Spirit Of The Age Launch Party

Spirit Of The Age Launch Party

A launch party was held at the Borderline in Soho on Thursday 1st September, to celebrate the release of Hawkwind's new single "Spirit Of The Age". About 150 lucky fans were invited and this page carries reviews and photos from some of them!

Eddie Jobson:

Well am I the first to report back from the TMTYL launch party?

Arrived at about 12.15 - hot as you like in there, dark little club with a good vibe though, fair few people that increased until about 1pm. Dave and Kris were the only noticeable people, Alan and Richard seemed to wander in later. First beer was on HW which was nice, joined the queue to get Dave to sign the poster for the new album, spoke to Matthew Wright also and asked Dave would he be playing: he said no way! Then got a signature from Alan who said Spacehead were playing and we'll see what happens! (Sounded promising). Spacehead played a jam, then Richard joined on drums and they did Shouldn't Do That and then the pressure seemed to mount on Dave and Matthew introduced them and they played Brainbox

Above: Dave peers up concernedly as a fan brandishes a copy of the single for signing (Pic - Andrew Sones)

Pollution and Paradox. Great stuff, played spontaneously on Spacehead’s equipment.

I then had to leave to get back to work, but it was one of my better lunchtime breaks. Bit pi**ed as it goes!

Lucnerinfrognal:

What an excellent way to spend an early afternoon! Did everyone else enjoy it too? I had never heard Mr Dibs before which was a treat. I presume this is what Spacehead sounds like. As for the Captain et al,
it was great to hear them play Brainbox Pollution and also Paradox. Excellent stuff!

Nick Loebner:

Yes – it was fun. Being a little out of the loop, I had no idea who the first bunch on were -although the Spacehead T-shirts gave it away- and I am not so "out of the loop" that I didn't recognise Richard who was guesting with them on a splendid version of “You Shouldn’t Do That”.

Above: Dave and Pete Pracownik get down to some serious autographing (Pic - Andrew Sones)

And the fellow playing keyboards with Hawkwind was Jason: he did a good job. Shame no mellotron sounds though. Thank you Hawkwind...and Dave, please write another song as good as Paradox!

Keith Henderson:

This is almost blogging, 'cause I'm just 100 m down the street from the Borderline in Soho where the Launch Party is just gradually wrapping up. Wow...lots of fun. I didn't even know I could get in until yesterday when Kris emailed me personally to say she would put me on the list. Thanks Kris!

I thought it would just be a lowkey affair with a few dozen people in a quiet cafe atmosphere with the new album playing over the PA. That last part was right, for the first 90 minutes, but there were about 150 people in there or so. Thank GOD it wasn't held yesterday, when the temps here in London were 32C (90F)...because it's underground, the air circulation is a bit restricted you

Bugger all this Hawkwind stuff...last time I went over to the canal at Bridgwater, I took a pike that was this big, no sh*t! (Pic - Andrew Sones)

might say. Anyway, the stage was set up with gear and lighting and all, which was a bit of a surprise, so I thought that HW were really going to play live. But then the bass was obviously not a Ricky, and the guitar was a black Epiphone, so it turned out to be Spacehead's gear. That was cool enough, 'cause I didn't expect any live music at 2 in the afternoon! Anyway, they gave out free complimentary drinks at the bar for the first 45 minutes or so (which was extra nice), but then eventually hit some sort of pre-arranged limit and those who wanted another one (or three) then had to shell out a couple quid per. They also had some champagne and sandwiches and Horse's Doovers. Plus free posters to

Spacehead do their stuff (Pic - Andrew Sones)

have signed by the band. Pete Pracownik was there (I think) and was signing stuff as well. And Matthew Wright too. So Spacehead came on and played a few very nice spacey numbers, the first of which was apparently improv. Then Richard came up and took over on drums and the Keef-Dibsy-Richard Trio launched into an excellent version of "You Shouldn't Do That." But I think that was just done as an excuse to coerce Dave, Alan, and Jason to also participate, and begrudgingly they relented and the full Hawkwind came aboard the ship. Mr. Wright jumped up to do a nice intro and then HW proper did a sizzling "Brainbox Pollution" and then (after some deliberation...and amazingly seeming to go with my personal suggestion of "Paradox"...

