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Peter Hammill - Chameleon in the Shadow of the Night CD (album) cover

CHAMELEON IN THE SHADOW OF THE NIGHT

Peter Hammill

 

Eclectic Prog

4.03 | 424 ratings

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UMUR
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
3 stars "Chameleon In The Shadow Of The Night" is the 2nd full-length studio album by UK progresive rock artist Peter Hammill. The album was released through Charisma Records in May 1973. Itīs the successor to "Foolīs Mate" from July 1971, but the two solo albums are bridged by the release of Hammillīs at the time main project Van der Graaf Generatorīs fourth full-length studio album "Pawn Hearts" from October 1971. As a consequence of the pressure of touring Van der Graaf Generator disbanded in mid-1972 and Hammill opted to pursue a solo career. Some of the material which ended up on "Chameleon In The Shadow Of The Night" was originally written to be included on the (not to be) successor to "Pawn Hearts" (1972). "(In the) Black Room/The Tower" was even rehearsed by the band in the months before they split and all members of Van der Graaf Generator plus ex-member Nic Potter (bass) contributed to the recording of "Chameleon In The Shadow Of The Night".

If you expect that Hammill picks up where Van der Graaf Generator left off with "Pawn Hearts" (1971), you wonīt for the most part get what you expect with "Chameleon In The Shadow Of The Night". Except for the 10:53 minutes long "(In the) Black Room/The Tower", which as mentioned above was written while Van der Graaf Generator were still active, and therefore sounds unmistakably like that band, "Chameleon In The Shadow Of The Night" is predominantly an experimental singer/singwriter album featuring quite a few tracks where the main ingredients are Hammill singing his paatos filled and dramatic vocal lines over stripped down instrumentation of either a guitar or a piano (sometimes both). A few tracks like "Rock and Rôle" and "Easy to Slip Away" stand out as they feature more "regular" rock instrumentation (drums, guitar, bass), which provide the album with some variation and a slight psychadelic touch.

Hammill has a distinct sounding voice and an extremely expressive delivery, and itīs usually a strength and a great asset to the projects he is involved in, but his original vocal style and the sound of his voice can also be difficult to listen to over a longer period, and when the instrumental parts of at least half of the tracks on the album are as stripped down and raw as they are here, Iīm often left a bit frustrated with the bareness of the backing and lack of climaxes. Tracks like "German Overalls" and "Slender Threads" seem to go on forever and go nowhere. Itīs a harsher evaluation than I had planned, and maybe also a bit too harsh, as I still enjoy parts of those tracks and the relatively anarchistic nature of the songwriting, but just a few more melodic hooks or interesting instrumental parts would have made the songs more complete and listenable.

To my ears the greatest attraction of "Chameleon In The Shadow Of The Night" is definitely "(In the) Black Room/The Tower". Maybe because itīs the most progressive and adventurous track on the album or maybe because it sounds so much like Van der Graaf Generator. Itīs quite the dynamic, compositionally progressive, and well written track, which could well have fit on the last couple of preceding albums by Van der Graaf Generator (not surprisingly since it was written during that era). "Chameleon In The Shadow Of The Night" is a relatively well produced affair, but Iīm not a huge fan of the cold and harsh sound of the guitars or the sound of the drums. So upon conclusion "Chameleon In The Shadow Of The Night" is a bit up an down in quality (and listening enjoyment) and itīs not the most stylistically consistent release either. Itīs through and through the bold sound of Peter Hammill though (and praise must always be given for the manīs unending creativity and uniqueness) and while the album may not be perfect in all departments a 3.5 star (70%) rating is still deserved.

UMUR | 3/5 |

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