MICHAEL MOORCOCK & THE DEEP FIX

MICHAEL MOORCOCK's fantasy fiction stories have always been a bit "out there" for me, far flung, fetched and set tales of other worlds in contrast to his more sci fi oriented material shared with the likes of HAWKWIND and BLUE OYSTER CULT. I expected that perhaps his sole (for many years) musical offering under the auspices of DEEP FIX would help us understand how those two mildly disparate qualities can intersect. Instead we have a third MOORCOCK in the form of a gritty and vaguely sinister tale of a world's fair of the newish variety. It's like RENAISSANCE's "Trip to the Fair' until the needle hits the groove, ok it isn't, mostly.

Setting aside the already passe aspects of narrated intros and hippy cliches aside for a moment, I hear more conventional rock and roll than I would have expected in the related tracks that follow those intros. Nonetheless, "Fair Dealer" is a melodically sly inexplicably terrifying number that I heard on college radio back in 1979 and filed away for many years. OK I was a deer in the headlights at my first real job but it still moves me today. Several other tracks attempt to eclipse it, including the BOWIE like "Hero", the English folk rock of "Come to the Fair", and the infectious rocker "Starcruiser". These more than offset the uninspired "16 Year Old Doom" and "Ferris Wheel".

Flaws aplenty and aside, this fair is just off kilter enough to augment Moorcock's legacy, which is appropriate for someone who has contributed so much to several bands we love before and since.

Moorcock is seventy years old now, and that does affect the timbre of his voice at times, but in just in the way it adds additional gravitas. I am somewhat surprised hearing how strong his vocals are that we haven't had more music from him over the years, as when he applies the gravel on 'A Man Like Me' he shows he has far more in common with Dr. John than I would ever have imagined possible. This never sounds like the work of a man feted for his novels, short stories and magazines (it is incredible to think he was editing magazines at the age of 17 and publishing his own works at that time as well, no wonder he has been named as one of the most important English authors since the war), but instead someone who grew up on the bayou. The first time I played this I literally sat there with a smile on my face the whole way through as this is such a delight, and as soon as I finished it, I had to play it again!

Fans of this style of music are going to get a great deal from it, and I do wonder what Hawkwind completists are going to think when they put this on, as it is a long way from his work with that mighty band. It certainly wasn't what I expected to hear, but that surprise turned to pure delight.

It's a concept album, where Moorcock's spoken lyrics and crowd noises is the red thread binding together a story about "Dude" going to the fair. It's a rather unique experience in many ways, the psychedelic tinged tunes with a distinct 60's flavor to them mixed in with dark and eerie lyrics - and a high level of theatrics in songs as well as the passages read out by Moorcock. Not all the tunes work out here, in fact it's a fairly mixed release overall, but this is also very much a one of a kind release; worth checking out for the good bits.

Fans of retro psychedelic rock should find this one interesting, as well as fans of Hawkwind.