This is Hawkwind’s 26th studio album release. 26TH! I don’t believe that there has been any other band in the history of rock that has produced as many albums while continually developing their sound but also keeping true to the core of their music. The band is currently Dave Brock on guitars and vocals, Richard Chadwick on drums and vocals, Magnus Martin on guitars and keyboards, Doug MacKinnon on bass and Thighpaulsandra (Tim Lewis) on keyboards and synths.
‘Stories From Time And Space’ is a fine album. Considering that only Dave Brock remains from the original lineup in 1969, their sound is still immediately recognizable as Hawkwind but the songs on the album stand up in terms of originality and an experimental spirit. The music contained in the album has everything you might associate with Hawkwind. Synths and pounding rhythms, psychedelic jams, massive and harsh riffs, sounds seeming to appear from nowhere, emotive pleas to the galaxies.
It is enormously listenable to, and I found that I could play it through, time & again, gaining familiarity but still not expecting all the changes. It is an intense listen, lousy as background music, it really benefits in being played at concert volumes.
Not quite their best album ever, it is still up there in my top ten of Hawkwind albums, and shows that they are still relevant and forward looking and, frankly, better than most rock outfits.
