Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Hawkwind
Label: RCA Records
Released: October 18, 1981
Running time: 42:09
Rating: 3.5/5
Hawkwind, heroes of psychedelic space rock, stayed true to their sonic roots at the start of the eighties too, and unlike most of their British prog-rock peers, they didn’t go through any radical stylistic overhaul when the new decade kicked in, which their passionate followers, who once pinned the label of a ‘people’s band’ on them, knew how to appreciate. Of course, they weren’t immune to a few minor sonic shifts either, since 1981’s »Sonic Attack« was one of their rawest albums ever, with a slight influence from the NWOBHM scene of the day impossible to miss. Still, for the most part they remained sworn to electronic curtains and psychedelic-avant-garde rhythms, which ‘long ago’ earned them a reputation as the most notorious band on Britain’s underground-experimental music scene.
After the surprisingly good previous album »Levitation« (1980), which plenty of fans and connoisseurs consider their last classic studio outing, it was clear that legendary drummer Ginger Baker wouldn’t be staying aboard the Hawkwind spaceship for long, and soon enough his even shorter stint with the newly ‘reawakened’ Atomic Rooster began. So Hawkwind, led by the indestructible guitarist, singer and singer-songwriter Dave Brock, once again had to go hunting for a new drummer, and found one in an old acquaintance, former Hawklords drummer Martin Griffin. The new keyboardist was a whole different story after Keith Hale’s departure. Brock and bassist/occasional keyboardist Harvey Bainbridge decided to play all the synths themselves this time and handle the electronic sequencing. They pulled it off pretty well in the end, which is also why »Sonic Attack« works as a very solid album overall, even if it’s far from Hawkwind’s finest hour.
The main guitar solos came from original guitarist Huw Lloyd-Langton, who rejoined his old comrades on »Levitation« (and stayed with them until the end of the eighties). The biggest boost, though, was the return of longtime collaborator and supporter, cult sci-fi writer Michael Moorcock, who in the past had been behind some of Hawkwind’s most thrilling lyrics and concepts. Writing legend Moorcock, who by then had also worked with Blue Öyster Cult, completely winning them over with ‘Chronicles of the Black Sword’ and ‘Veteran of the Psychic Wars’, appears as narrator on the dystopian-society satire »Coded Languages«. He also contributed lyrics to the cacophonous-psychedelic experiment »Psychosonia«, the tongue-in-cheek »Lost Chances« and the title track, which had already come out in a different version on the classic live album »Space Ritual« (1973).
The apocalyptic-avant-garde closer »Sonic Attack«, with plenty of electronic sequencing and paranoid narration, is also the opening track, and with Moorcock’s lyrics it lays out the concept of a dystopian society subjected every day to aggressive sonic ‘assault’ by a police regime. On »Rocky Paths« Hawkwind suddenly run lively hard-rock phrases over the electronic backdrops and deliver one of the most spirited moments on »Sonic Attack«. On the ethereal instrumental »Virgin Of The World« Bainbridge and Lloyd-Langton really shine, building a melancholic, tense atmosphere out of electronic sequencing and subtle guitar lines. »Virgin Of The World« resurfaced in 1982 in altered form, under the title »Experiment With Destiny«, on the next album, »Church of Hawkwind«.
Brock’s ‘stellar’ moment is the album’s only single, »Angels of Death«, where the captain of the Hawkwind spaceship shines with metallic guitar phrases and a heartfelt vocal performance. Of course, that single got hardly any commercial response, even though it’s the best-known track on »Sonic Attack«. One of the more ‘metal’ moments is also the fun »Living On a Knife Edge«, where, amid the electronic backdrop, there’s no shortage of furious guitar passages and gritty vocal harmonies. In a similar but more chaotic vein are »Disintegration« and the unusually punchy and dark »Streets of Fear«, which former bandmate Lemmy would surely have dug. The CD reissue of »Sonic Attack« also includes the bonus track »Transdimensional Man« (originally released on the flip side of the »Angels of Death« single), which is done in the classic style and comes off as very solid overall.
In terms of quality, »Sonic Attack« lands roughly in the ‘golden mean’ of Hawkwind albums, which means it’s mostly the band’s longtime followers who rate it highly today. Hawkwind, who to their fans’ relief never ‘sold out’ and stayed true to themselves through the eighties too, in other words ‘space oddballs on an eternal cosmic journey’, had by then already hit their artistic peak. Still, mostly thanks to the songwriting-and-playing duo of Brock and Bainbridge, they could always pleasantly surprise you with a few very high-quality, interesting and innovative compositions.
Line-up
Dave Brock – electric guitar, keyboards, lead vocals
Huw Lloyd-Langton – electric guitar, backing vocals
Harvey Bainbridge – bass guitar, keyboards, backing vocals
Martin Griffin – drums
Michael Moorcock – lyrics, vocals on “Coded Languages”
Production
Hawkwind and Ashley Howe
Track list
1. Sonic Attack (4:47)
2. Rocky Paths (4:00)
3. Psychosonia (2:32
4. Virgin of the World (4:32)
5. Angels of Death (5:42)
6. Living on a Knife Edge (4:48)
7. Coded Languages (4:50)
8. Disintegration (1:05)
9. Streets of Fear (4:09)
10. Lost Chances (5:44)
