Scott Walker - Climate of Hunter (1984) Remastered 2006

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Scott Walker - Climate of Hunter (1984) Remastered 2006

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Scott Walker is a conceptualist. He's stated numerous times that he knows what the music will sound like before he steps into the studio. Such confidence of form betrays a seamless narrative from 60s vocal pop composer to 21st century Beckett-esque sound builder. But if taken from beginning to the present Scott's always had a cohesive ligament throughout, be it chanson or block of sound. "Track 6" from Climate of Hunter is the obvious tell-tale piece that predicts the next decade's work, Tilt, just as "Sleepwalkers Woman" is a continuation of the atonal string-based vocal dreamscape found in the 70s "The Electrician" and all over the 60s Scott 3, particularly "It's Raining Today" and "Big Louise." Perceived breaks from conventional "beloved" 60s recordings are only that – perceived.

Trying to name a singular Scott recording that distills such an artist's work is a bizarre feat. Each decade holds a distinct phase, and yet each title is one in a series of growing, ever-expanding waves upon the last disturbance. You can almost see Scott Walker's releases as challenges to the limitations of language and style of each decade, more so than just someone trying to be avant garde. Climate of Hunter is distinct because it tackles something as bland and neat as sleek 80s production: What seems as well-paced as any other 60s maven's stab at an 80s comeback is actually a transitional space between Nite Flights and Tilt. The flash of 70s pulsing austere-disco-punk percussion found on "Fat Mama Kick" and "Nite Flights" gives way to subtler, stripped down drum work that allows for a greater complexity of tonal/vocal/atonal/harmonic composition. Scott has stated that he did not let session musicians play together so as to break up the cohesion of instrumentation. Each track on Climate is like some slow night seizure, with a cold, Scott 3-like laser beam of atonal drone driving what seams like an unrelated vocal take over languid bass lines and other gray, muted tonal stabs to counter any sense of pop sensibility that the drums and vocals may allude to.

Hunter is a unique spot in Scott's timeline. You can sense his leaving conventional tonal composition and working towards something he may not be able to put his finger on but has a good idea beforehand. Be it the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, or 2000s, Scott's work is a ring in a ripple of ripples, growing larger and larger, around other ripples.

Review by Philippe Landry, Amazon.com

Scott Walker's sole utterance of the 1980's, Climate Of Hunter is both frozen in time yet timeless. Featuring fretless bass and gated drums (the reverb effect you can hear on Phil Collin's 'In The Air Tonight' when the real drums kick in) anchors the album in the early 80's. And yet…. this is so ahead of its time it contrarily doesn't feel like it's dated at all. Walker pointed the way to the style of this album on his four self-penned tracks on the final Walker Brothers album 'Nite Flights', and in particular on 'The Electrician'. Cut-up lyrics William Burroughs style mean the subject matter is impenetrable but fascinating as you struggle to find meaning. Sometimes atonal arrangements are hugely atmospheric, and the whole of this short album is sequenced perfectly. Layered over the top are Walker's peerless vocals, that rich baritone supplemented on 'Track 3' bizarrely by Billy Ocean. Indeed half of the tracks here have no proper title, with contributing musicians also given no hint of a melody line to remove any chance of preconception of what to play. The nearest atmospherically I could compare this album to is side 2 of David Bowie's 'Low'. It's experimental, it's a world away from those giant albums 'Scott'-'Scott 4'…. and yet it's accessible. It's a towering work. Each track deserves it's place as much as the next and at just 31 minutes leaves you wanting more. This album cements the mystic surrounding Walker and is core listening for anyone looking to investigate this enigmatic artist.

Review by D J F, Amazon.co.uk Top Reviewer

Walker's only album of the 1980s was both a blow for artistic credibility, and a blow against most of his old fans. The voice of the balladeer was still intact, and still even crooned sometimes. But the arrangements backed brow-furrowing, obtuse lyrics with '80s-oriented rock that incorporated some quasi-classical structures. Walker was seemingly more interested in painting abstracts in which the textures counted more than the content. This made for an album which may have been a hell of a lot more interesting than '80s efforts by other '60s pop stars, but at the same time it was rather impenetrable, and one's attention tended to drift off over the course of the set. Yet it was not half as radical as the avant-garde direction he would stake out with his next album ten years later, Tilt.

Review by Richie Unterberger, Allmusic.com

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Scott Walker - Climate of Hunter (1984) Remastered 2006

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Scott Walker - Climate of Hunter (1984) Remastered 2006

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