Disc 1

Disc 2

Reviews

Good evening one and all'.
'Everything you need is on your TV'.
'There's only one way out' and that is to give this double 'live' CD the playing time it needs to develop. It is 'live', live in a TV studio, which leaves the sound clean and clear, but slightly hollow, and the audience are a distant memory referred to in one or two vague instances. It is not one to dip in and out of looking for favourite tracks, nor I would suggest one for the Hawkwind novice. So what is it? It nearly works as a performance which is what Hawkwind are and have always been in their thirty something years. It is extremely familiar territory to anyone who knows the band well as it is one more version of the Bridgett Wishart vocal years. If you've heard or got 'Space Bandits', 'California Brainstorm', 'Classic Rock/Live Legends' Video/DVD, and the USA Tour, 1989/90 Video (from Hawkwind Merchandising) then this may as well complete your early 90's set! The standouts on CD 1 are undoubtedly the swirling sweeping 'Karnac Intro' with distant riffs fading and floating into 'Angels of Death' before the conical 'Void of Golden Light'. 'Out of the Shadows' is its scorching 'pacey' and poetic self with 'Night of The Hawks' at an all time high; Bridgett's vocals really work at balancing the subtle musicality of the track. The barking mad 'TV Suicide' is earnest and slightly tongue in cheek, Harvey Bainbridge at the pulpit, and I'm sure the irony is not lost on either him or the band.

CD 2 opens with ethereal 'ending' of 'TV Suicide', which is a little awkward but gives the space like introduction to set the scene so we can bounce into 'Back in The Box'. Harvey and Bridgett exchanging psycho political babble, Harvey at the pulpit again, which I find a hoot but I'm sure it will irritate some. 'If we wave it around a bit', your brain that is, then this could be your favourite track! Disc Two is a combination of the seeming continuation of the performance with 'Assassins of Allah' and the driving, excellent Wishart fronted 'Images' before alternate takes of 'Void', 'Out of the Shadows', 'Snake Dance', 'Night of The Hawks', 'Back in The Box' and then we pick up the thread again with 'Utopia' as you do and with a Simon House violin influenced version of 'Damnation Alley' Parts 1 and 2 to conclude.

I'm not completely sure where this sits in the Hawkwind releases flood of the last few years but I'll suggest the quality of musicianship make it worth adding to the collection and it is an excellent summary of this Hawkwind line up.

Phil Sawdon

This double CD from 2002 offers 142 minutes of live spacerock from Hawkwind's 1990 concert in Nottingham. (Technically, portions of this release were sourced from a gig done by the band for a British television show called "Bedrock"...but the liner notes are obstinately unhelpful in determining what songs come from where.)

Hawkwind's line-up (circa 1990) were: Dave Brock on guitar, voice, and synths; Harvey Bainbridge on synths and voice; Alan Davey on bass, synths, and voice; Simon House on violin; Richard Chadwick on drums and percussion; and Bridgett Wishart on vocals.

You get a wide range of songs, including classic tuneage like: "Angels of Death", "Ejection", "Night of the Hawks", "Assassins of Allah", "Utopia", "Damnation Alley"; and new-at-the-time songs like: "Wings", "Out of the Shadows", "Snake Dance", "TV Suicide", and "Back in the Box". Also featured are non-LP tracks like "The 7th Star" and "Your Secret's Safe with Me". (Several of these songs appear twice on the CD, indicating the duality of concerts represented here. Where one gig ends and the other begins though, is a mystery to even the most discerning listener.)

As expected, the performance is crisp and professional, yet raw with unbridled cosmic force. The plethora of synthesizers provides an eternal spaciness for the agile guitar and slippery keyboards and sultry bass and driving percussion. House's violin adds an ethereal wail that elevates the songs beyond mortal ken, revealing mysteries of the void amid the savage passion.

Bridgett Wishart has the distinction of being the first female vocalist to work with Hawkwind (the only one, too, if you overlook Samantha Fox's brief collaboration with the band in 1993 recording Hawkwind's contribution to the "Gimme Shelter" benefit CD EP). Wishart's rich voice lends a startling humanity to the tracks here, a benevolent counterpoint to the commanding masculine vocals that normally grace the band's intense excursions into speculative music. The concerts featured on this live double CD offer revealing glimpses into Wishart's earliest days with the band. Hawkwind concerts are generally dazzling experiences, exhausting for the band and the audience. This release excellently demonstrates that sheer power.