I discovered Hawkwind through compilation albums. One of these albums was called "Masters of the Universe" (the other, that I acquired at a later date, was called "Roadhawks".)
An appreciable feature of some of the songs on "Masters of the Universe" was their length. I was still at high school at the time, and I had a couple of shows on a pirate radio station. There were a couple of them on there. One was called "Orgone Accumulator", another was called "Brainstorm". I liked "Brainstorm" especially. Since it was something like eleven minutes long I could leave the "studio" and be back before the song finished. Of course, if I'd have only known in those days, there were bands that had filled whole sides with just one song, from the blues jams of Cream to the dubious prog-rock of bands like "Yes" an if I'd wanted something tasteful there were a couple of sides on Can's famous Tago Mago.
But no, it was "Hawkwind" with "Brainstorm".
Who were Hawkwind? An English version of the Grateful Dead ? Heavy Metal
pioneers ? A bunch of drugged up anarchist rebels playing seminal rock'n'roll
? The inventors of space-rock, their own brand of British psychedelia ?
Probably all of the above.
But Brainstorm. Now there was something. In my professional life since
those carefree days at the pirate radio station, I've frequently come across
the concept of "brainstorming". As you may know, it's supposed to be a
technique for generating ideas. Everyone spontaneously volunteers his impressions,
they are all pooled together and are supposed to stimulate everybody. It's
basically something employed in business circles. Part of the "marketing"
world pretending to be creative. They even use it for teaching kids nowadays.
Well, I can reassure you. Hawkwind's "Brainstorm" has absolutely nothing
to do with all that crap. Quite the contrary.
The song could be described as a monotonous dirge, the trancelike repetition
of the same two or three chords, the muddled repetition of the same lyrics.
The song could have been called "Braindead" actually. But don't get the
wrong idea. I think it's a great song. A bit like Can,
lots of Hawkwind songs relied heavily on the endless repetition of simple
patterns. It wasn't a weakness on the band's part, rather it was more of
an experimentation on the hypnotic power of repetition.
Listening to the lyrics, the effect of the "Brainstorm" doesn't seem
to be desired. This is not a businesslike pooling of ideas, this is a guy
stranded in space and swamped in anguish fearing a mental onslaught will
destroy him. That's what it sounds like.
Ok, so it may be psychedelia. But it's not the happy sunny Californian
psychedelia of The Grateful Dead. First of all it's grungy, basic, biting
rock. It's sombre stuff, too. The manic repetition really gives you the
impression of a paralysed mind and when it lifts, it moves further into
insanity. The song has three layers: the obsessive two note repetition
that forms the basis of the song, then a kind of warped chorus "well you're
out of your mind, and there's a brainstorm coming, out of your mind, and
I don't wanna turn android" which then breaks into "Brainstorm hear I come…".
The final break gives the impression of someone cast into a bottomless
pit or, to stay in keeping with the space rock imagery of the band, the
cable linking an astronaut to his spaceship breaking causing him to drift
off helplessly into outer space. It may be psychedelic but it's never allowed
to get too happy. A dark trip into the hidden recesses of the mind rather
than joyous revelations. Both "Masters of the universe" and "Orgone Accumulator"
are solid rockers along the lines of "Brainstorm" but they don't get either
as intense, as anguished or as fuzzy.
p.s.: Apparently, there are several Hawkwind albums called "Masters
of the Universe" around. Here's the track listing of the one reviewed above.
"Masters of the Universe", "Brainstorm", Sonic attack", "Orgone Accumulator",
"It's so Easy", "Lost Johnny".