The crowd further back (Pic - Martin Treanor)

I happened to be standing directly in front of Keef during Spacehead's set, so I ended up by default directly in front of Dave...he nearly hit me in the face with the end of the guitar at one point) a wonderful extended version of "Paradox" (double guitar solos from Dave). Funniest thing was that Dave kept asking Keef what the hell each of the pedals and switches on his guitar were supposed to do.

On the way to the show, I stopped in the Oxford Street HWV and bought two copies each (a set also for my brother in the states) of the two singles (two quid apiece), and managed to get them signed by all four members and Mr. Wright as well (who was very nice to me, even though I had to tell him that I really

Hawkwind take to the stage: L-R Alan, Richard, Jason, Dave (Pic - Andrew Sones)

didn't know who he was, not being a UK resident or anything). I walked into the Borders and Virgin stores on the same street just to see if they had them in stock as well, but sadly neither did. Oh, well, Voiceprint is hardly a major label. HMV had six or seven copies each prominently displayed in the singles bins, though not yet up on the big wall of Hit New Releases (maybe next week?!). So that seemed pretty good at least.

Derek Wilson:

Great afternoon, thank you Hawkwind. The album sounds very impressive in its entirety, though you couldn't really hear "Letter to Robert" that clearly over the general sound of everyone in the bar. I'm still a bit unaware as to what "Sighs" is as I couldn't make any extra track out at that point on the disc.

Nice to hear Mr. Dibs and Spacehead playing a few numbers, their version of "You Shouldn't Do That" with Richard on drums was really impressive with the wah- wah guitar.

It was an odd set-up when Hawkwind themselves came on, with Jason in the centre tinkling the ivories. He was

Mr Dibs (Pic - Andrew Sones)

playing piano rather than keyboards this time, which gave "Brainbox Pollution" more of a Chuck Berry feel than normal. It was excellent to hear them doing "Paradox" as well. For a minute I thought Brock was going to

grace us with some wah-wah guitar when he asked the Spacehead guitarist how to turn a pedal on, but sadly it was not to be. (But I have my memories of the Winter 91 tour to treasure for that.) Excellent guitar solo work by Dave on "Paradox".

Just got home to discover the postie has furnished me with the singles while I was in London! The new studio version of "Paradox" is brilliant as well, and I actually prefer Matthew's live delivery to the studio version, even if he does fluff the lines a bit.

Steve Bishop:

Just got back from the launch party - what a great event! Despite advice that HW would not play, they played an impromptu set of Brainbox Pollution and Paradox after

Mr.Davey (Pic - Andrew Sones)

some great jamming from Spacehead including being joined by Richard for a version of Shouldn't Do That. Hawkwind were awesome, the venue was small and very hot but the band were really accessible, very friendly and very amenable to chatting. Really grateful for the chance to be there, have some brilliant memories for life. Have seen HW since 1980 but never on this 'intimate' a scale - feel very humble.

The trio - Dave (left), Davey (above left) and Richard (above right)
(Pics - Andrew Sones)

It was a memorable event and it was just so nice to be able to chat to one's heroes on a very informal and amicable basis - and the gig was a bonus! I asked Alan if they would be playing as soon as I got there and he said he thought they'd be doing something even though he only had his plectrum with him :-) Mr Dibs said he

had a supply anyway as they both use the same make: he also said he thought Brocky would only be singing, but in the end he (the Captain) couldn't resist picking up the axe and giving it a good thrash - magic! I think Mr Dibs probably realised that if the instruments were there then the band could be coerced into 'doing a bit' so he'd suggested the Spacehead jam session to the organisers - both bands were very good...

