HW: NiXtar - Nikwind

[Carl E. Anderson]

> > This is the great thing about Hawkwind fandom, IMHO.  Personally, I think
> > the remakes you mention are hideous abominations---especially the pompous
> > bubblegum version of "Time We Left" on _Palace Springs_.
>
> Yes!  Argh, that one has driven me crazy ever since I bought the
> album.  Although I think Hawkwind's periodic redefinition of its sound
> is in many ways one of the most attractive things about the band,
> sometimes they try just a little too hard.  (The ambient synth-washed
> sound was wonderful for "The Golden Void", but not for "Time We
> Left").

        Aw ... I like the "Time We Left" on _Palace Springs_!  It
segues so nicely into "Heads" or whatever.  My only complaint is they
didn't keep the segue from "Treadmill".  That would have been excellent.

        Mind you, I like the SR and Doremi "Time" better!  But really I
like _everything_ on Palace Springs (even "Back in the Box"! ack!) *except*
"Acid Daze" which is mind-bogglingly dull and banal.

> When I saw them in 91(?) as a 3
> piece, it went against everything that I had expected to hear from
> Hawkwind - no layers of synths/violin/sax/flute/lead guitar/etc.  But
> you go to hear the music underneath, and I realised then that most
> Hawkwind songs, however much complex adornment they are given, are at
> their roots basic guitar driven rock-n-roll songs.

        Thus the vindication of Lemmy's statement that Hawkwind _are_
basically a 3-piece rock'n'roll band with a lot of toodle-lee toodle-la
on top! ;)
        And I'd agree--take away the 3-piece rock'n'roll band and you've
got nothing left but ambient noises.  Which are fine, but in themselves are
*not* Hawkwind.

        Which is why Dave needs to stop rocking around and (in the words
of the immortal Beavis and Butthead, music critics _extrordinaire_)
concentrate on rocking more!

Cheers,
Carl

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Carl Edlund Anderson              "So that's Terra.  Oohwee, look out
ASNAC Dept., Cambridge U.          wenchlings, here come the Hawklords."
cea20 at cus.cam.ac.uk                -Lord Lemmy (Hawkwind, _Space Ritual_)
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