sexta-feira, 25 de outubro de 2013

*. Hawklords .*

Album: Dream (2013)
Genre: Prog Rock (Psychedelic/Space Rock)  /  UK

I must admit that connecting this band with Hawklords is highly dubious. It has to stand or fall on the music and not the name of the band. I wasn't particularly impressed with We Are One which sounded like going through the motions space rock. So how is this one. Well it starts of in great style with Dream a Dream. This sounds like a band really getting their thing together. This is space rock. It rocks along with some excellent spacey keyboards and Ron Tree's effective nearly spoken vocals and some nice lead guitar. DNA is a slightly thrashy punkish rocker that reminds me of a time when some of the band were in Hawkwind and is very good. Elemental Mind starts off with splendid spacey keyboards and heads off into a more restrained style with acoustic guitar and warbling keyboards. Just when you think it's going to be an instrumental there a short song followed and more keyboard warbling to finish off. So far so good. Nowhere, Everywhere is even more restrained with acoustic guitar, ringing cymbals and something cello like. I'm not sure the attempt at softer vocals really works. but it still a decent track. Then it's back to punkish trashing with I.D. Man. It sounds a throwaway track from 1977 and the weakest thing on the album. Natures Dance is a return to acoustic guitar and spacey keyboards and lead guitar. I'm not sure about the vocals again - perhaps Ron Tree doesn't really pull off soft vocals. Natures Dance Coda is rockier, short and very good and the vocals are fine again. White Rag starts with spacey and dreamy keyboards and after two minutes goes into a rather plodding space rock followed by a less plodding section with organ solo and then back to spacey keyboard and Trees effective spoken vocals and then a less plodding and rather splendid chant like finish. Overall it works out in the end. Dead Air uses a reverse effect and soft vocal through a vocoder or similar vocal effect with the organ forming the main backing. This works out better than expected. To finish there's Phychic Eyes. This starts of with lots of synth noises and Ron Trees spoken vocals as we've heard on Alien 4. Perhaps it goes on a bit. I read that it's taken from a live performance. After two minutes we're into some excellent driving space rock taken from a different live performance and Ron Tree rambles away including stuff based on some stuff I've heard somewhere before and some I haven't mingled with organ led keyboards and again it all works out fine in the end. So here is this band, whatever they wish to call themselves, finally hitting the mark. The ideas are better, the production is way better and the keyboards are better used providing a richer more rewarding musical experience. I was expecting another trip through familiar space rock territory but they have upped their game and it's a game that is well worth a listen. Review by "Mr. Graham Hawker" (www.amazon.co.uk).

RATING:  7.75 / 10

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