Hawkwind

Review: Emotional Rescue starts a non-defined set of reissues where some of the label's favourite artists have lesser known, but (cult) classic songs unearthed, remastered, reappraised and then reinterpreted by contemporary producers and fans, for today's DJs and collectors alike.

To start, the idea of the legendary British psychedelic band Hawkwind appearing on the label might come as a surprise, but when the nature of songs and remixer involved is explored it makes perfect sense.

Following the departure of Lemmy to the Motorhead hinterlands, the band's sound took a wider but more defined style, including their burgeoning interest in electronics. With that, the 1976 album Astounding Sounds, Amazing Music contained a song that has become a secret spin for the more leftfield and adventurous. The Aubergine That Ate Rangoon - itself referencing cult psychedelic band Dr. West's Medicine Show and Junk Band's alien invasion opus The Eggplant That Ate Chicago - with it's use of loops, synthesiser and motorik drumming is a short instrumental that has gained cult status in its own way. Focusing on much of Hawkwind's musicality in one song, mixing psychedelia, fusion and humour with a killer groove, all in one short blast of repetition meets experimentation.

This is backed with the album's other stand out, in the beautifully laidback stoner vibrations of City Of Lagoons. Lanquidity rules as West Coast meets Floyd touches abound. A hazy Gilmour style guitar and heavy phasing and reverb drums underpin space rock key solos that carry you to the horizon.

An Esteemed excavator, musician, compiler and oracle, the choice of Cherrystones to rework these instrumentals is a given. With two decades of production chops from beats, breaks and jazz for the likes of Stark Reality, Twisted Nerve and Brutal Music to the abstract, psychedelic acoustics for Whatever We Want Records, he has gone on to become a respected composer of soundtracks for Adidas, Stone Island and YMC.

His heavy retake of The Aubergine pulls up the drum and bass and overlays freeform synth stabs atop a warped Riley arpeggio loop that takes the smoke hazed original and give it doses of codeine and rum. To close, his City Of Lagoons rework becomes 'Head' outtake overkill. Trippin' beyond the light fantastic.

Words from Cherrystones:

"When the prolific and albeit consistent Emotional Rescue label & head honcho Maestro Chuggy proposed this as a potential project to me I was initially excited as much as honoured, but also hesitant. Why you ask? Because that which is to the heart is often the most sacred and foreboding to envisage or should I say take out of context or possibly leave in context via sympathetic realisation.

My history with Hawkwind is as murky as anyone that truly let the band into their hallowed cerebral bandwidth whilst following their smoke signals and oily pipes serenading the riff fuelled synth washed sunsets where dogs on strings jugglers tents and paratrooper boots were standard issue on stage and backstage. This is more than a mere band, these wrote the book on themselves, used pages to roll with and smoked their own scriptures and blew smoke rings that became parables with no care to any place scene or need to fit within or out.

This entire project was created using no stems, no multi tracks hence we did not use remix as a theme, these are re-works which I made via intense hacking at open sections in the songs whilst manipulating and treating those hard. The only parts added were the synth I played, added and re -chopped with a view to colour these re-imaginations. It was essentially making a new meal from the existing but adding and subtracting flavours to create a new
Essence, a new sensation and believe it, it was not easy which kept it exciting and close to me. By no means am I metaphorically adding a moustache to the Mona Lisa, I'm more to the point tickling her or poking my tongue out with a view to get a response or smile. Hurry on sundown so I can see your shadows dancing in the grassy lucid light.