggente delirio di solitudine e` invece House With No Door, ballata lirica ed elegiaca per pianoforte. Lepica visione di The Emperor In His War Room (nove minuti) e` un altro incubo omicida, che il canto gelido di Hammill, oscillando fra diversi registri riesce a rendere in tutta la sua agghiacciante nevrosi. La tecnica assomiglia a quella dei Genesis, ma con due importanti varianti: il suono non e` al servizio di fiabe medievali, ma di atroci drammi interiori; larrangiamento non indulge in barocchismi, ma e` essenziale e finanche sgradevole. Lost (undici minuti) si spalanca in abissi di paura e desolazione: lorgano tesse litanie liturgiche mentre il sax strania con frasi struggenti, una scossa elettrica scatena un pandemonio da fiera, la batteria tiene una cadenza funerea sulle note indiane del sax, e nel crescendo finale si perde la disperata agonia di Hammill. I VDGG mettono a punto una forma di musica narrativa che non racconta una trama, ma approfondisce un soliloquio. La quintessenza di questa prassi e` Pioneers (dodici minuti) che, lungi dal celebrare una saga spaziale, descrive invece il tormento di un pioniere dello spazio perdutosi fra le galassie (momenti di apoteosi e invocazioni di aiuto) e la musica lo accompagna nei vortici della sua angoscia. Lo stile vocale di Hammill, mutuato da Tim Buckley, con in piu` una teatralita wagneriana, conferisce sovratoni di pathos ed epos. Continuando la progressione verso un sound sempre piu` complesso e spaventoso, il gruppo giunge al capolavoro con Pawn Hearts (Charisma, 1971 - Virgin, 2005), dominato da tre lunghe suite. Quella dei VDG e` una musica cupa, capace di riflettere sui grandi temi delluniverso e della morte. Lemmings e` una danza psicotica bombardata da dissonanze organistiche e da riff testardi di sax, in cui il suicidio di massa dei roditori viene assunto a metafora della nevrosi moderna. Man-Erg e` un accorato inno alluomo dellevo tecnocratico, una sorta di Pioneers per luomo che e` rimasto, non meno solo e angosciato, sulla Terra: il canto di Hammill e` dilaniato da struggenti litanie organistiche, come una messa in nomine, finche esplode dentro un improvviso rovescio di sincopi martellanti del sax, ma capace ancora di recuperare una dimensione epica. A Plague Of The Lighthouse Keeper e` il loro kammerspiel piu` tragico: le prime strofe della melodia (ripetute da un coro di bambini) si disintegrano presto in un magma strumentale rarefatto, in cui il sax imita le sirene dei vaporetti; glaciali note dorgano riportano al tema iniziale, un soliloquio teso e vibrante, che recitata concitato come in un lied espressionista; su accordi celestiali dorgano il canto si apre a un melodismo piu` umano, ma, dilaniato da un nuovo scatto epilettico, che lo frammenta e distorce, si spegne in un ultimo atroce spasimo contro lincalzare di un maestoso inno corale. E` lapoteosi della solitudine di Hammill e della stessa condizione umana. Sempre piu` lontano dalla suite psichedelica e dalla ballata folk, il romanticismo dei VDG sembra ora influenzato semmai dallo svolgimento dei temi nel sinfonismo classico. Le atmosfere fredde, buie e deserte dei loro brani, non hanno eguali negli annali del progressive-rock di quegli anni. Peter Hammill lancio` una carriera solista in cui avrebbe semplicemente continuato a esplorare in maniera quasi morbosa gli stessi terribili temi. I suoi dischi sono spietati nel non concedere nulla alla facilita di ascolto. Ignorando qualsiasi logica commerciale, lex cantante dei Van Der Graaf Generator sforno` con cadenza regolare opere molto personali ed ermetiche, spesso in antitesi con le mode imperanti: Fools Mate (Charisma, 1971) e` un album ancora bizzarro con le sbrigliate Imperial Zeppelin, Viking e Sunshine al fianco degli incubi freudiani di Solitude and Child (e le versioni originali di Vision and Birds), ma Chameleon in the Shadow of the Night (Charisma, 1973 - Virgin, 1989) e` il primo dei suoi austeri atti di contrizione, arrangiato quasi interamente per piano e chitarra acustica, ricco di momenti di grande pathos (soprattutto In the End , ma anche lincubo espressionista German Overalls, Easy to Slip Away , Black Room , The Tower). Hammill aveva trovato un suggestivo punto di equilibrio fra leccentrico folk-pop di Syd Barrett e laustero psychodrama di Peter Gabriel. The Silent Corner and the Empty Stage (Charisma, 1974) contiene The Lie e Rubicon, oltre alle convolute Modern e Red Shift e alla lunga A Louse is not a Home. In Camera (Charisma, 1974) e` uno dei suoi album migliori, grazie a Ferret and Featherbird, Faint-Heart and the