HW: Hawkwind Xmas Party @ the Forum, 20/12/01

[Jonathan Jarrett]

        Dear All,
                  and now the Hawkwind one...

This was Thursday the 20th, the same day as Nik Turner has long been
playing in Crewe as it happens and also the same day Gong play London
which is a right cockup on someone's part. But anyway, it was their
Christmas party. We got there slightly late, as the acts had started with
the doors (why do the Forum do that? It's daft? The crowd can't be in by
the first number even if they are very few), and caught the last two and a
bit numbers by Glasgow band Mr Quimby's Beard. I've heard them compared to
the Ozrics but in fact I thought they were just about carving out their
own space, which was much like Hawkwind except more improvised. I say
that. The interplay between the five-piece (two guitars, bass, keys,
drums) did seem quite spontaneous but the actual song structures were a
little bit on the familiar side. The penultimate number was Hawkwind's
`The Watcher' and `Lighthouse' wrapped together. The last one, more
interestingly, was `Free Fall' by Hawkwind wrapped round `Saucerful of
Secrets Pt. IV' by Pink Floyd, with a very high-energy break section in
the middle. But you know, I could use more of that stuff. If someone wants
to jam around Hawkwind and Floyd routines in the dark and deep kind of way
these guys were I will probably buy their record. I actually didn't, but
that was because of money concerns and the fact that someone was telling
me their records have more techno and industrial on than they were
sounding. It's on the list though; definitely a good band.

        Tim Blake was up next, the same solo synth-and-computer set-up
we're used to, but with stuff I'd not heard him do before. I had wondered
beforehand if there would be any variation in set and the only ones I
recognised were `Tide of the Century' and `New Jerusalem' (which he said
he only did because people complained if he didn't) so that showed me. He
dedicated the first song to his daughter, who was born the night after
last year's Christmas do, so we all wished her Happy Birthday. He was
good, as ever; poor voice but musically fine. Nothing special to report.

        Hawkwind were better than I have ever seen them. I know I've said
this for several recent gigs but they are honestly so. Better almost every
time. And moreover, and more noticeably, heavier. Not that the bass was
higher in the mix but just that there seemed to be more of it. Dave was
the same, Huw well up in the treble range but altogether it was thoroughly
boneshaking. I suspect Simon's synth work may have been giving extra
undercurrents I couldn't clearly hear. Sound was not perfect, treble a
little crowded and bass indistinct, but nothing to complain of, I wasn't
losing anything and Huw could be heard even though I was wrong side of the
stage. Dave could be heard also, and everyone was on fine form. Simon not
quite as electric as Walthamstow but as he explained his hands were too
cold at the start of the set, And indeed since my breath was still
streaming by the end of it they must have been bloody freezing. Played
bloody well even so.

        Other surprises were D. T. Turbine's drum-kit on stage (made a
difference did that) and Rizz not being objectionable. A long-time fan
next to us greeted his arrival with the aside, "He's a strange character,
isn't he?" which I thought expressed it nicely. But in fact even he had
shaken his words up a bit and was actually quite effective in places.

        That's the important thing I think. After a tour only just
finished I wasn't expecting much variation, but there were changes
everywhere. Dave was playing round the riffs a bit; Huw was making
unearthly noise; Alan was not only heavier but self-consciously it seemed
changing bass parts and changing things, almost as if he'd heard me
on-list after the RFH gig saying how he and Richard made everything sound
the same. Richard, when he came back to the kit after Danny's one slot
alone (see below) seemed to be paying much more attention to the bottom
end and mid-range of the kit as if he'd just been reminded what rock
drumming was like. Simon was playing a bit more fiddle than usual, it was
in a way like everyone had got back to basics by varying the set
pattern. And the parts where Tim was playing were much better than the
shaky attempts to fit him in at the RFH, much better integrated, used to
much more effect. Overall effect very impressive. Inspiring even. And
witness the set-list!

