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Album Details

• Artist: Hawkwind
• Album: Blood Of The Earth
• Label: Eastworld Recordings
• Year of Release: 2010
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: gwhill on 2013-01-03

First time around I wasn’t overly crazy about this album. It really grows on you, though. I hear a lot of vintage Hawkwind – from various eras here. It also moves the group in new directions. The music here is diverse, but recognizable as Hawkwind. I would say that the cover – which features variants of older Hawkwind album cover art – symbolizes the music contained here quite well. This isn’t my favorite Hawkwind album, but it is an excellent addition to their sizable catalog.

As “Seahawks” opens, the first nod to older Hawkwind is heard when a voice in a sound clip announces “I will become master of the universe.” As the cut continues, it seems to feel like such Hawkwind albums as Choose Your Masques and Electric Teepee at different points. As it modulates out later into a more sung/chanted movement there are some hints of melody from older Hawkwind songs. It eventually gets a bit noisy and then drops down to sea-like ambience, resembling whale song. Weird effects and processed vocals come over the top as this section makes me think of Space Bandits. That kind of cross Hawkwind history blending is the kind of thing that’s nearly constant on this set.

“Wraith” is one of the more interesting songs as it showcases a hard rocking tone a bit like the Levitation era, but with some of the Hall of the Mountain Grill sound and even what seems like a little nod to “Bytor and the Snowdog.” “Green Machine” has a guitar solo based introduction that feels almost like Joe Satriani meets Hawkwind. Keyboards take a more dominant role later in the instrumental. “Sweet Obsession” showcases something different entirely. On the introduction it feels like a cross between Levitation era Hawkwind and Big Generator Yes. The song proper is pretty heavily in a Levitation style. The vocal delivery, though, makes me think of “Mirror of Illusion” for some reason. The keyboards that bring that Yes sound to the track, too.  All in all, it’s that kind of meshing of sounds that makes this a winner. It’s a stretch in some ways for Hawkwind, but contain enough allusions to classic Hawkwind sounds to make it seem familiar.

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