NIK TURNER'S SPHYNX: XITINTODAY

What an AMAZING album !!!!! It's hard to put this phenomenally cosmic release into words - absolutely mind-blowing. Former Hawkwind woodwinds player Nik Turner is joined here by an all-star crew of space cadets, performing music of the Gods, and, hence, it's by the Gods !! Turner has excelled himself with this album, no stoned waffling or neo-punk tendencies to be found, just pure SPACE. Based on the history of Egyptian Gods, the music is just incredible. Apparently, Turner's Flute playing was recorded in the Great Pyramid itself, adding more depth and ambience to the whole affair. Steve Hillage plays lead guitar and glissandos, Tim Blake twiddles his EMS, Nik Turner's voice is often heavily affected with delay, reverb, pitch-shifted delay, Leslie and so on as he spins his stories of Ancient Egyptian folklore. Mike Howlett contributes some suitable space-Bass licks and so on. Lots of ethnic percussion, gongs and chimes are utilised to create a mythical atmosphere of the lost world, and that works perfectly, almost as if Ancient Egypt as we know from history, exists concurrently, somewhere in space. The gorgeous voice of Miquette Giraudy can be heard perfectly here, more so than any Hillage solo release. This album has to be given 110 % attention, preferrably late at night, and if possible, somewhere far away - I committed this LP to tape so a friend and I could drive 100km's either to a craggy edge where land meets the sea, or down a forest road high up in the mountains to listen to this in peace, and absorb all it has to offer. That is how powerful this album is. Along with Steve Hillage's 'Green', Tim Blake's 'New Jerusalem' and Mother Gong's 'Fairy Tales', Xitintoday is a MUST HAVE - needs to be heard to be believed.