VARIOUS ARTISTS - Daze Of The Underground - A Tribute To Hawkwind

Well first of, I'll hit you with a tracklisting, then cherry pick the highlights.

Cd1
1. Tim Blake ; Spirit of the Age / 2. Litmus ; Paradox / 3. Amorphis ; Levitation / 4. Spacehead ; The Right Stuff / 5. The Meads of Asphodel ; Utopia / 6. The Enchanted ; Song of the Sword / 7. Bedouin ; Sword of the East / 8. Silver Machine ; Silver Machine / 9. Murkins ; Psi Power / 10. Quarkspace ; Quark Strangers and Charm / 11. OverMars ; Magnu / 12. Alpha Omega ; Reefer Madness / 13. ST37 ; Orgone Accumulator / 14. History of Guns/ Angels/ Magnu
CD2
1. Brainstorm ; Masters of the Universe / 2. Sigh ; Psychedelic Warlords / 3. Farflung ; Robot / 4. Spirits Burning ; High Rise / 5. Huw Lloyd Langton band ; Moonglum / 6. Marshan ; Hurry on Sundown / 7. Circle ; Don’t Understand / 8. Darxtar ; The Watcher / 9. Acid King ; Motorhead / 10. Beggars Farm ; We took the Wrong step years ago / 11. Sloterdijk ; Golden Void / 12. Harvey Bainbridge ; Acid House of Dreams / 13. Acidmothers temple ; You know you're only dreaming

Tim Blake's rendition of Spirit of the Age is surprisingly good, adding a bleakness to an already bleak track. Bearing in mind that SOTA is my alltime favourite song in alltime favourite kind of way, Tim gets out alive. Arrival In Utopia from Meads of Asphodel is fabulous. They've already done Assault & Battery on their own CD and now rope HWers Davey & Lloyd-Langton into their black metal world.

Another treat is the Quarkspace take on Quark Strangeness and Charm. Avoiding the obvious, they ignore their own pedigree and go for a marvellous skiffle take. History of Guns go for an electroclash / electrogoth take on Magnu and nearly pull it off. TO be fair, it's when the acts go for a different take on the songs that it all works best. I don't need to hear HW impersonators on this CD. I know how HW sound.

Sigh's version of Psychedelic Warlords is stupendous, going for a jazz / ambient fusion that is simply breathtaking. The quasi legendary Farlflung go for Robot, and, despite what I said earlier, if you really want a HW soundalike, this is the track to go for. Staccato, metronomic, robotic. As it was meant to be.

Marshan take Hurry On Sundown back to its folk roots, replete with harmonica solo, and it's buskin gin 1969 all over again. Circle go for a nineties HW tune, "Don't Understand" and make it all their own. In fact this drone rock take is so far removed from the original that it's almost original! I also adore Acid Kings take on Motorhead, even if it is a sludge like take not too far from the original.

My old mucker, Mike Burro turns up with Sloterdijks interpretation of "Golden Void", a live staple of his show before he took a skiffle turn into his One Eyed Bishops project. The best is saved for last with the legendary Acid Mothers Temple, closing things with a suitably insane crack at You Know You're Only Dreaming.

There are also appearances from HWers past, present and future with Alan Daveys Bedouin, Huw Lloyd Langton and Harvey Bainbridge. Not for the faint hearted and not for the casual purchaser. Overlong, I would have dumped the HW soundalikes and HW members, and went for the radical reinterpretations myself, but then the traditionally conservative HW fanbase wouldn't have bought it. But I am glad I have it:-)
http://www.godreah.com/


SINGLES BAR

JET -Rollover DJ
A pillpopping jukebox is all that you are. Can't argue with that. And a rollicking romp it is. Nothing the Black Crowes didn't do in the last century but served up with vim and vigour. Shame about the sub-Oasis B side, "Sgt Major", but "Rollover DJ" is 3 minutes of rock and roll fun.

DESERT SESSIONS - Crawl Home
To be frank the Queen's Of The Stone Age have been travelling downhill since their classic debut. But aided by the luscious P J Harvey this slithers along in down and dirty style. And there are few things finer in life than Polly Jean moaning out loud. Oh yeah.

DAVE GAHAN - Bottle Living

Surprisingly good in a Kick era INXS meets Captain Beefheart kind of way. Not sure who is going to buy it outside the Depeche Mode faithful so it's only a matter of time before he goes home.

JOHNNY CASH - Hurt

Which leads nicely into this, featuring as it does his hillbilly cover of Personal Jesus alongside the main Nine Inch Nails tune. Now I know it's sacrilege especially post death but the Rubin years weren't that good. More Hayseed Dixie than anything else. For classic Cash you have to go back 35 years. But if you want to know what the fuss was all about buy this and listen to Wichita Lineman. Genius.


LOPE - Necros

This is a one man project by Victor Kvarnhall from Umea, Sweden. There are 6 tracks lasting over 55 minutes, all of which are firmly based in the ethereal / ambient / dreamscape style of music. Victor, however, never loses sight of the melody, which can often be a problem for those specialising in moods, rather than songs.

You can easily find yourself caught up in a moment when listening to this CD, and suddenly 10 minutes have passed, only for you to be jarred back to reality by a crazed synth attack.

If you're looking for the weasy reference points then there's the obligatory Eno, but with touches of newer moodmeisters such as Low and Mogwai, and I found myself scribbling down Red House Painters as well. Good stuff.

http://artists.iuma.com/IUMA/Bands/Lope/index-1.html


RICHARD TRIBLE - Love, Sex & Other Messy Things

If you see this man walking down the street towards you, I would strongly recommend crossing the road, and avoiding any kind of contact (physical or otherwise).

If I wasn't poor white trash myself, then that would be the accusatory tone I would set when penning this review. Fortunately, I am equally low rent and found this to be an absolute delight. Albeit a dirty, nasty delight!

The subtitle is "Richard Trible Plays With Himself", and he seems in no hurry to deny the 51 year old virgin rumours hurtling his way. A man working in the same idiom as my beloved Bartles, the obligatory Beefheartian musical nods and vocals, are offset by some deranged cover versions. Nine Inch Nails’s "Closer" gets the treatment it, and Trent Reznor, deserve. "All Along The Watchtower" is treated with contempt and his Britney lovefest has to be heard to be believed.

Amongst the original songs, big props to "Sixty Second Man" and "Muff Dive Gal". I'm sure the ladies will be queuing up after hearing those ditties. Git some, go again.

http://www.richardtrible.com/