In my introduction for PH I've said about non-difference of VDGG-music and PH-music; to my opinion discographies of GG and PH are the one undividable discography. Maybe Hammil's music surface was changed by time, but idea remained constant.
Some people thinks: the good song must have a memorable melody. Thus, the greatest VDGG/PH songs, which hasn't memorable melodies (A Slow Time, My Pulse, Octopus, Into a Game, Cat's Eye, A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers, Like Veronica, Pioneers over C), are the rubbish.
By the way, 90% of Hammill's songs have unmemorable and complicated melodies. If you don't understand these songs - you don't understand Hammill at all!
Quality of music cannot be determined by melody only. Yet it is determining by sence, thoughtfulness, originality, arrangement, sincerity and other compounds.
Yet I must say, that just monumental, gloomy with medieval touch and "a deadly serious atmosphere with not even an inch of relaxation" musical pieces are the central ones in all VDGG/PH creation; they just shows the Hammill's nature (I mean masterpieces: A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers, Man-Erg, Lemmings, Octopus, Killer, The Lie, Modern, Naming the Rose, White Hammer, In a Bottle, Fallen (The City Of Night):). Some commentators say that these songs are psychedelic and cannot be called as prog. 1ST: I'm convinced that some bands related to psychedelia (Beatles, Pink Floyd, Doors, Jimi Hendrix, King Crimson, Gong and so on) were progressive in a perfect sense. 2ND: these songs haven't an important influence of psychedelia but have the elements of experiment and "absurd theatre", and also of surrealism. I think that Hammill is the "Musical Salvador Dali" (Let me make this comparison).
Of course, except deadly-monumental material, Hammill had written a lot of wonderful ballads (Refugees, The House with No Door, The Tall Ship, Time to Burn, Wilhelmia, Since the Kids, Child:) and other fantastic non-ballad compositions.
In 70s I usually compare Hammill's creation with King Crimson and Genesis. These bands were the most non-popular of all progressive bands and their music had some touches of medieval and renessance Europe.
To my opinion VDGG/PH is the most non-commercial and extraordinary project of all greatest progressive ones (Yes, Jethro Tull, King Crimson, Genesis, Pink Floyd, Gentle Giant, Supertramp, ELP, Roxy Music). It's sad that too many people don't like this fantastic music.
THE LIST WE CAN DO IS WAVE TO EACH OTHER
H TO HE. WHO AM THE ONLY ONE? Richard's Review / Oleg's Review
THE QUIET ZONE / THE PLEASURE DOME
I think this album is some weaker than previous. It is lacked
by powerfulity and sometimes repeats ideas of AEROSOL GREY MACHINE. But after
listening you would be enjoyed (of course, if you like art-rock).
DARKNESS , REFUGEES, WHITE HAMMER and WHATEVER WOULD ROBERT HAVE SAID? are equally
good. REFUGEES is the clasic ballad of VDGG, one of favorite songs of PH-fans.
Three other things are rather heavy, almost hard-rocky suites. OUT OF MY BOOK
is less interesting, but the weakest song of album is AFTER THE FLOOD: too long
suites with no interesting ideas and weak lyrics. I agree with George about
shout: ANNIHILATION - it sounds stupidly. But I cannot agree with him about
DARKNESS, WHITE HAMMER and WHATEVER WOULD ROBERT HAVE SAID?. Though these songs
are not the masterpieces of PH-creation.
READER COMMENTS
Good,good...Five equally blamelessly made compositions, with no weak moments. The best record of David Jackson! His winds sounds excellent! KILLER and IMPEROR are dark unreal worlds with fantastic images. During listening it seems to me that I am killer from deep bottom or I have my own War-room. Images are very strong. Desperate-sadly THE HOUSE WITH NO DOOR and LOST percolate deep into heart. They have a great sence. Hammill is one of the great rock-poets (as Waters, Gabriel,Sinfield). PIONEERS OVER C is cosmically-extraordinary number full of different feelings, but few fans have understood it... Maybe it's better to begin listening of Hammill from this album.
So H To He ,eh?...Well,everyone around in the Web seems
to think this one is absolutely best Van Der Graaf Generator album and the best
“songwriting show” of Mr.Peter Hammill.So,even I can’t deny it-the album is,
undoubtly,the one of the rarest masterpieces that can be found in music.So glammy,so
dark,so heavy,so proggy,so poppy,so rocky,so strange,so clear,so clever and
so stupid sometimes-that’s all it,that’s all fantastic masterpiece called H
To He Who Am The Only One.
All musicians of that Van Der Graaf line-up was on the peak of their abilities.As
I said,Peter reached his peak in songwriting,creativity and playing(I don’t
mention his great voice that’s always powerfull and young-even now,when all
“prog dudes form the past” lost their voices away);Nic Potter’s bass was clear
and sounded great;Dave Jackson’s sax was just amazing and the peak of the playing
ability of that guy was right on this album-just listen to his great passages
and solos in “Killer” and “Pioneers Over C”;Guy Evans’s drumming is effective
and striking(as always,though) and Hugh Banton’s peak of energy that his keyboards
was right on was(again) on this Van Der Graaf album.
Every of five songs on the album actually rule-there aren’t almost bad moments
that can be found is these songs. Melodies are very,very strong and solid,playing,as
I said before,is amazing and all of that instrumental passages can hardly be
called “boring”.
The album opens with “Killer”-definetly,the killer song.Mighty riff with saxophone
soling here and there,dark and unusual(as always with Pete)lyrics-all those
factors of great song finally come into great,long and weird saxophone solo
with Dave Jackson doing almost impossible things.And that part “death in the
sea” is very catchy and balanced with other structures of the song(especially
the sax solo).
