Peter Hammill

After the first two tunes, "German Overalls and "Slender Threads," you think you're sinking into a singer-songwriter album gnarled with strange effects. Hammill then drops the hammer on "Rock and Role," a chunk of dirty glam, and from there on out, all bets are off. The only guarantee is that Hammill is going to subvert all of Van Der Graaf's prog-rock chops with raw production, primitive shenanigans, lethal venom and a desolate sense of beauty. Chameleon ain't easy, but it's worth the effort.