Space Ritual [UK Bonus Tracks] [Remaster]

Performer: Hawkwind
Distributor: MSI Music Distribution

Notes: Hawkwind: Bob Calvert, Dave Brock (vocals, guitar); Nik Turner (saxophone, flute, background vocals); Lemmy (bass, background vocals); Simon King (drums), Del Dettmar (synthesizer); DikMik (programming). Recorded in London and Liverpool, England. British version features three bonus tracks. Personnel: Dave Brock (vocals, guitar); Nik Turner (vocals, flute, saxophone); Lemmy (vocals); Del Dettmar (synthesizer); Simon King (drums); Dikmik (electronics); Andy Dunkley (sound effects). Recording information: Brixton Sundown (1972); Liverpool Stadium (1972). Photographers: Gabi Nasemann; Laurie Lewis. Unknown Contributor Role: Robert Calvert. Featuring Hawkwind's classic lineup, which included vocalist/guitarist (and band constant) Dave Brock and bassist/occasional vocalist Lemmy (soon to depart and form Motorhead), 1973's SPACE RITUAL is monolithic in stature and stands as the group's most impressive live (if not overall) recording. Although the ensemble often garnered comparisons to Pink Floyd, Hawkwind was far more aggressive than Waters, Gilmour, and company, charging through a potent, freeform set of cosmic freakouts (the trippy "Earth Calling") and rumbling metal ("Lord of Light" sounds like Black Sabbath in lunar orbit). While the entire outing is stellar, the British space-rock group really hits a stride during the epic "Orgone Accumulator," which settles into a deep, acid groove. Although the spoken-word segments (most notably a recitation of sci-fi/fantasy author Michael Moorcock's "Black Corridor" by vocalist/poet Bob Calvert) might not suit everyone, SPACE RITUAL endures as both a document of its era and one of Hawkwind's finest releases. Recorded live in December 1972 and released the following year, Space Ritual is an excellent document of Hawkwind's classic lineup, underscoring the group's status as space rock pioneers. As the quintessential "people's band," Hawkwind carried '60s countercultural idealism into the '70s, gigging constantly, playing wherever there was an audience, and even playing for free on five consecutive days outside the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival. The band's multimedia performances were the perfect accompaniment for exploring inner space and imagining outer space. While not concerned with rock's material trappings, Hawkwind were, ironically, among the hardest-working groups in Britain, averaging one show every three days during the year preceding these recordings. Given all that practice, it's not surprising that the performances collected here are incredibly tight (although, reportedly, a couple of tracks were edited). Incorporating most of Doremi Fasol Latido, the show for the Space Ritual tour was conceived as a space rock opera, its blend of sci-fi electronics, mesmerizing psy-fi grooves, and heavy, earthbound jamming punctuated with spoken word interludes from astral poet Bob Calvert. Although his intergalactic musings date the album, coming across now as camp futurism, they still provide fitting atmospheric preambles to Hawkwind's astounding, mind-warping sounds. Calvert's manic recital of Michael Moorcock's "Sonic Attack," for instance, is an exercise in tension that subsequently explodes on the stomping "Time We Left This World Today"; with Nik Turner's otherworldly sax, Dave Brock's guitar distortion, and the earth-moving rhythm section of Simon King and Lemmy, this track offers a blueprint for the album's most potent material. Another standout is "Orgone Accumulator," ten minutes of hypnotic (Wilhelm) Reich & roll that could be the missing link between Booker T. and Stereolab. A 1973 advertisement described Space Ritual as "88 minutes of brain damage"; that characterization still holds true. [This reissue adds three bonus tracks.] ~ Wilson Neate

Rolling Stone (p.124) - "[Hawkwind] make most current inner-space rock sound like prep-school drone." Q (8/99) - Included in Q's Best Psychedelic Albums of All Time Q (7/96, p.138) - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...the definitive Hawkwind live experience, groaning with riffs, rhymes and bleeps from some distant planet via Brixton and Liverpool..." Uncut (p.103) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[I]t retains a chaotic power....Hawkwind simply groove....This remains as strongly defined as it did when it was first made." Mojo (Publisher) (p.50) - Ranked #19 in Mojo's "The 50 Most Out There Albums Of All Time" - "As a true document of English eccentricities in orbit SPACE RITUAL is best enjoyed late at night - preferably in one, extremely relaxed, sitting." NME (Magazine) (4/27/96, p.51) - 9 (out of 10) - "...one of the best live albums made....[Lemmy's] contribution gelled Hawkwind into the godfathers of metal....[makes] hard rock gods like Sabbath and Uriah Heep sound timid..."

Inspired equally by the hippie lifestyle/marathon jamming of the '60s West Coast bands and the interstellar excursions of Pink Floyd, Hawkwind helped invent "space rock" as we know it today. Through countless albums and personnel shifts, they've continued to combine heavy rock with science fiction in a futuristic setting, inspiring a generation of bands and several international space-rock festivals.

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