Search - Hawkwind :: Church of Hawkwind (+Bonus Tracks)

The Church Of Brock

R. Recchia | blodgett mills, ny | 05/12/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is an improvement over the Griffin version if only for the fact that they restore the original album track listing and/or sequence and put the bonus tracks at the end of the CD, instead of inserting them between songs from the original second half of the album. Also, unlike the Griffin CD, the bonus tracks this time were actually recorded during the Church sessions. I mean, I liked the bonus tracks from the earlier CD, but they were recorded a decade later and had nothing to do with the original album.



As for the album itself, I have always really liked The Church Of Hawkwind. While I don't like it as much as Levitation (which I consider to be the last of the five star Hawkwind albums), I like it much better than the two rather uneven albums that surround it, Sonic Attack and Choose Your Masques. Certainly not as heavy as other Hawkwind albums and featuring more synthesizers than on any album up to that point, it is nonetheless a consistently interesting,weird, entertaining and listenable album, from the songs, to the lyrics (especially for Fall Of Earth City and The Joker At The Gate) and even to the drawings that accompany the printed lyrics. I really think the drawings add to the overall enjoyment of the album. (I have one of the original LP versions, which come with the booklet, which is also included with both this and the Griffin one). I also like the fact that Dave Brock (always my favorite Hawkwind vocalist) does all the singing here, with bassist/keyboardist Harvey Bainbridge speaking on two pieces



This new Atomhenge CD also includes three pages of liner notes by Mark Powell, which make for both a fun and informative read. I highly recommend this!!"