WARRIOR ON THE EDGE OF TIME

A more hard edged album than their predicessor "Hall of the Mountain Grill", it is also more creatively put together. As other previewers have commented, a good combination of pumping rock rhythms, space 'effects', and the creation of what i would call a unique 'ambience', makes this album an 'all purpose listen'.

All tracks flow with each other so as to make the listening experience more tangible, with me feeling as if i was travelling 'to the edge of time', which i would guess was the intention. It also has the most wonderous use of filler/poetry that i have heard on any album to date.

The 'double track' opening is a good pumping rock rhythm progressing to good use of flute and keyboard interplay. However, the electric violin sounds a bit too sharp for my ears (that may be the technology of the time). 'The wizard blew his horn' closes 'golden void' and opened 'Opa Loka' brilliantly, with the latter being another pounding rhythmic instrumental before easing off to 'the demented king', a more acoustic effort and a pleasant outro to side one.

Side 2 opens with the most rock orientated track of the album. It does get the feet pumping and although the electric violin works wonders within the song itself, it seems a bit drawn out with an end of song solo that goes a bit toooooo long. This is of minor consequence however, as the percussion carries the song to the end quite well. Here the album gets darker, with 'standing on the edge' liberally using echo, and the mettallic sounding 'warriors' surrounding the comparitively pleasent 'spiral galaxy...'. 'Dying seas' compleats the conception of the album.

If the album ended here i would have given it 5 stars without hesitation. The sonic flow of the album, the lyrical relevance, the constantly high level of interplay with all the instruments, and the use of poetry is simply mindblowing. However, Hawkwind, in their infinite wisdom, decided to add 'kings of speed' as the finishing track. Although a good rock song, it simply does not fit into the album in any aspect, especially in its conceptional relevance, and for that reason i find it grating to listen to with this album (It reminds me of Silver machine mark 2).

Overall, sheer brilliance.

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