Sermon, la suite sperimentale Gog/Magog e un senso generale di follia. Hammill e` un asceta claustrofobo, la cui arte si muove in uno spazio esiguo di tenebre immobili e silenziose. Le sue liriche sprofondano nei labirinti interiori di un tormentato subconscio, vittima dellesistere e di tutte le sue contraddizioni. La musica e` fragile, esile, lenta, qual che sia larrangiamento (spesso free-form, elettronico, rarefatto). Il canto e` modulato, intenso, profondo, ma mai esibito, come si addice a una contrita auto-flagellazione. Nadirs Big Chance (Charisma, 1975), che si avvaleva della collaborazione dei vecchi compagni, inauguro` invece la saga di Rikki Nadir allinsegna di un sound quasi hard-rock. I Van Der Graaf Generator tornarono quattro anni dopo e pubblicarono tre mediocri album prima di sciogliersi di nuovo: Godbluff (Charisma, 1975), Still Life (Charisma, 1976 - Virgin, 2006), forse il migliore dei tre, e World Record (Charisma, 1976). Hammill guido una piu piccola unita (con basso e violino anziche sax e organo) che registro The Quiet Zone The Pleasure Dome (Charisma, 1977). Finita la seconda parentesi con i VDGG, Hammill riprese la carriera solista. Purtroppo la qualita` non e` sempre in relazione alla quantita`, e molti brani dei suoi album potevano rimanere tranquillamente nel cassetto. Over (Charisma, 1977) e` uno dei suoi album piu` privati e vanta alcune delle sue composizioni piu` tormentate, contrassegnate talvolta da accompagnamenti orchestrali (This Side of the Looking Glass , Autumn , Time Heals di nove minuti). The Future Now (Charisma, 1978), album contrassegnato da interessi sociopolitici e arrangiamenti elettronici, annovera comunque The Future Now, Energy Vampires, Medieval e Palinurus. PH7 (Charisma, 1979) ha My Favourite, Polaroid, Handicap And Equality e Faculty X. Il dolore cosmico domina dallalto la tragedia privata di questo emarginato cantore dellansia. La suite di venti minuti Flight, su A Black Box (Mercury, 1980), e` forse il caleidoscopio di emozioni intime in cui meglio si sfoga la sua introversione. Sitting Targets (Mercury, 1981) non ha particolari vette, ma rappresenta un buon compendio del periodo. Loops and Reels (Mercury, 1983) raccoglie esperimenti di varia natura. Skin (Foundry, 1986) e` forse il peggiore della sua intera carriera. And Close As This (Virgin, 1986) e` invece uno dei migliori, anche se (o forse proprio perche) e` diverso dalla media. Le canzoni sono davvero canzoni, e laccompagnamento e` quasi esclusivamente di pianoforte, e langoscia retrocede in secondo piano: Silver , uno dei suoi capolavori, Too Many of My Yesterdays, uno dei suoi ritornelli piu` felici, Sleep Now, Silver , Delivery , Other Old Cliches, Empire of Delight . Enter K (Naive, 1982) e Patience (Naive, 1983) sono accreditati al K Group e propongono un sound piu` rock e persino disco. Film Noir e Patience sul secondo sono particolarmente accattivanti (fatto insolito per lo standard tenebroso di Hammill). In A Foreign Town (1988) e` ancora una raccolta confusa, per quanto i riferimenti al pop e alla disco-music siano meglio amalgamati e meno ingombranti (Invisible Ink , Time To Burn , The Plays The Thing). Nelleta` matura Hammill affronta la musica sempre piu` con lo spirito del compositore classico, e i suoi dischi hanno sempre piu` laspetto di opere da camera, nelle quali Hammill suona spesso da solo tutti gli strumenti. Questa fase culmina nel colto canzoniere di Out Of Water (Enigma, 1990), con le ammalianti Something About Ysabels Dance e Evidently Goldfish , le cupe No Moon In The Water e Green Fingers (che ritornano per qualche minuti ai climi dei VDG) e soprattutto le lunghe A Way Out (sette minuti) e On The Surface (otto minuti). Il doppio The Fall of the House of Usher (Some Bizarre, 1991), una rock opera dedicata ai racconti di Edgar Allan Poe e arrangiata in maniera elettronica, era in cantiere da quasi ventanni e verra` completamente remixato dieci anni dopo (Fie, 2000). Il disco apre gli anni 90 allinsegna di ambizioni sempre smodate ma forse anche di un inaridimento dellispirazione (proporzionale al numero di dischi sfornati). Fireships (Fie, 1992) torna allo stile introspettivo di And Close As This, ma con dovizia di violini e tastiere. The Noise (Fie, 1993), uno dei suoi dischi piu` accessibili, torna invece al sound chitarristico e al battito pesante di Nadir (Great European Department Store, Entertainer), mentre la complessa Primo On The Parapet, la cupa Planet Coventry e la spettrale Noise (forse i tre vertici dellopera, benche le meno accessibili) tengono alto il quoziente