        (Brock, Chadwick, Lloyd Langton, House, Thompson, Davey)
Magnu -> Down Through the Night -> Horn of Fate (excellent Magnu, two
        drum-kits most essential but no violin because of Simon's
        hands, `Down Through the Night' only run through twice but
        excellent, heavy and Space Ritual-like, and `Horn of Fate' only
        really the last 16 bars but there for all that to wind it up)
        (+ Blake)
Lighthouse (does sound better with Tim's synths, glad to have him
        there)
Levitation (good rendition, but what made this one for me was the
        techno breakdown section in the middle. Usually uninteresting,
        this time electric. Tim and Dave played off each other like
        masters, each filling in the gaps in the sound where the other
        was improvising. Tim's percussion machinery perfectly
        integrated. I hadn't yet twigged to the fact that Richard also
        had a drum-machine and some kind of basic bass synth/beats
        machine set up behind the kit and that may well have been
        helping, but it seemed unplanned quite how far off the ground
        it got. Ali and Huw were left with nothing to do for several
        minutes before finally picking up on the beat and beginning to
        echo it with stings and hooks and soft strumming and that
        really took it off. Very high energy stuff. I was almost sorry
        when they eventually fell (seamlessly I might add) back into
        the verse. Tim and Dave must form a techno project immediately,
        and stop each other from committing the unexciting pieces each
        is capable of alone)
        (- Blake)
Spiral Galaxy 28948 (Simon beginning to pick it up now, not much
        choice really given the number; good but not up to Walthamstow
        where it was instant transcedence)
        (+ Blake, - Chadwick)
Moonglum (Huw not in the best voice ever but it's a top song, and
        Danny can actually play these days, ending with a mini-solo to
        show us so, indeed; Richard as I say seemed to have been paying
        attention)
        (- Blake, - Thompson, + Chadwick)
Brainbox Pollution -> Wind of Change (solid, no faults, Richard being
        heavier than before)
        (+ Rizz)
The Watcher (Rizz prefaced this with a short I-suppose-I-have-to-
        call-it-a-poem about, shockingly, a watcher, but it was over
        quickly and so I didn't really mind how poor it was, and the
        number itself was really good, heavy and menacing; Rizz went
        off as it got going)
Spacebrock (second surprise of the night, and top track; is it just
        me or would this have gone perfectly on the new Bedouin album?
        Seemed as if not everyone knew it too well, as it ended people
        seemed to be playing four interlocking songs and I'm not sure
        who was in control, but you know, it still flew... )
        (Brock solo)
?Morpheus -> Sonic Attack (at least I think that's what it must be;
        the rhythm synth line of the first track was from `Auctioneer'
        on Family Tree but the top half was new to me; however, our
        weathered fan companion told us it was on Memos and Demos and
        from reviews posted to the list I think this is the only
        plausible contendor; it simplified slowly into a pulsing beat
        and Rizz arrived on, while Dave donned glasses and found a
        lyric sheet, disappointing but probably a wise precaution; it
        was in fact a great version as Nick says, Rizz providing
        sneering backing lines (from the front of the stage) and by the
        end Messrs Thompson and Chadwick had made their ways on and
        were making backup percussion noises; it was now I noticed
        Richard's drum-machine and bass synth stuff which definitely
        contributed)
        (+ Davey, House, Lloyd Langton, - Rizz)
Time We Left (This World Today) (whoa! Was I expecting this? In no
        way at all! It was too short! But still extremely heavy. You
        knew it had been there when they stopped, and Dave cycled the
        answer parts through in three not four as we know they're
        supposed to go. Hurrah!)
        (+ Blake)
Motorway City (pretty much as we're used to though it was nice for
        once to be able to hear Huw's part, proper version and closing
        number of the main set)
*
        (Brock, Chadwick, Davey, House, Lloyd Langton, Blake)
Assassins of Allah -> Space is their Palestine -> Assassins of Allah
        (floaty violin and eerie synth intro, the actual song top-
        class, Rizz came on during `Space... ' and did his bit about
        the warlords of hashish but thankfully had added a couple of
        new lines to it which made it sound more menacing and less like
        he's forgotten what Hassan i Sabha's line of business other
        than dope was, `Space... ' generally much more live than
        usual, the Chadwick/Brock/Blake techno combination again very
        good. Bloody good version all round)
        (+ Thompson)
Ejection (this was also excellent; they did the trance mid-section
        that originated with Ron but no trace of that version now
        remains, Ali has changed the bass-part and the vocals are gone,
        excellent)

        And with that last number the other stars of the show, the people
running the lights, can't get away without being mentioned. Firstly, there
were new slides, and some of the old ones back again that had gone
(yay! The BIS moon landers!), all very active and dynamic and never any
lack of movement. There were a couple of side screens which I was poorly
positioned to see but which when active were pretty damn psychedelic
too. The Elric slides had been improved on, there were extra ones
elsewhere too (including some Blake paintings, which I thought was a nice
touch given the line-up) and lastly and most impressively of all the
cartoon bit that has been being used for `Ejection' of late was
interspersed heavily with clips which appeared to be from flight tests of
an ejector seat from an F-104 (D, I think; D for Deutschland). I assume it
must have been a test as it was photoed from inside and out but it seemed
to take off, do some flypasts and then get put into a spin and then
escaped from, the last parts of which were pretty brain-twisting--not a
job I'd care for! The lights were a grand and splendid experience
throughout but that just utterly surprised and enthralled me. Keith, Neil
and Marie all need many congratulations, Fruit Salad honestly has nothing
on you. Top gig. The only thing that could have been improved was the
temparature, they didn't do a thing wrong, I doubt I shall ever see them
that good again. Blown away.



--
        Jonathan Jarrett                Birkbeck College, London
                 jjarrett at chiark.greenend.org.uk
        --------------------------------------------------------
  "The large print giveth and the small print taketh away." (Tom Waits)