There Is No Space For Us

Arguably, there is no better time to look at human existence on the planet and in the universe in the 21st century. In one way or another, Great Britains Hawkwind have been doing this since the releasing their eponymous debut album in 1970. That said, their recordings for Cherry Red offer creative renaissance. They continue to wind cosmic consciousness, metaphysical and occult philosophies, and existential dread in sonically inventive sounds that juxtapose psychedelia, prog rock, jazz fusion, and electronica in a cornucopia of dystopian futurism but maintain a wry, Samuel Beckett-esque glimmer of hope. There Is No Space for Us extends the concepts explored on 2023s The Future Never Waits and 2024s Stories from Time and Space; together, they account for a keyboard-focused trilogy. The album sounds more focused and balanced sonically as well as musically when compared to its immediate predecessors, extending this late-career golden age. Over eight songs, 83-year-old guitarist Dave Brock remains Hawkwinds lone founding member but not its only visionary. That distinction is shared with the rest of the band, which includes keyboardist Thighpaulsandra (Tim Lewis), bassist Doug MacKinnon, drummer Richard Chadwick, and vocalist/guitarist/keyboardist Magnus Martin. Brocks vocals are either drop-in narrations or short verses -- he sounds more like Robert Wyatt than ever. Ominous, pulsing sequencers introduce "There Is Still Danger There," less a warning than a statement of where we are in the 21st century. Amid synth drones, Brock begins intoning his account of what has transpired since the beginning, as prog meets post-punk and voices chant raucously in the backdrop as the tune morphs into a monolithic metal jam. "Space Continues (Lifeforms)" recalls at once the popular heyday of Tangerine Dream with tense guitar arpeggios, keyboard oscillations, and syncopated rhythms. Single "Co Pilot" joins slide blues to Latin rhythms in a melodic, sprawling exercise in instrumental, Santana-esque jazz-rock (a la Welcome). While "Changes" may sound too reminiscent of Ozric Tentacles for some, it evidences the bands attempt at a limitless, seemingly eternal sound as Brock and Martin chant "We are travelers of time and space…" Its celestial sequencers give way to fist-pumping stadium space rock. The title cut is a short, Americana-tinged desert blues offered on acoustic slide, with shakers, bass, mandolin, squalling synths, and a banjo. "The Outer Regions of Space" threads Latin jazz rhythms and a bumping bassline to create something akin to yacht rock on Alpha Centauri. "Neutron Star" melds the bands earliest sense of prog-rock intensity (a la the Lemmy and Michael Moorcock years) with trashy garage punk and electronica. Closer "A Long Way from Home" spends its first four minutes as a mellow, breezy psych pop instrumental with pianos, acoustic and electric guitars, organic drumming, and painterly synth before Brock sings into the ether, "Im/A long, long way/From home" as it whispers to a close. There Is No Space for Us sounds more holistic than its trilogy predecessors, with leaner production, deft arrangements, and extremely inventive songwriting. ~ Thom Jurek