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EARTHED TO THE GROUND

Dave Brock

Psychedelic/Space Rock


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Dave Brock Earthed to the Ground album cover
3.65 | 11 ratings | 3 reviews | 9% 5 stars

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Studio Album, released in 1984

Songs / Tracks Listing

1. Earthed To The Ground (8:26)
2. Assassination (4:03)
3. Green Finned Demon (6:07)
4. Spirits (5:32)
5. Sweet Obsession (3:14)
6. Oscillations (1:47)
7. Machine Dream (3:00)
8. Now Is The Winter (2:29)
9. On The Case (7:02)

Total Time 41:40

Bonus Tracks on 2011 remaster:
10. Zones (1:01)
11. Processed (5:20)
12. Social Alliance (5:24)
13. Raping Robots In The Street (3:31)
14. Wired Up For Sound (2:46)

Total time 59:52

Line-up / Musicians

- Dave Brock / vocals, guitar, synth, keyboards, drum machine, percussion, composer & producer

With:
- Keith Jones / drums (12)

Releases information

Artwork: John Coulthart

LP Flicknife Records ‎- SHARP 018 (1984, UK)

CD Atomhenge ‎- ATOMCD 1027 (2011, UK) Remastered by Ben Wiseman with 5 bonus tracks

Thanks to windhawk for the addition
and to Quinino for the last updates
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DAVE BROCK Earthed to the Ground ratings distribution


3.65
(11 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music(9%)
9%
Excellent addition to any prog rock music collection(36%)
36%
Good, but non-essential (55%)
55%
Collectors/fans only (0%)
0%
Poor. Only for completionists (0%)
0%

DAVE BROCK Earthed to the Ground reviews


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Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by Marty McFly
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars Just look on this picture, what a beautiful album cover it is. However, we're in 80's and so it changes, it influences, it corrupts, but it also helps to develop certain mature kind of sounds, even simplified by era where it was born. This album is like vision of stoner, but I don't feel like it's repeating itself over and over (like some Psychedelic efforts does), more like managing to create living, organic world. However, this "electronic" element (or elements) that are present in many songs (most prominently Earthed to the Ground and Spirits). It's a weird mix of Psych sounds from decade that I though nobody was releasing good albums (in 50% of cases at least). But this is interesting enough to sound average, but feeling you get from it is so good that I must increase my rating to

4(-), because sometimes you just want to dream. Nope, seriously, this album can offer you quite pleasant Psychedelic/electronic Prog. Maybe some will question its Progness, but I'll leave it to others, I'm happy with what I hear and am sure it can stand the tsunami. It can.

Review by Tom Ozric
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars HAWKWIND guitarist, vocalist, synth-twiddler, mainstay, instigator, visionary, mastermind (all those things) DAVE BROCK, had his debut solo album, 'Earthed To The Ground', released during 1984 on the collector's label Flicknife Records. It was " recorded at home while waiting for Hawkwind to get going again " 1980/81/82/83 !! The songs on this album, whilst still firmly space-oriented, psychedelicised electronic rock-music, shows Brock embracing 80's sensibilities all the way, which is apparent from the long-ish, synthetic groove of the opening title-track. Very trance-like with an almost disco undertone, analogue drum-machines and emphasis on synths. Some tracks appeared remixed and instrumentally augmented on future Hawkwind projects - Green Finned Demon being a classic example, here just a floating synth piece with vocals and guitar. It appeared on the Earth Ritual Preview E.P. with a 'fuller' band treatment. Assassination was included on the Church of Hawkwind LP re-titled 'Some People Never Die'. Spirits features a synth-pop beat with hypnotic synth melodies and sounds. Very nice. Much is the case for the 2nd side - Sweet Obsession is direly commercial (for Brock standards anyway) and recently appeared on the late Hawkwind album 'Blood of the Earth' with very little improvement though. Oscillations is a short tune with a catchy melody and vocals, more throbbing synths on Machine Dream and Now Is The Winter Of Our Discontent, and another longer, repetitive cut to finish things off with On The Case. This is clearly the work of an individual, as opposed to a collective, but the crux of this album is just how crucial Brock is to Hawkwind. A good record with a very attractive John Coulthart artwork, but nothing too spectacular. 3 stars.
Review by GruvanDahlman
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Hawkwind albums are rarely, with a few glorious exceptions, solid and spectacular from start to finish. Most times I find that the albums sort of disjointed. There are always brilliant stuff but there's also quite alot of, what I consider to be, fillers. I love Hawkwind but still, I cannot say I love all of their music.

Having said that I believe that Dave Brock, the one who has been steering the Hawk for so many years, is a true genius. That is especially true when it comes to the more ambient and electronic side of Hawkwind. Before I bore you to death with this introduction, I think that this album, alongside a handful of others, are really excellent and solid Hawkwind.

Why Hawkwind? Isn't Dave Brock a musician in his own right? Bloody right, he is! But on this album of demos and oddities, really, lies the embryos of several Hawkwind recordings. Being overwhelmed by the might of Hawkwind I find these to be ever so interesting.

The songs later "covered" by Hawkwind are very interesting. "Assassination" is one of the most evocative and interesting songs. Later put on "Church of Hawkwind" and named "Some people never die", we get a longer and I think superior version. The combination of actual broadcasts from when Lee Harvey Oswald and Robert Kennedy was assassinated and electronic, fierce and harsh, music makes for a surreal and highly intense piece. This is one of the most dramatic pieces of music I have ever heard. "Green finned demon" is another track later "covered" by Hawkwind. Slightly more electronic it is quite mellow, almost narrative in some way. Great track.

The remaining tracks are all of the highest quality. "Now is the winter of our discontent" is similar to "Assassinations" by way of music over narratives. Taken from the Shakespeare play Richard III it is equally dramatic, almost furious in execution. "Spirits" is an eerie instrumental, as is "Machine dream". The track "Sweet obsession" I had trouble with at first but now I love it, just as is the case with "On the case". Both are sort of poppy tracks but really good. Bound by time, perhaps, but still good.

I consider this album to be great, genial even, almost all the way through. Repetative? Why, yes. But in a good way, though. Despite being almost loopy at times, the album keeps my interest at the highest level, giving me a fantastic trip through the ambient space of Dave Brock.

I am keen to give this album five stars but realise that it is probably not fair. However, this album has become a favorite of mine and it has not left my ears, or mind for that matter, for a really long time. I think it deserves to be acknowledged and appreciated by a wider audience. I think that lovers of prog and electronica could find a whole lot to take to their hearts and bossoms. Great stuff from a great man.

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