I have been a great fan of Hawkwind for many many years, since I first saw them in the early 1970s. I followed the band throughout the 1970s and 1980s, but foolishly lost faith in my Hawk heroes during the 1990s, but returned to the fold around 20 years ago and have seen them several times ever since. In recent years I have tried to catch every visit they make to the North-East of England.
On this occasion they turned up in the glorious surroundings of the Sage Gateshead, in the larger Hall, Hall 1, and the downstairs area was almost full. These days, the band is led by original member Dave Brock and the psychedelic warlords usually take us through a set which draws from throughout their back catalogue of psycho beat favourites. However, this time things are different and we were treated to a new album and a new concept.
This time the concept was: “Hawkwind present The Machine Stops Tour – A live concept show from their new studio album based on the sci-fi classic. E.M. Forster’s dystopian vision of the future is brought to life in classic Hawkwind style through a spectacular array of music, lights, dance and visual effects. Join the legendary Lord of space Rock Dave Brock and Hawkwind on their journey from the surface of this world, to the centre of the next…with time for a few old favourites along the way. ” (Tour promotional information). 
“”The Machine Stops” is a science fiction short story by E. M. Forster. After initial publication in The Oxford and Cambridge Review (November 1909), the story was republished in Forster’s The Eternal Moment and Other Stories in 1928. In 1973 it was included in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two. The story, set in a world where humanity lives underground and relies on a giant machine to provide its needs, predicted technologies similar to instant messaging and the Internet.” (Wikipedia).
I was a bit unsure as to how much I would enjoy the show, given everything was new to me. However the concept and the visuals supported a set of new songs which flowed together well, and I thoroughly enjoyed the new show. I was pleased to hear my old favourite “Silver machine” as the final encore. All in all, this was another great concert by Hawkwind.
Setlist: All Hail the Machine; The Machine; Katie; King of the World; In My Room; Thursday; Synchronised Blue; Hexagone; Living on Earth; The Harmonic Hall; Yum Yum; A Solitary Man; Tube; Lost in Science; Orgone Accumulator; Utopia. Encore: You’d Better Believe It; Silver Machine
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