Mik Rik:

Thanks again to Hawkwind for the opportunity to win tickets to this event. Rob, Tom and I (and everyone else there) had a fantastic time. It was quite an intimate affair with plenty of chances to socialise (I ended up chatting away to Matthew Wright's girlfriend before realising who she was!!) There was ample opportunity to meet the band and get stuff signed. The band were all there, as were Spacehead and Matthew Wright. Spacehead jammed some numbers and then the Hawks did 2 numbers - Brainbox Pollution and Paradox. A great afternoon.

Left: Jason Stuart, who's been a member of the band since October 2004, I think. Pic - Shaun Downey

Chriz Dove:

Just got back after a truly wonderful Thursday, cost an arm and a leg but well worth every penny. I have had problems with e-mails bouncing but Kris found my address from the Yahoo group and made sure we got our invites ...THANK YOU Kris!!!!

My good lady wife Sam and I drove up from Devon to her parents on Wednesday night, we caught the 9.30 train from Havant and travelled up to the old smoke.

We arrived at Tottenham Court Road at about 11.00 so made our way to find the Borderline, seeing it we went to the nearest pub for a few swift pints to steady an excited heart! Then we joined the queue and soon had our guest pass laminates!!! We went into the venue and soon ordered our drinks , my cider was "on the house" - thanks Hawks!!!

We saw Kris had laid out some posters & got two, one for myself and one for a friend who could not

Mr.Dibs performing indefatigably on the bass
Pic - Shaun Downey

make it. Seeing Alan and Richard free we got the posters signed, then by Matthew Wright who I chatted to at length, mostly about his holiday in Canada, thats why he was so tanned, I introduced a shy wife to him and took their photos...what a nice down to earth chap Matthew is!

L-R Tog, Lee, Martin, Unknown The same, with the Captain (Pics - Martin Treanor)

We then met the Captain, more photos, had our posters signed by him, he confirmed that they would be playing Exeter ( a question I asked all the Hawks who all gave differing answers...lol) Met Pete the artist (can't spell his surname) now, again a lovely guy, reminded him of when we met last (Space Ritual gig so we kept our voices low, he actually drew a toadstool for my son that night).

Had a few more drinks , we were really enjoying ourselves...had photos taken with Richard (another lovely chap) and Alan (again so friendly) then we met Jason, guess.... a lovely chap, he too comes from Devon

but we chatted about my home town Luton and Dunstable and for some reason Marillion, he told us how good playing with Hawkwind is and how professional the band is!

Then Spacehead started... a nice loose jam which culminated in a really strong version of Shouldn't Do That with Richard on drums ...THEN oh joy!! Hawkwind stepped up and played a short set of
Brainbox Pollution and Paradox...standing right under Dave was a real treat!

Then it was time to go we thanked the Hawks again and made our way on a high to the surface. On our way home, popped into the Astoria (at my wife's insistence) to but two tickets for December (she demanded we buy them, the only time she has seen them was in Northampton 2002 but such was the impact of the afternoon she wants to go again!)

Nipped into Virgin - no sign of the single there but bought the last 4 copies in HMV for my brothers and boss! I shall post again with my views of the single!!

BUT THANKS AGAIN HAWKWIND... !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Captain puzzles out the intricacies of his guitar tech's set-up Pic - Shaun Downey

And I was saving this for blackmail purposes. That's the elixir of youth he's drinking. Pic - Shaun Downey

Below: Alan Davey looking somewhat non-plussed at having to play whatever brand of bass Mr.Dibs favours. Pic - Shaun Downey

Rob Dreamworker:

What a day out! I took the train into London with Tommy and we met up with Mike at Waterloo. A few stops on the tube and we were at Tottenham Court Road, with 20 minutes to spare. So we headed for the Angel pub along the road opposite the Astoria - the scene of a few pre-gig sessions over the last few years.

