PATIENCE

There is an extended band featured on this album. Not only the line-up who recorded the very good "Enter K", it is even broadened with Stuart Gordon on the violin (amongst others).

This is providing probably a less "solo" feeling throughout the album.

But it is also a bit of a deception when I compared it to his prior work (one of his best IMO). Not that this album is bad, but there are hardly any highlights featured. It also has a more "eighties" sound which is not always welcome ("Film Noir").

The next couple of songs are showing a dual Peter: the intimate one during "Just Good Friends" which is peaceful and very sweet (also one of my fave here) while "Jeunesse Dorée" shows the intricate and tortured aspect of his personality. The latter is of course more difficult to apprehend.

The more one advances in the listening of this album, the better the compositions sound. Some "Watcher." feeling during "Traintime" is quite funny. I guess that it is one reason for me to like it more than average. My fave track out of "Patience". But "Now More Than Ever" just completes the picture.

I would say that this album offers some good Hammill songs, probably not on par with "Enter K", but still when one considers the period during which this album was released, one can only be in admiration for Peter's lack of compromise. He never fell as low as all the majors.Hats off Peter!

Three stars for "Patience". Rather an accessible album (within Hammill's standards of course).