Hawkwind Albums (36)
What The Critics Say
It's been a long time coming, but after years of putting up with substandard and/or harshly edited recordings of the Hawklords in full flight, the full text of their November 1978 show at the Brunel University on the outskirts of London has now materialized and it's as great as we always suspected it would be. With the Hawklords' 25 Years On album then fresh on the shelves (as, indeed, it was again when this arrived, reappearing in a deluxe edition just months earlier), the band was guaranteed a loyal, loud audience. What the audience wasn't sure of was how it would be rewarded for that loyalty. For all the similarities in personnel, etc, the Hawklords were a very different proposition to the hawks that spawned them, just as the album was a distinct step away from even the mothership's most recent recordings. And so it transpired, with a set that barely glanced back towards the band's commercial glory days, and focused instead on the here and now. Six tracks from this performance have seen the light of day in the past: the opening salvo of "Automaton," "25 Years," "High Rise," "Death Trap," and, from a little later in the show, "Spirit of the Age" and "Sonic Attack." New to your ears, then, are "The Age of the Micro Man," "Urban Guerrilla," "Psi Power," and the closing firestorm of "Brainstorm," truly one of the most ferocious performances that song has ever witnessed. Add exemplary sound quality and a booklet that oozes the customary Atomhenge attention to detail, and another piece of the mighty Hawkwind jigsaw slips seamlessly into place. ~ Dave Thompson, All Music Guide
'Winter Solstice 2005'
Release Date 1/1/2008
Tracks 15
Label Hawk Records
See Album Tracklist and Review
'Take Me to Your Future'
Release Date 9/21/2006
Tracks 12
Label Hawkwind
See Album Tracklist and Review
'Take Me to Your Leader'
Release Date 9/19/2006
Tracks 10
Label Hawkwind
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What The Critics Say
Whereas space rock pioneers Pink Floyd soon turned their back on the style they helped invent (and created another musical style: prog rock), fellow space rock pioneers Hawkwind have stayed put on their spaceship throughout the years. And they continue to do so, as evidenced by their 2006 release, Take Me to Your Leader, which manages to combine a modern edge with the all trippiness that abounds. The band -- still led by mustachioed singer/guitarist/songwriter Dave Brock -- continues to have a soft spot for soundscape detours ("Spirit of the Age"), isn't afraid to crank up the old Marshalls ("To Love a Machine"), and can morph into Radiohead-esque shapes in the blink of an eye ("Digital Nation"). While the majority of their space rock comrades have gone the way of the Death Star, Hawkwind continues to lean heavily on the hyperspace button all these years later. ~ Greg Prato, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
A truly phenomenal package, Hawkwind's Live 1984-1995 might (in the continued absence of any significant '70s footage) stand as the ultimate guide to the live Hawkwind experience. Across three stuffed DVDs, three full concerts -- from 1984, 1985 and 1995 -- capture the band in what has always been its native state, on-stage with the volume cranked high, the light show on stun, and every nerve end aching in anticipation. Shot in Ipswich, England, the 1984 performance (originally released on VHS as Night of the Hawks) is the most traditional of the three shows, a virtual greatest-hits set that sees the recently returned and lavishly costumed Nik Turner fronting the band with delirious eccentricity. The 1985 performance, meanwhile, captures what remains one of Hawkwind's most lavish productions, the Chronicle of the Black Sword epic that strung new and old material together, to form one captivating whole, and which winds up with both a pounding encore performance featuring a guesting Michael Moorcock (catch the brilliant "Born to Go"!) and the seldom-seen promo for the "Needle Gun" single. Finally, Love in Space was shot during the 1995 Alien 4 tour, with the four-piece band now fronted by Ron Tree and aided and abetted by sundry performance artists. Musically, this is the least essential of the three discs, but visually, it's as powerful as any Hawkwind performance should be, and at least includes an astonishing version of "Death Trap." ~ Dave Thompson, All Music Guide
'Canterbury Fayre 2001'
Release Date 1/1/2002
Tracks 16
Label Hawk Record
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Another day, another live Hawkwind album but, before we go any further, one thing must be made clear. This album is not. . .a remastered recycling, an upgraded bootleg, a degrading rip-off. It is, however, the best full-length Hawkwind concert documentary in 30 years, a two-CD set that, in terms of sonic assault, accumulated orgones, and universal mastery, renders even the best-heeled of its myriad predecessors redundant as anything but historical documents. A Hawkwind live album you'll actually want to play more than twice. Caught, indeed, at the so-called Canterbury Fayre concert in 2001, a lineup that merges the veterans Dave Brock, Simon House, and Alan Davey with more recent recruits Keith Kniveton and Richard Chadwick, drifts, dreams, and demands your attention through a set that, though hyper-heavy on older material, sounds almost frighteningly fresh -- frightening because some of the songs here are older than the audience listening to them ("Hurry On Sundown" was already in its thirties), but step out with as much punch and verve as numbers infinitely their junior.In sheer musical terms, it's the presence of Simon House that lends so much of the energy and electricity to the set, his keyboards and violin not only creating the perfect backwash for the riffs and rhythms, but also coaxing the band towards numbers they might otherwise have passed over -- his own "Spiral Galaxy," of course, but also an "Assassins of Allah" that sounds as relevant today as it was when it first appeared (in 1977, as "Hassan I Sabha").Songs that so many cheap and nasty rip-off collections have ground into the dirt (oh good, another live "Angels of Death") are totally reinvigorated, while the hoariest oldie of them all, the inevitable "Silver Machine," is given an even more startling face-lift, as old Hellfire himself, Arthur Brown, steps out to unsheath an operatic lead vocal and, while the band prepares for the encore, a brief but smirk-worthy poem.The sense of occasion engendered by Brown's presence is overwhelming; the sense of triumph unveiled by the album itself is unsurpassed. Of course Space Ritual remains the benchmark by which all Hawkwind live albums should be measured. But Canterbury Fayre 2001 proves that they remain capable of reaching those same lofty peaks. ~ Dave Thompson, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