Arriving at the Borderline we found a decent sized crowd of enthusiastic-looking people. The queue started to move on time but rather slowly as the guy on the door struggled to find people's names on the guest lists (there seemed to be at least 3). At one point Alan Davey came striding past announcing that he was "Late as usual". What we didn't see from

Rob didn't mention their last names, so neither will I
Pic - Rob Dreamworker

where we were in the queue was that Alan's name had apparently been missed off the guest list, which must have been interesting. Shortly after Richard also wandered by and was told in no uncertain terms to "join the queue like everyone else" …… which he dutifully did – I assume he knew the guy who'd said that because they chatted away as we slowly moved into the venue.

As we entered the club, four things became apparent:

-Take Me To Your Leader (the album) was being played over the PA.

-The walls were decorated with bright, psychedelic posters and there were giant mushrooms hanging around the place. It looked great. (Shamefully, I've forgotten the name of the woman who had done all this). [It was Yaz & Flo!!]

-There was equipment on the stage, suggesting that we might get to hear more than just the album

-It was really hot in there (already, and it got hotter)

It goes without saying that we headed straight for the bar. As if we hadn't had enough treats already (my copies of the singles had arrived that morning and we all got a nifty guest pass as we came into the party), on ordering our beers we found out that the first round was on Hawkwind. Nice one !!

What followed was about 2 hours of standing/wandering/chatting to people we knew and people we had just met …. and drinking steadily (something I almost never do before 6pm so things got a bit blurry later in the day). One of the guys we talked to was a producer from the BBC who had just finished doing a documentary on Status Quo and was going to have another go at getting Hawkwind to let him do the same. I hope he was successful.

Dave Museum and Jason Stuart
Pic - Rob Dreamworker

We must have heard the new album at least twice all the way through and I have to say that it all sounded pretty darn good. I particularly enjoyed the studio version of Greenback Massacre, which is more mellow than when it's played live but is still an outright rocker. To Love A Machine is my favourite live track from the recent tours – the album version doesn't have quite the same edge, but still rings my bell.

Dave, Alan, Richard, Jason, Pete Pracownik and Matthew Wright were all busily signing autographs and chatting to people. If there was an announcement I missed it, but sometime after about 2pm Dibs, Keith and Richard kicked off a jam. They moved onto a tight, fast and thoroughly enjoyable version of Shouldn't Do That.

Above & Left: Pics - Rob Dreamworker

Then Matthew Wright took the stage to thank the Hawks for the party and to call the rest of the Hawks onto the stage although, surprisingly, he headed off himself. I suppose I'd been expecting them to do Spirit of the Age, but instead we were treated to two of the most upbeat tracks from the recent tour: Brainbox Pollution; and Paradox. At one point (during Paradox? ……told you things got a bit blurry) the melody was being carried superbly by the bass and keyboards. I was just thinking about how good it sounded when Dave's guitar kicked in with a

vengeance and totally blew me away. Bliss.

As ever we were left wanting more but, considering that we'd been told not to expect a performance, we were all very happy with what we did get. The album playback continued so we headed back for the bar. Jason came by and was extremely modest when we tried to compliment him on his contribution, insisting that he learns something new every day from the rest of the band and that he's having a really good time – if you'd seen the grin on his face during the two numbers they performed, you'd know he wasn't exaggerating there. Marie (Chaos Illumination and merchandising) also stopped by and was subjected to a barrage of questions about how she manages to do what she does for Hawkwind and still hold down a

full time job – the amount of their own time and effort that some folks put into ensuring that we have a good time at gigs is nothing short of staggering. It's not just Dave Law we should be buying pints for at the next gig we go to. (Let's not forget Neil, Keith and Dibs, all of whom turned out for the party on Thursday).

Above: Keef Barton
Left: Jason Stuart (Pics - Rob Dreamworker)

Eventually people started drifting away and we did likewise. Mike headed off home, so Tom and I headed for Brixton for a jungle curry and the Litmus gig later in the evening ………

Like I said: what a day out! Fantastic. Thanks, Hawkwind, for a great party.

Jim Skinner:

For a Hawkwind fan there's not much that can compare to spending the afternoon with the band. It all began in the queue a little before twelve where fans broke the ice and chatted to each other for a while, discussing gigs, festivals and other HW experiences.

