An excellent idea (if, perhaps, a somewhat self-indulgent one): 12 of Peter Hammill's finest recent songs, rendered into the German language that his more stentorian vocals seemed to be striving for, even in English.
Titled for Out of Water's "Evidently Goldfish," the album is dominated by material from the early '90s: cuts from Fireships and The Noise account for more than half the album, while the remainder is culled from 1988's In a Foreign Town and 1986's And Close As This.
But Offensichtlich Goldfisch is no simple retread of already familiar material.
Although little more than the vocals were re-recorded from the original master tapes, the musical textures change immensely in their new setting, regardless of whether or not one understands German.
Familiar imagery is skewed, expected emphasis is delayed or dismissed altogether, and Offensichtlich Goldfisch unexpectedly emerges as one of the most surprising albums that Hammill has put his name to in a long time.