Hawkwind, the space rock band that pioneered the very same genre. The London band has had many lineup changes throughout their time on Earth (and by the sounds of it, off Earth), and you may well know them for their biggest hit, ‘Silver Machine’, a great swirling and far out rock song that cannot be certified as anything other than a classic. Now, the band have returned with a new compilation, of a psychedelic variety, which delves into the trippy and more spaced out tunes. Most of the tracks are unreleased too, so this will be a treat for fans of the band.
The album kicks off with ‘Four Legs Good, Two Legs Bad’, which is a very psychedelic track, starting with almost ambient electronic keyboards, before a spoken word is layered in. Then it really freaks out with a bunch of different sounds of animals, electronic soundscapes and what sounds like the ramblings of someone who has read Animal Farm one too many times. Certainly a weird track to begin the proceedings. ‘There Are Fairies In The Garden’ is next, and this one is a more of an actual track, a lovely peaceful acoustic riff playing throughout, with some whooshing synths playing in the intro. And the electric guitar pattern that loops throughout is almost entrancing, very reminiscent of songs by Lemon Jelly (ambient 2000s). It is a very serene track; it would be nice to listen to on a warm summer’s day on a walk through nature.
‘Hurry On Sundown’ is a classic from the debut self-titled album, and it is quite psych rock, the vocals dreamy, the guitar gliding along the melody. And the guitar work from Huw Lloyd-Langton is just superb. The track almost feels like it could be an early Pink Floyd effort, which is a huge compliment. ‘The Demented Man’ is next, starting with some classic Hawkwind windy sounding keyboards. It is quite an easy going track, it flows gently in the ear. Definitely a psychedelic track, it has a summer of love feeling to it. Starting with a heavier, sleezy riff, ‘Tortured Mind’ is a far out track, it’s got the distortion and fuzz matched with the echoing vocals. It actually sounds like a distant predecessor to a lot of the shoegaze that would swarm the independent scene in the 90s. A cool tune.
‘The Land Of Min’ starts of with a mysterious, almost mystical sounding keyboard flurry, that could have been used in an early Doctor Who series, before the drums come in and it turns into a frantic chase. The flurries continue on with the unrelenting beat, it doesn’t sound too far off some of the electronic music of the 90s, albeit the drum will be replaced with a machine, but the influence is there. The guitar towards the end of the track is great, accompanied by a harmonica in the background. It is pure Hawkwind. ‘Part Of Human Behaviour (No Sex Allowed)’ is quite a fun track, the cloudy sounding guitar paired with keyboard and saxophone, makes for quite a futuristic listen. The electronics take a mind of their own towards the end of the track, and it sounds like a video game soundtrack. The band were ahead of their years.
‘Those Days Of The Underground’ is pure dream psychedelia. Starting off with this very peaceful guitar, joined by some far out electronic sound, it just takes your mind elsewhere. And the opening line, “In visions of acid, we saw through delusions” you couldn’t get more on the nose if you tried. References to Timothy Leary, and substances associated with him, this song is a forward nod to the counterculture of the late 60s, and it really captures the vibe well. ‘Out Of Luck’ is a heavily distorted, trippy tune. The guitar rips through the start of the track, before a pounding beat attacks you. Again, shoegaze elements are present here. And even an electronic beat is there towards the end, it’s another track which feels ahead of it’s time.
‘PSI Power’ starts with a riff that sounds like a heavier version of Chicago’s ’25 or 6 to 4’ (a brilliant track to take inspiration from). It doesn’t change too much from that though, it’s a pretty basic psychedelic track, the guitar solo towards the end deserves some credit though. ‘Human Zoo’ starts off with a powerful riff, the synth lifting the track off the ground, then the drums come in. It sounds like the beginning of an Oasis track, especially that beat and guitar, all the influences are being brought in here. It’s quite a cool track; it sounds almost anthemic. ‘The Judge And The Fisherman’ is quirky, starting with glockenspiel and trumpets, followed by a spoken word about “taking enough hashish to destroy a 100-year-old elephant”. Then the guitar comes in, and it sounds like a fairground tune with some of the random sound effects thrown in there, really embodying the spirit of psychedelia. Still very weird.
‘Goonhilly Downs’ begins in a very digital fashion, with spacey sounding keyboards being played and sounds that can only be described as R2-D2 being used in the background. But it is a smooth track, the bass carries the song quite well. It has the classic Hawkwind wind swooshing too. Starting with some lovely piano and bass, ‘Ocean’s Spiral’ is a very calm track. It feels like something you could listen to with the ocean breeze brushing against you. It is completely serene. The final track is ‘Traveller Of Space’, which sounds really similar to early Bowie. Another calming track, with some distortion in the middle that actually complements the vibe of the track really well. A great closer for the album.
And with that, Hawkwind have given us another great album, I’m hesitant to call it a compilation considering a lot of the tracks have never seen the light of day. Psychedelic Selection is a really good album to listen to if you are a fan of the counterculture scene and the spaced out tunes that came along with it. And if you are a fan of Hawkwind, you won’t want to miss out on this release.
Hawkwind: Psychedelic Selection – Released 12 June 2026 (Cherry Red)
