Mick
Farren - on a Hawkwind
gig;
Cardiff Castle; 1976:
> Visually Hawkwind
are still the mutations you know and love.
World War I aviator goggles seem to be the order of the day. Nik Turner wears them
with a long John Silver tricorn hat and Dave
Brock with the debonair grace of the first man to swim the Atlantic.
Review
of a Hawkwind
gig, Cardiff Castle, 1976
by Mick Farren, published in the N.M.E.
> Three or
four brandies later, Hawkwind
take the stage. A soupcon of amphetamine from a passing hippie enables
your loyal correspondent to remain vertical and pay strict attention.
There's no doubt
the new model is a good deal more sophisticated than any of the
previous combinations. One of the band's major advantages was always
its unstoppable rhythm unit. Now, with drummers Simon King and Allan
Powell, plus Paul Rudolph on bass, it is, to use a well worked cliche,
shit hot.
The top line
is still shaking, however. Keyboard man / violinist Simon House
had done a lot to replace the original Hawkwind clank-honk with
slightly more advanced melody lines, but the content above the rhythm
is still fairly limited blur.
One of the high
spots of the set comes when House takes over the bass, and Rudolph
actually plays some guitar.
There have been
times when I've heard Paul Rudolph stretch out and demonstrate,
beyond a shadow of a doubt, the he is one of the best guitar players
in the Hendrix
tradition that we have around today. Unfortunately that's when he
stretches out. He's one of those individuals who, for most of the
time, would rather stay in among the boys than strut his stuff as
a guitar king.
Visually Hawkwind are still the mutations you know and love.
World War I aviator
goggles seem to be the order of the day. Turner
wears them with a long John Silver tricorn hat and Dave
Brock with the debonair grace of the first man to swim the Atlantic.