There are so many live recordings of Hawkwind on the market now that words like "best" or "essential live album" simply have lost any signification. The double-CD set Yule Ritual presents the better part of the seminal space rock group's performance at the Astoria (London, England), the venue chosen for its annual year-end show in 2000. The lineup consisted of Dave Brock, Richard Chadwick, Ali, Tim Blake (also of Gong), Simon House, and Jerry Richards. Ron Tree, Mike Moorcock, and Capt Rizz walked on-stage to sing a few songs. Heith Hniveton contributed some EMS synthesizer lines, Jez Huggett touches of saxophone and flute. The whole band was in good shape and positive mood, giving a good, slightly higher than average performance. The set is a cross section of the group's career (three decades by then). Some songs were inevitable and if "High Rise" and "Spirit of the Age" have known better days, "Assassins of Allah" still packs enough energy to make a worthy show-closer and Moorcock delivers an excellent performance in "Sonic Attack." "Hurry on Sundown" (from the group's infancy) and "Space Is Deep" are nice inclusions. In short, good moments abound, there are many examples of interesting jamming, but nothing out of the ordinary and no reason to recommend this live album over other ones. A safe bet. ~ François Couture, All Music Guide
'Spacebrock'
Release Date 1/1/2001
Tracks 17
Label Hawkwind/Voiceprint
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Spacebrock was released as a new Hawkwind album in late 2000. (It feels necessary to be precise about this after all the archival material issued during the 1990s.) Dave Brock is in full control of the spaceship, handling vocals, guitar, keyboards, and special effects. Dr. Technical contributes drum tracks, while Hawkman handles bass and violin. Many other guests provide material on specific tracks, but this is basically a Brock album. It begins with two pieces taken from movies. "Some People Never Die" (which includes TV host commentaries at JFK's shooting) had appeared in a slightly different form as "Assassination" on The Weird Tapes No. 1. It is one of the most powerful tracks on this CD. "Dreamers" has beautiful spoken lyrics. "You Burn Me Up" is a typical Hawkwind rock anthem and should be an instant live favorite. "Sex Dreams" is two inches away from being a club track ("Do You Want This Body" crosses the line), and features a sexy female voice asking the question "Ever thought about having a dream during sex?" over and over. Hawkwind's message is still true to the original: take care of Mother Earth, free yourself from the alienating corporate world, have fun, and dream. The musical vision oscillates between dance tracks and ethereal space songs with the band's hard rock stylings still standing firmly in the middle; the whole picture is of kaleidoscopic proportions. Spacebrock is enjoyable, but there are more important items in the band's discography. ~ François Couture, All Music Guide
'Distant Horizons'
Release Date 1/1/1997
Tracks 10
Label Emergency Broadcasting System
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What The Critics Say
This CD, recorded between January and July of 1997, was released on Hawkwind's own Emergency Broadcasting System label. The lineup of the group on this one was band founder Dave Brock, Richard Chadwick, Ron Tree, and Jerry Richards. The opening title track is in a techno/trance-ish style, a sound that is one of Hawkwind's newer modes. However, lest the listener be fooled by that fact, that one and the album closer are the only two pieces that are in that vein. The rest of the disc has a texture that is more along the lines of the music the group produced during the tenures of Nik Turner and Robert Calvert. The second track will quickly shatter that techno inclination on its own. Called "Phetamine Street," it feels much like "Uncle Sam's on Mars." There are also several progressive rock-leaning compositions present on the album. Of the harder-rocking material, "Alchemy" really stands out. It is one that feels at times a lot like "Hassan I Shaba" (alternately known as "Assassins of Allah"), but features a section that is full on heavy metal. It makes for an interesting twist on the tried-and-true Hawkwind sound. Curiously enough, although there is a listing for "Love in Space" as track 11 on the CD, the aforementioned techno book-ending number (entitled "Taxi for Max") comes in at number ten, with no "Love in Space" to be found. ~ Gary Hill, All Music Guide
'California Brainstorm'
Release Date 3/5/1996
Tracks 7
Label Griffin Music
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Although this disc says that it was released by agreement with Dave Brock, it really feels a lot like a bootleg recording. The sound quality here is very good, if it is a boot, but as an actual official release it seems a bit flat. The material chosen leans heavily on the instrumental side of the band, with only a few of the songs having vocals. All those things considered, this really is a very good live album and captures some wonderful performances. ~ Gary Hill, All Music Guide
