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░ ██ ██ Artist: Hawklords ██ ██
▓ █░░ ■█ Album: Dream █■ ░░█
■ █▓▀ █ Year: 2013 █ ▀▓█ ░
█ ▓ Rel. Date: 2016-01-14 ▓ █
▒ ▒ Genre: Progressive Rock ▒ ▒
█▄ ░ Label: self-released ░ ▄█
░ █▄ ░ Source: CD ░ ▄█
░ █▓ Type: Album ▓█ ░
▓ █ Quality: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo █ ░ ▓
▓ █ █ ░ ▓
▄ ■ ■ ▓ ■
░█ █░ ▀
█ Active between 1978 and 1979, Hawklords were an █
█ offshoot from a recently disbanded Hawkwind and █
█ originally featured Hawkwind members Robert █
█ Calvert, Dave Brock and Simon King with the █
█ addition of Harvey Bainbridge, Martin Griffin and █
█ ex-Pilot keyboard player Steve Swindells. █
█ By 1979, Steve Swindells and Robert Calvert had █
█ left, whilst Dave Brock, Simon King and Harvey █
█ Bainbridge were joined by Huw Lloyd-Langton and █
█ Tim Blake in 1979 in a newly reformed Hawkwind. █
█ In 2009, the Hawklords re-formed without Dave █
█ Brock, consisting of ex-members Steve Swindells, █
█ Martin Griffin and Harvey Bainbridge and joined by █
█ other ex-Hawkwind members such as Nik Turner, Alan █
█ Davey, Adrian Shaw, Jerry Richards, Ron Tree, █
█ Terry Ollis and is set to also include Bridget █
█ Wishart. █
█ █
█ --- █
█ █
█ The excellent 'We Are One' was always going to be █
█ a hard act to follow, and a lot of people in with █
█ the band had told me that 'Dream' was better, █
█ which always worries me, recalling similar things █
█ said about 'Onward' and 'Blood of the Earth', █
█ neither of which I like much in comparison to █
█ other Hawkwind albums. I saw four of the new █
█ tracks performed live at On Board The Craft on 7 █
█ September and like a lot of the audience I was █
█ left wondering whether I liked them or not. The █
█ album is different from other Hawklords stuff and █
█ not like Hawkwind at all, in fact I would █
█ hestitate to call it Space Rock. But it is good! █
█ The opening track Dream a Dream starts with █
█ melodic riffs and swooshing synths before the █
█ vocals eventually kick in, at which point the █
█ music changes drastically. It's a strong track, █
█ lyrics powerful but repetitive. There was a taster █
█ on YouTube which was the intro from another track █
█ (White Rag) and the first part of this song. In a █
█ way it works better as a shorter song as the █
█ vocals tend to meander off, however it could have █
█ worked equally well with another verse. The █
█ ending is weak for an otherwise great song. █
█ D.N.A. is a short strong track, harking on █
█ familiar themes for Ron Tree (all the tracks are █
█ jointly credited to Hawklords but this has Ron's █
█ hallmarks all over it), 'the suits have took our █
█ dreams away', urban chaos and mentions of tattooed █
█ skin. █
█ Elemental Mind is a beautiful tune, melodic and █
█ with wonderful vocals. Still haven't worked out █
█ the █
█ backwards vocals at the beginning though! █
█ The fourth track Nowhere Everywhere is a true █
█ ballad, again with many of Ron's hallmarks, a █
█ post-punk poem if you like. Jerry's guitar █
█ towards the end is almost country and western. █
█ Paul Hayles guests on this one. Slow and melodic, █
█ a great album track but not a crowd pleaser for a █
█ live show. █
█ After that we suddenly jump into a rocky dance █
█ number, I.D. Man. Funny how this, Secret Agent and █
█ Cold War Kid can treat the same theme so █
█ differently. This fairly bounces along, no █
█ shortage of blanga on this track, but in a way it █
█ is trying too hard to be boppy, with the sing █
█ along lyrics, especially the ending - all together █
█ now I-D-E-N-T-I-T-Y! The raunchy guitar solo in █
█ the middle is good, although too short. There's █
█ some social commentary in there too, if you look, █
█ but I like this track least on the album. █
█ On the sleeve notes John Constable aka John Crow █
█ is co-credited with the next track, Nature's █
█ Dance, although in the booklet he is credited with █
█ White Rag. It starts with jungle noises, swirling █
█ synths and oscilators, then lead and bass guitars █
█ come in. The lyrics are deep and powerfully sung, █
█ with some beautiful guitar work by Jerry and a █
█ powerful drum beat. Nature's Dance Coda, the next █
█ track, is really part two of the same song though █
█ musically it is totally different. I wanted to █
█ dance to it straight away but it's less than two █
█ minutes long. Great lyrics, like the previous █
█ track, on an ecological theme, with a bit of urban █
█ decay thrown in for good measure. IMHO this is █
█ the track that reminds me most of Hawkwind and █
█ also the best track. █
█ White Rag is an odd one, it starts with tinkley █
█ synths and drums before turning into musings of █
█ all the █
█ possible symbolisms of a white rag to a heavy, █
█ punky back beat. After the first verse it █
█ suddenly goes a bit jazz-funky. The next version █
█ pure spoken verse, with lots of mentions of trees █
█ (and a little giggle) - Ron or John Crow's lyrics █
█ I can't tell, but it keeps haunting me. The last █
█ part, a repeated lyric, is sung with echoed █
█ refrain from the rest of the band. They need to █
█ find a better ending to some of their songs █
█ instead of repetition. █
█ Dead Air is a work of genius. It starts with █
█ backwards noises and the vocals are mutated and █
█ weird - I can't work out who is singing but can █
█ only conclude it is Ade (or possibly Dave) because █
█ it isn't Ron, Jerry or Harvey. The first time I █
█ heard it I thought it was horrible, the second █
█ time it had me in fits of giggles. I will say no █
█ more except there's no danger of Hawklords getting █
█ pretentious. █
█ The final track is the only live one but it's an █
█ amalgam of the intro from a gig in Berlin and the █
█ vocals from Sonic Rock Solstice in 2012. If you █
█ haven't seen Hawklords live you need to know Jerry █
█ and Ron do an impromptu dialogue which is never █
█ the same twice, the pair of them bouncing off each █
█ other. This one was a classic, having been at the █
█ gig I can testify to how funny and good it was at █
█ the time. The sort of thing that you afterwards █
█ wish you could remember properly - and here it is! █
█ The music starts properly and Ron does an █
█ 'ignition check' bit so you could be mistaken for █
█ thinking it's going to be Ejection or Right Stuff █
█ but it quickly becomes the very spooky number █
█ Psychic Eyes. Brilliant lyrics although I do find █
█ the line 'I stood naked in a trance' a little █
█ distracting (calm down, Jane!), and a brilliant █
█ end to the album. █
▓ ▓
▒ ▒
░ 1. Dream a Dream 7:34 ░
░ 2. D.N.A. 3:41 ░
░ 3. Elemental Mind 4:40 ░
░ 4. Nowhere Everywhere 4:47 ░
░ 5. I.D. Man 2:52 ░
░ 6. Nature's Dance 6:56 ░
░ 7. Nature's Dance Coda 2:00 ░
░ 8. White Rag 6:22 ░
░ 9. Dead Air 2:53 ░
░ 10. Psychic Eyes 7:00 ░
░ 48:45 ░
░ ▒ ▒
▓ █ ░ ▓ ░
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