Not too long ago I wrote a review of the latest Hawkestrel release, and as a result this little gift found its way into my mailbox. As the title indicates, this is a record with a very Christmas feel. I wished I had gotten it few weeks earlier, but I was still intrigued to hear just to see how they pulled it off.

Hawkestrel is of course a Hawkwind satellite band lead by bassist/vocalist Alan Davey. As it was in the past, the record includes a number of guests that add the special flavor to the album. This time it is Glenn Hughes, Rick Wakeman, Robbie Krieger, Huw Lloyd-Langton, Nik Turner, Jurgen Engler, Nigel Potter, Adam Hamilton, Danny Faulkner, and Steve Leigh. That’s a very impressive list of musicians  However, Huw Lloyd Langton passed away back in 2012, so it must’ve been done prior to this release. 

The album’s cover already indicates the holiday spirit with a very unusual twist. The twist of course comes from above. Sometimes that’s enough to make one wonder as to what is lurking inside.

SpaceXmas is actually a fun listen. Most of the tracks come from the traditional Christmas catalog, but the songs are approached in a very spacey way. It gives the material a very fresh and fun feel. Some will even put a big smile on your face, but it’s really up to the listener’s taste.

Glenn Hughes’s vocals on “Oh Holy Night” shine with beauty and elegance as do Nigel Potter’s take on “Hallelujah.” “Silent Night” is done here as an instrumental, and somewhere in the middle this track truly explodes into space. You’ve been warned, so brace yourself. The cool thing about this album is that every track has that special something, no matter how predictable you expect it to be. 

While I enjoy this album very much, it feel little odd to listen to it past the holiday season. So it’s lifespan is little bit limited, but it will certainly come alive next December. Once again, I’m marveled how something impossible became a reality.  This is a lot of fun, but that fun is restricted to a certain time of the year.

Rating: B

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