LIVE AT GLASTONBURY AND GUILDFORD FESTIVAL, 2002

The band refer to this as an 'official bootleg' which kind of focusses one's expectations somewhat closer to the lower end of the quality scale. And we are not disappointed: the sound is thin; some instruments are impossibly distant, especially bass and keyboards; most tracks place Turner far too prominently, to the detriment of everything else; most of the action happens in the centre, with the stereo wings rarely exploited; edits are coarse and sometimes in the wrong place; and presentation is CDR quality.

So - only for fans then, but is it any good? It starts with one long piece inexplicably divided into four tracks but there is no discernable difference between these, other than natural progression. The music centres around a series of monologues and rants, including some of Robert Calvert's lyrics, and Turner's Book Of The Dead translations, set to a generic, vaguely Spacerock, backing track well to the background. Some of the newer lyrics are risible, and the whole thing plods on for far too long. In a well-recorded setting this would probably work, but not here!

The remainder is much better, but the only song presented in full is a decent version of old favourite 'D. Rider', by far the best part of the CD. Both 'Space Grab' and 'Warp Out' are classic Spacerock jams curiously disembodied from their parent songs. 'Warp Out' is the more successful with a much more balanced mix. 'Blue Train' is a decent blues jam session based on a Coltrane tune, while 'Thunder Rider Rap' is mostly Nik introducing the band before reciting his lyrics that are normally an add-on to 'Silver Machine' but here the song is cut before anything further ensues.

Overall, a rather below par effort that doesn't do the band justice. It was recorded and released at the time of the infamous court case with Dave Brock, which could explain the clumsy removal of song sections from jams that clearly follow a classic Hawkwind song. There is enough here to interest a die-hard fan, but others should head straight for the new DVD 'Saitiricon'.

It is obvious from the name alone that there are some Hawkwind connections going on, but it is just a bit more than that. It is possible to argue that the origins of the band go back as far as Group X in 1969. Their first gig on August 29th, 1969, included Nik Turner, Mick Slattery and Terry Ollis and here they are all back onstage together again. Also involved is Thomas Crimble, who was Hawkwind bassist from July 1970 to April 1971. Commander Jim Hawkman has also been playing with Space Ritual.Net and various other ex-Hawkwind luminaries have been involved, including Del Dettmar who joined them for the current tour. Even young Michael Moorcock has promised to put in appearance! This album was recorded at Glastonbury and Guildford last year.

So what about the music? There are two drummers (Terry is joined by his son Sam) but to say that they come across as classic Hawkwind seems to be stating the obvious. They resist the temptation to play "Silver Machine" followed by "Brainstorm" and instead concentrate on their own material, but it sounds as if classic Hawkwind are back. One song that is a notable exception is their version of Coltrane's "Blue Train" which shows that they have more than one string to their sax. The only thing that spoils this is the abrupt ending or interruption as the album moves from track to track but that may be just from playing it on a PC. It is a fun album with good sound and if you are a Hawkfan then you will definitely have to get this.

Originally appeared in Feedback #72, Feb 03