Alan strolled past nonchalantly a little later with the comment "Late as usual!" followed by calls of "Join the queue!" when Richard arrived a few minutes after (to which he did and spent some time chatting to the waiting fans!).

As we entered the Borderline (really just a large stage bar with a low ceiling, decked out with psychedelic

Dave Brock (Pic - Rob Dreamworker)

hangings) we heard the first play of the long awaited new album - and it sounded good. As we enjoyed a few cooling beers everyone relaxed and the talk seemed to come easily giving us all a good chance to meet old acquaintances and make new friends.

As the afternoon passed many fans grabbed the chance to speak to the band and get CDs, posters and other paraphernalia signed and the crew were happy to oblige. Alan and Mr. Dibs seemed in high spirits, Richard milled amongst the crowd and Dave patiently sat, signed and chatted to us, sipping wine and waiting for his long-overdue lunch.

Fans Martin & Tog (Pic - Martin Treanor)

Jason seemed to gel well with the Hawkfans, smiling and enjoying the atmosphere, and Matthew and his girlfriend, Caroline, were most pleasant company, very approachable and seemingly as happy as we all were (they seemed to be beaming broadly during the whole afternoon!). Pete Pracownik seemed happy to see his artwork in everyone's hands and more than a few copies of his excellent book were sold.

There's not a lot you can say to your idols when you meet them. The Hawkwind experience seems to be as much about the life as it is about the music and I found myself at a loss when I met Dave Brock again. There

was only one thing that seemed to come to mind and I just blurted it out - "You know we're very proud of you, don't you?" to which he simply smiled and said thanks. And that's the core of it - no false airs and graces or vanity from the band, they know how much we respect them and they acknowledge it with events like this and the Hawkfests.

Spacehead put on a cracking set and, predictably, Hawkwind went down a storm with versions of "Brainbox Pollution" and "Paradox". Then all too soon the session was finished and it was all over and we all wandered into the blazing sunshine, our heads swimming with a beery, Hawkwind glow.

Grateful thanks to all involved, you know who you are.

Alan Davey Pic - Rob Dreamworker

See also an entire Photo Gallery of Jim's pictures from the event at Photo Gallery 223: Jimski's Party Piece!

I decided to reserve the last word on this page unto myself. Not because I went to the launch party (I live a bit too far away to have made it) but because I was tangentially involved with the arrangements, on account of giving away tickets, thanks to the good offices of the band and record company. Anyway, the point is that I know just how hard the band's management worked on making this event happen smoothly for the benefit of the fans. Right up until I went to sleep the night before (some 4 hours before the party was due to start), emails were going back and forth with Kris Tait doing her absolute utmost to see that the fans attending the party would be taken care of (as Chriz Dove refers to, above).

The invites were given out by 4 separate websites and Kris took on the task of co-ordinating the entries submitted to each of the sites, and checking back to see that all the winners had been put on the guest list, with the correct number of invites for each winner. She also phoned those fans who hadn't confirmed, as late as the night before, and made sure that those fans who were travelling from far away enough to have to have started out from home the day before the party had been contacted and knew where to go. (I'm sure she was doing 100 other things at the same time, but this is what I was aware of.)

None of this stuff was easy to arrange, and I'd like to take this opportunity to say thanks to Kris, who pulls this kind of rabbit out of various kinds of hat *all the time* on behalf of the fans. "Thanks" doesn't begin to cover it, but some kind of recognition is well overdue.

No more talk, but still the pictures roll in - thanks to Tony for these: Hawkwind set up (left), Mr.Dibs (below left) and Captain Scratchy (below)...

12/09/2005: And we have yet more pics! Many thanks to Nick Loebner for these three photos (right, below and below right) which were taken with a mobile phone in less than optimal conditions... (well, I suppose that last statement applies to all the stage shots from the launch party...) They show off the stage lighting well, and also those mushroom shapes which are Yaz'n'Flo's trademarks!