.

Peter Hammill, In a Foreign Town/Out of Water 2023, 2CD Edition (Cherry Red) –  If these are his thoughts originally recorded in the late 1980s then right here in this whole world window of difference we find ourselves in now, thirty or forty years later, he still sounds as committed to his words from back there as he originally was. As committed to his views of the Six O’clock News now as he was then, these words of Peter Hammill’s clearly still matter and get back in the motor, his words have always mattered – you don’t put a Hammill album on for background entertainment while you do the washing up or fix the door bell. Peter Hammill is about the putting together of words and there goes another interesting set of metaphors and let’s get those green fingers into the worms of it all, what have we actually got here?

How to write this one? Not in invisible ink obviously. Two Peter Hammill albums from the end of the 80’s, reworked, re-recorded, reborn. Peter Hammill, Van Der Graaf Generator frontman, prolific solo artist, with a (timeless) back catalogue as big as anyone’s, a rich musical history that stretches way back to the late 60’s, and still out there doing it with such commitment, only last week solo shows in Japan. And we can no more change the past that shed our skins so he sings, seems we can though, we can washout our spots…

Two Peter Hammill solo albums from the late 80s re-recorded here in 2023, mostly because he didn’t like the of-their-times 80s production apparently, although I do believe there were Taylor Swift-like contractual issues. Now you Hammill fans are going to rush out and buy this double album the moment you can (or at least tune in to your streaming service of choice) and really there is very little point in any trainspotter-flavoured analysis of what he’s done here that’s different to the original recordings, there’s little point in listening back to decide if is that riff different? Has he changed that line? New highlights? limelights? Preaching to the converted? Out of Gas, Out of tread? out of road? Out of date? Out of Stock? Out of date? Is he out of context here in 2023? Going for the fade out? If you already know Peter Hammill then you really don’t need any of our words on the matter and this review really isn’t for you. There is no need to tell you, that would  be right out of character, out of our trees and hopefully, there’s someone out there reading this and wondering who is this person (or people) they keep on about? Who is this band he still fronts? Van Der Graff Generator? And who is Mr X and why did he get so tense?  Or for that matter the other feller, Rikki Nadir, and who’s big chance was it anyway? All you need to do with pretty much any of Peter Hammill’s dozen and dozens of albums is just let them take you in, let his words play with you, just go with the lines and all the whirlwind of deja vu (did he almost jump the shark there?). It is about his word play, his running on our spot, that place where we hide a lot. You have to (properly) listen to Peter Hammill albums, you need to read them. 

.

Yes some of it still sounds like it was made in the late 80’s, that’s isn’t necessarily a bad thing, Peter Hammill hasn’t ripped it all up and started again, he’s taken the two albums and shaped them, crafted them a little differently without destroying the essence of either of them, personally I like what he’s done, both albums feel right, an honesty in terms of what’s on offer, the evidence is clear, no need to question the environment. I don’t know if these two bodies of work now presented together are the gateway albums that take you into the vast World of Hammill or Van Der Graaf for the first time, probably not but if it should be the first things you hear of him then fine, they’ll serve you well. I suspect if we were to ask twenty different committed devotes we’d get twenty different answers, I always go for the footage ofthe1972 Belgium TV version Plague of Lighthouse Keepers, when trying to explain why to someone who doesn’t know, a bootleg VHS version of that remarkable performance was the thing that really seriously hooked me completely.   

These are fine returns to the scene of the crimes, to the latest version of the man he or may or not be taken to be (and if he’s not the man he was then who was he?). Some of it is beautifully sparse, space to reflect, to breath, no ego here, just right, water pale whole, everything intact. This one whole authentic, done as much for himself as anyone else, his legacy, a palette not so jaded now (if indeed it ever was?). Oh how time flies, that ending to Something About Isabel’s Dance, something the anthropologists dare not explain. He’ll be young forever if he keeps this up. Hey look, I don’t know if they needed re-recording, I was happy enough with the originals, I;ve resisted the temptation to go back to those originals and compare but if I do reach for either album in future times then yes, I am probably going to reach for these excelent new versions, but then, as I’ve said before, no point is asking me, I’d happily sit there listening to him receipt the phone book. Two fine fine albums, timeless, updated but still rightly of their fine time and place. (sw)  

Here’s the press release/details, you can find the album via Cherry Red                
   
A NEW SUPERB REWORKING OF THE ALBUMS ‘IN A FOREIGN TOWN’ AND ‘OUT OF WATER’ BY PETER HAMMILL. This 2CD set features new reworkings of two of Peter’s landmark albums originally released in 1988 and 1990 respectively.

‘In a Foreign Town / Out of Water 2023’ is a new project by Peter Hammill. which features new reworkings of two of Peter’s landmark albums originally released in 1988 and 1990 respectively.

‘In a Foreign Town’ was released in its original form in 1988 to critical praise and featured material with a political edge and saw Hammill explore the use of MIDI technology in the studio and featured contributions from violinist Stuart Gordon.

‘Out of Water’ was a slight change in direction, featuring a more band orientated approach with contributions and featuring a more confident approach from Peter with regards to mastering the studio technology of the day.

Over the years the reaction to the original versions of both albums has mixed, with some fans praising the material but finding the 80s production style not to their taste. Peter has referred to ‘In a Foreign Town’ as having strong songs but having a production style of its time, describing the album as “a crucial set of recordings in terms of my musical development”.

The uncertainty surrounding the rights of both these original albums prompted Hammill to revisit both works in the studio, reworking and re-recording whilst also using elements of the original material to stunning effect. The finished results are remarkable and demonstrate the strength of the original compositions. No longer destined to be viewed as “a product of their time”, these new 2023 reworkings of ‘In a Foreign Town’ and ‘Out of Water’ can be seen as vital recordings in Peter Hammill’s extensive body of work.    

And here is that gateway….

And there is the Peter playlist….