Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Hammill, Peter
Label: Virgin Records
Released: 1981
Length: 44:38
Rating: 4.5/5
Peter Hammill earned his cult status mainly as the vocal thunderer of prog rock legends Van Der Graaf Generator, but his solo career, too, especially in his later years, helped cement his reputation as a stunning vocal chameleon, a visionary composer and an incorrigible post-apocalyptic chronicler who also liked to weigh in now and then on events from the pre-apocalyptic era. »Sitting Targets« was his tenth solo album and the first one on which he worked with the esteemed session percussionist Morris Pert. Pert, over his career, has worked with names like Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins, Paul McCartney, Jon Anderson, Mike Oldfield, Kate Bush, Andrew Lloyd Webber and John Williams.
For the first time since »Over« (1977), Hammill wanted a proper drummer, so he called up old buddy Guy Evans again, while David Jackson, yet another old VDGG face, was on sax and flute and was Peter’s regular collaborator anyway. That means almost the entire classic VDGG lineup played on »Sitting Targets, with the exception of organist Hugh Banton, and sonic comparisons with the sound and work of that legendary band practically suggest themselves in places across the album.
Keyboardist Phil Harrison brought a touch of synth sophistication too, though his contribution was more or less minimal. The piano arrangements were, as usual, Peter’s turf, and the same held true for all the electric and acoustic guitars. It’s hardly surprising that »Sitting Targets« also has plenty of acoustic arrangements, since by then Hammill had grown into a decent acoustic guitarist who knew how to steer and bend individual chords to the demanding needs of his traditionally elastic voice.
Peter’s main weapon, of course, was his ‘chameleon’ way of singing, which let him effortlessly conjure up an incredibly intense atmosphere and crank the listener’s adrenaline at least three stages higher compared to the instrumental moments. The lyrics are, as usual, a chapter of their own, because one of the finest poets in the history of prog rock didn’t skimp on socially critical outpourings this time either, as if he sensed how the eighties would give birth to the global, neoliberal capitalist order of the future.
Stylistically, then, »Sitting Targets« didn’t stray far from Hammill’s solo albums of the late seventies and early eighties, but it had a bit more melodic subtlety than had been usual in his career up to that point, while the improvisations were cut down to a minimum. Many of the songs on »Sitting Targets«, such as »Ophelia«, »Stranger Still«, »Stand« and »Central Hotel«, became regular live classics, which clearly speaks to the quality of this often overlooked achievement.
Shorter tracks dominate the album, with only two running longer than five minutes. »Breakthrough« is an interesting and highly dynamic opener with minimalist guitar phrases and a melodramatic tempo shift, in which the synth lines blend in nicely too. »My Experience«, where Mr. Hammill turns into a raging vocal thunderer, just like in VDGG’s best days, has those typical, slightly cacophonous guitar lines, while the main arrangement comes off unusually melodic.
»Ophelia« is a beautiful, melancholic ballad with a distinctly intimate mood, the kind that was otherwise typical of most of Hammill’s best solo ventures. Here, amid numerous symphonic flourishes, his ‘brighter’ vocal side comes to the fore, as this standout among singers captivates with breathtaking emotional intensity. On the sarcastically tinged »Empress’s Clothes«, where Hammill doesn’t hold back from spewing venom on female vanity and snobbery (apparently he was having some personal trouble with women again around this time), the exotic percussion by Morris Pert works nicely, and together with the sax parts and the vocal thunder of the ‘sharp-tongued doctor’ it makes for as tense an atmosphere as you could ask for.
The decidedly experimental »Glue«, ruled by irritated sonic oscillations and nonchalantly scattered guitar lines, contains yet another uncompromising emotional outburst in Hammill’s solo performance. »Hesitation« will still please all VDGG fans today, since with its sonic collage of agitated sax passages, merciless drum transitions, melodramatic piano arrangements and Peter’s foaming-at-the-mouth singing, it strongly recalls some ‘forgotten’ gem from the prog rock legends. Something similar could be said of the title track, which would be an almost classic VDGG creation if you just added Banton’s organ. Hammill’s brilliant vocal performance is a real treat for all music gourmets, and it also surprises with a short guitar solo that blends in very well with the drum and sax improvisations.
The symphonically seasoned »Stranger Still« is marked by an almost solemn mood thanks to a melodic piano arrangement, epic orchestral curtains and Peter’s ‘uplifting’ vocal, set this time an octave higher than usual. »Sign« is marked by rather rushing chords on acoustic guitar, which sit nicely with Hammill’s raging vocal performance, while his old comrade Evans pulls off some fascinating drum transitions. On »What I Did«, the experimental brake is eased off again a bit. The end result is a pile of cacophonous sonic flourishes, while the lyric is one of the most chaotic and frenzied in Peter’s career, repeating the word ‘crazy’ several times. The closing classic »Central Hotel«, where Hammill’s irritated guitar phrases inject a hint of hard rock pulse, is another chance for the ‘sharp-tongued doctor’ to pour out his vocal bile on the elitism and indifference of society’s ‘elite’.
You could say that »Sitting Targets« is almost a thoroughly classic Peter Hammill solo album, meaning that, apart from a minimal touch of new wave, the sound and production tech of the eighties barely laid a finger on it, and yet it’s one of his most melodic and, at the same time, ‘to a wider audience’ somewhat more accessible achievements. That’s exactly why it could still appeal today to all those prog rock fans who aren’t among his traditional devotees or only follow Peter’s creative path superficially. At the same time, it offers loyal Hammill solo and VDGG disciples an extremely handy way to win over, with the master’s music, all those who otherwise aren’t ready to listen to Peter’s more experimental achievements from his ‘classic’ period (the seventies).
Lineup
Peter Hammill – vocals, guitar, keyboards
Guy Evans – drums
David Jackson – saxophone, flute
Morris Pert – percussion
Phil Harrison – synthesizer
Production
Peter Hammill
Track list
1. Breakthrough
2. My Experience
3. Ophelia
4. Empress’s Clothes
5. Glue
6. Hesitation
7. Sitting Targets
8. Stranger Still
9. Sign
10. What I Did
11. Central Hotel