di insicurezza. I venti minuti di A Headlong Stretch fanno di Roaring Forties (Fie, 1994) il miglior disco di questa fase (nonostante la ballad Your Tall Ship). Typical e Roomtemperaturelive sono dischi dal vivo. Hammill continuera` poi a pubblicare dischi con cadenza annuale, ma senza piu` riuscire a toccare i vertici dei suoi anni migliori: X My Heart (Fie, 1996), Sonix (Fie, 1997), Everyone You Hold (Fie, 1997), This (Fie, 1998), The Appointed Hour (Fie, 1999), una collaborazione con Roger Eno, None of Above (Fie, 2000), Incoherence (2004). Sono lavori banali, raffazzonati e, tutto sommato, imbarazzanti, che hanno grandemente ridimensionato il personaggio. The Appointed Hour (Tone Casualties, 2003) e una collaborazione Peter Hammill-Roger Eno. Veracious (2006) documenta performance live dal 1999 al 2004. Hammills Singularity (2007), il primo album dal rischioso infarto del 2004, fu un altra prova indulgente, con una sola canzone interessante, Closer White Dot. In meno di 40 anni Hammill aveva gia registrato piu di 50 album. E si vede. Il doppio CD Real Time (2007) documenta il ritorno live nel 2005 dei VDG. Trisector (2008) was the first studio album by VDG since the reunion and Consequences (Fie!, 2012) was yet another Peter Hammill solo. Aggiunta dellestensore do Toni di Musica Tutti sapete che i VDGG si sono riuniti solo in trio (manca Jackson) e si sono esibiti al Pistoia Blus e presentato la biografia italiana. Presentazione Biografia VDGG di .... (vandergraafgeneration) Finalmente, dopo sei anni di lavoro e di ricerche, vede la luce il primo libro in italiano dedicato ai Van der Graaf Generator. Non una semplice storia del gruppo (per quella rimandiamo allo splendido The Book, pubblicato da Phil Smart e Jim Christopulos nel 2005), ma piuttosto una accurata e dettagliata ricostruzione storica del rapporto tra il Generatore e il nostro paese. Una saga appassionante, fatta di doppi concerti, sommosse, scioglimenti e ricostituzioni, number one hits, partite a calcio - rugby, location improbabili, inaspettati ritorni, furti, ricatti... e tanto altro ancora! Il volume, di 244 pagine, è caratterizzato da una vasta sezione iconografica composta da ben 112 immagini in gran parte inedite, comprendenti sia foto depoca che materiale darchivio (locandine, annunci di giornale, biglietti di concerti etc), oltre che da unappendice dedicata alla discografia del gruppo con tutte le uscite in lp, 45 giri, cd e dvd, e unaltra appendice in cui sono riportate le date e le scalette di tutti i concerti italiani della band. La prefazione è stata scritta da David Jackson. La narrazione è impreziosita da numerose testimonianze, tra cui quelle inedite di Renato Bartolini, Guido Bellachioma, Marcello Capra, Gianluigi Cavaliere, Beppe Crovella, Michi Dei Rossi, Andrea DellOrbo, Franz Di Cioccio, Bambi Fossati, David Jackson, Latte e Miele, Pietro Messina, Tony Pagliuca, Claudio Rocchi, Maurizio Salvadori, Claudio Simonetti, Alan Sorrenti, Arturo Stalteri, Aldo Tagliapietra, Pino Tuccimei, Lino Vairetti, oltre a quelle di decine di fan e di semplici appassionati che hanno avuto la fortuna di assistere ai concerti tenuti tra il 1972 e il 2011 dal gruppo inglese nel nostro paese. Van der Graaf Generator - la biografia italiana sarà ufficialmente disponibile a partire dal 16 gennaio 2013, edito da Arcana Edizioni. Discografia quotata di Piero Scaruffi The Aerosol Grey Machine (1969), 5/10 The Least We Can Do Is Wave To Each Other (1970), 7/10 H To He Who Am The Only One (1970), 7.5/10 Pawn Hearts (1971), 8/10 Godbluff (1975), 5/10 Still Life (1976), 5/10 World Record (1976), 4/10 The Quiet Zone The Pleasure Dome (1977), 4/10 Present (2005), 4/10 Pete Hammill: Fools Mate (1971), 5.5/10 Chameleon in the Shadow of the Night (1973 - Virgin, 1989), 7/10 The Silent Corner and the Empty Stage (1974), 6/10 In Camera (1974), 6.5/10 Nadirs Big Chance (1975), 7/10 Over (1977), 6/10 The Future Now (1978), 6/10 PH7 (1979), 5/10 A Black Box (1980), 6.5/10 Sitting Targets (1981), 5/10 Loops and Reels (1983), 4/10 Skin (1986), 4/10 And Close As This (1986), 6.5/10 Enter K (1982), 4/10 Patience (1983), 4/10 Out Of Water (1990), 6.5/10 The Fall of the House of Usher (1991), 6/10 Fireships (1992), 5.5/10 The Noise (1993), 5/10 Roaring Forties (1994), 5.5/10 X My Heart (1996), 4/10 Sonix (1997), 4/10 Everyone You Hold (1997), 4/10 This (1998), 4/10 The Appointed Hour (1999), 4/10 None of Above (2000), 4/10 Incoherence (2004), 4/10 Singularity (2007), 4.5/10
Posted on: Sun, 03 Nov 2013 20:32:25 +0000
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