Next song is beautiful,touchful and quite glammy ballad “House With No Door”.Great
phylosophycal lyrics sung by such vocalist as Pete and simple,but so clever
piano-led melody provides you all the way of the song with the small exception
of mid-section with gentle flute solo.Interesting,what could do with that solo
such wild flute player as Ian Anderson,eh?
The last song on the first side is anti-war “The Emperor In His War-Room” with
special guest whose name must know every prog-lover on this planet-Robert Fripp.His
guitarwork makes me feel very special angry sharm of this song-especially the
second,most mystical,part that has maybe the greatest melodical moment on the
whole album. Oh man,this song just rules.
Second side opens with strange “Lost”-the most weakest song on here,but it is
still great.Vocal parts are crazy and twisted,so catchy,but some instrumental
breaks quite suck,ya know...And the song is overlong as Hell-who needs all those
jams all of the way of the song?
But,surprisingly,even more longer follower “Pioneers Over C” isn’t boring at
all and features one of the most greatest Jackson’s crazy parts.Lyrics are about
somekind of space exproler who lost somewhere in space etc. etc. etc.-in my
opinion,not the best Hammill lyrics.But how he sings them!Powerful and agression
turns right into some kind of touchfull kindness.And the melodies of that parts
are great.Not to mention absolutely amazing part that I always call “The Rise
Of The Peoneer”,when Pete almost cries “I am the one you fear...”
Sure,the album deserves a place in your collection.And it is certanly deserve
so high rating as I gave to it.
READER COMMENTS
Oh, yeah! It's a really grandioso masterpiece! This album can make a shock to listener. It's a biggest pick of Hammill's creation. Robert Fripp has played all guitar parts, and I think PAWN HEARTS is the greatest project of Fripp's creation too. Many people don't like this album. They consider that PAWN HEARTS is a sound-mixing without a sense and a sample of graphomania. But really this album is of genius (and, you know, genius is not always understandable).My first 3-4 times of listening were very hard to me.I couldn't catch those huge diversity of melodies, sounds and feelings. It's very hard to get so many impressions in a little cut of time.But when I've understood it I've got a shock! It was impossible! This music has disappeared the most hidden truths for me. From Autumn'99 PAWN HEARTS is my most favorite album. I listen it for several times monthly and disappear many new things again and again. This album is the one of the greatest masterpieces ever (as THICK AS A BRICK, THE LAMB LIES DOWN ON BROADWAY, or SERGEANT PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND, music of Bach and Wagner). When I listen it I'm filling with the most raised feelings and emotions.The 1st song - LEMMINGS - is about dying out kind of animals. This very dark story is the development of KILLER-line musically. The song begins from cosmic intro transforming into hard-doomish riffs of Fripp's guitar, which is constantly drowning in arrangements and Hammill's vocal. Also you can disappear constant changes of melody and rhythm that sounds as far from Universe. In second part of LEMMINGS Hammill makes a sharp changing of musical picture singing with desperate-dreadful shouts, filling all song with black death.The 2nd song - MAN-ERG - is maybe the most wonderful song of the most deadly-apocalyptical anthems. It's about the battle of angel and devil sides of human nature. This song is full of philosophical sense as musically, as lyrically. Almost all the song from the beginning till the end is very beautiful and gentle with touching of devil's spirit, but mid-section is determined by a terrible wailings of guitar and saxophone (Fripp&Jackson) and satan-singing of Hammill. It gives a great impressions. The 3rd (and closing) song is the 23-minute suite called A PLAGUE OF LIGHYHOUSE KEEPERS. Visually this song is about catastrophe in the sea, but maybe really it's about total apocalypse with following rebirth. This great composition contains a lot of atonal sounds, but if you pay more attention you can hear a lot of excellent musical pictures andget a lot of fantastic impressions. The 1st part sounds like from lake bottom, with cool and gloomy atmosphere. Then some theatrical atonal pieces are following. Hammill sings by different voices ant intonations during all the song. Part-5 THE PRESENCE OF THE NIGHT/ COSMOS TOURS is the most tragic and beautiful piece on album: "I know that there's no time/I know that there's no rhyme.../false signs find me/I don't want to hate,/I just want to grow;/why can't I let me/live and be free?/but I die very slowly alone./I know more ways,/I am so afraid,/myself won't let me/just be myself/and so I am completely alone...". And then is an atonal piece again with the next piano-sounding Part-6 (CUSTARD'S) LAST STAND. And the 7th part THE CLOT THICKNESS sounds as "Otto von Bismark's Army is occupying the Europe with Satan's assistance" (let me such comparison).It sounds grandly and shows Hammill's "Deutchland-mania". And then is the closing part with powerful coda. And after all you can be sitting with widely opened eyes and mouth, because it was so impressive! Because there were so much unforgettablemusic!It's necessary to have PAWN HEARTS for really serious listeners. I'm sure.
READER COMMENTS
This album is saved by Graham Smith and his violin. "Lizard Play" sounds well basiclly just by Smith. Two next songs didn't add something new, but "Last Frame" is the best song from 1st side. It sounds rich and solemn-gloomy. But the real masterpiece of album is only CAT'S EYE YELLOWE FEVER (RUNNING). Violin sounds excellent creating the magical alarming atmosphere and guitar reproducing a snow-storm is wonderfull. This music reminds me the Hans Christian Anderson's tale about Snow Queen. "The Wave", "Sphinx in the Face", "The sphinx Return" are interesting. But "Chemical World" is dull, too long and has no worthy musical theme.
Conclusion: Mr. Hammill and Co. might play better. Album rating is 7 of 10.
READER COMMENTS