I used to know this guy in high school who was an asshole.
Well, okay, I knew a lot of assholes in high school ... so did you I imagine. But this guy was a real asshole. Many years later as I came to learn about narcissistic personality disorder I realized that fit him to a "T". That is to say he was an NPD. I suppose I should feel sorry for him. But I've known a lot of NPD's since then. And I hate `em. Despicable people.
Fortunately, this particular one was out of my life 40+ years ago, where he shall forever remain. But anyway, he liked Hawkwind. Which was reason enough for me to pay no attention to them for years and years and years. Add in that they're associated with "prog" (not my thing) and have had little or no critical cache (oops) and there ya go. I didn't actually listen to Hawkwind till a couple years ago.
What led me to them was that they have developed a certain cache, particularly among musicians I dig (such as the guys from Rocket from the Tombs). Plus Lemmy was a member, and how cool is that? So one night a few years back I did indeed download Space Ritual. And it did indeed begin to grow on me. To the point where I have now become a fan of Hawkwind.
To illustrate what I find compelling (and different) about Hawkwind, allow me to steal some quotes from "schmitt", a member of Rate Your Music who has an interesting, annotated list which can be read here:
While it may seem strange today -
especially in the US, where they are all but forgotten outside of a
dwindling cult - back in the early 70s Hawkwind was, to many observers,
the most exciting rock band around. In an era where rock music seemed
less adventurous than ever, here was one band, at least, still holding
on to the spirit of '67, trying to expand the parameters of the genre.,,,
Psychedelia had virtually disappeared from the US by 1970. In
England, it morphed into space-rock, a genre Pink Floyd invented in 1967
on their debut LP, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn. ""Astronomy Domine" establishes the basic underpinnings of space-rock," Greg Shaw wrote in a March '73 article in Phonograph Record,
"steady, monotonous drumming, suggesting the relentless velocity of
space travel, and sharp, hard-edge rhythm guitar chording, representing
the unthinkably strong, firm metallic power of a space craft. Outer
space ambience is provided with the addition of weird organ sounds and
the de rigeur synthesizer whooshes. All of it combines to create the impression, still somewhat romanticized, of travel through space." To many critics, including Shaw, Pink Floyd was never the same after
Syd Barret's departure in 1968. "Pink Floyd seemed to become
preoccupied with mental space, and I rather lost interest," Shaw wrote
in 1973.
For Shaw, it was Hawkwind's second LP, In Search of Space,
that really accelerated the "basic raw space drive" of Pink Floyd's
early sound. "Tireless tomtom drumming, simple two-chord guitar rhythm,
voices intoning the title lyrics and the whole thing surrounded by a
universe of swirling, shooshing synthesizer noise. The whole album's
like that, and it's great." Lester Bangs, who reviewed the album in the
6/22/72 issue of Rolling Stone, agreed. "If you're glad that most of
that stuff is part of the past now, you'll probably think this album is a
pile of dogshit," he wrote. "If, on the other hand, you remember the
absolute glee of filling your skull with all those squawks and shrieks
and backwards-tapes and telegraphic open-tuned bridges between
indescribable inner worlds conjured best neither by this music nor
psychedeliteful elixirs but rather by a fortuitous combination of the
two - if that was one of your favorite eras in the decline of Western
Civilization, then you'd better glom onto this album... which may not be
rock 'n' roll, but certainly beats "Fire 'n' Rain.""
Shaw, Bangs and schmitt couldn't have it more right. And if you're thinking Hawkwind is starting to sound like their almost more in Velvets or Stooges territory, you'd be right. The early Hawkwind albums are indeed non-stop assaults of hypnotic, pounding grooves, slamming guitar and voices chanting sparse lyrics over and over the din, while weird electronic sounds add color and spectacle. Early Hawkwind ultimately has more in common with The Ramones than with prog. And it rocks.
Add in their reputation for drug use, crashing rock festivals uninvited, inviting audience participation and filling their stage with nutty light shows and big-titted, body-painted nude dance named Stacia and, well, here's a band right up my alley!
Hawkwind has been through a fairly dizzying array of members and some significant stylistic changes. Their best stuff was made by the "classic" lineup of Dave Brock (the band's mainstay), Nik Turner on sax, Robert Calvert on vox, Del Dettmar on keys, Simon King on the traps and Lemmy Kilmister hisself of bass. SST's Joe Carducci accurately described them thus: "Brock's guitar provided a heavily distorted wall of sound that rose
and fell as if it were some bonehead bass line. Lemmy's bass with its
high end distortion would roam around carrying the melody with it. Nick
Turner [sic] played two or maybe three note patterns on the sax that
would fade in and then fade out like old Nick was only orbiting this
planet. Terry Ollis or Simon King on drums would keep up a straight
pulsing pattern. Dik Mik, Del Dettmar and Simon House might then add odd
spiraling electronic noises - strictly low tech action - or they might
have to help the roadies keep Brock and Turner propped up. Bob Calvert
or Michael Moorcock might be found jabbering on about Vikings and space
maidens over the top of it all. And all together it sounded great - a
soaring, psychedelic hard rock drone. The fourth album, a live double
titled, Space Ritual, is a viable substitute for actually getting wasted yourself."
For me, it's the early stuff that counts - Hawkwind (their first, much maligned by fans but I think it's one of their most consistently engaging), In Search of Space, Doremi Fasol Latido and finally the epochal Space Ritual. After Ritual, their sound begins to change. Hall of the Mountain Grill and Warrior On the Edge of Time have a lighter feel and sound, and move closer to typical prog rock, albeit with less noodling. I should note that true Hawkwind followers rate those two to be among their finest, so use yer own judgment. The later 70's sees them moving in an almost "new wave"/pop direction; in the 80's the sound is more like pop-metal. The 90's were marked by a return to something closer to the classic sound. I'm still exploring. Starfarer's Hawkind Album Guide will help guide the interested through their dizzying catalog.
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