Dear readers, it is with great pleasure that we offer you in this article an interview with a pioneer of Electronic and Space Rock sounds, with various projects and monikers. We welcome Steve Hillman.
Hi Steve, it’s a pleasure to have you among our pages, how are you?
“Hi Jacopo – I’m fine and many thanks for this opportunity to talk about the music.“
You started playing and experimenting in the 70s, how did your passion for music start?
“For as far back as I can remember into my first decade as a child, music has always been a passion and fascination for me. Both my parents were huge music fans and growing up I was exposed to the pop music of the times such as the Beatles, etc. but what especially got my attention was hearing the weird and wonderful sounds of electronic music that I was hearing on film & TV from the 60’s onwards. As I grew into a teenager I also became aware of many other genres of music such as rock, progressive rock, classical, medieval, etc which also had a huge impact on me.“
You were a pioneer of certain sounds and instrumentation, what memories do you have of the 70s scene and how did you become a professional artist?
“I remember when I was 15 in 1971 asking my parents that I’d like an album of electronic music for my Christmas present and that turned out to be “Kaleidoscopic Vibrations” by Perrey & Kingsley but other albums followed thereafter such as those by Wendy Carlos, etc. The Moog was also creeping into the top 20 in 1972 such as Chicory Tip’s “Son Of My Father” getting to the No 1 spot and Hot Butter’s “Popcorn”. As if by fate, I’d accidentally made an audio generator early in 1972
when I was still 15. As 1972 progressed I became aware of electronic sounds being used in a more free form and experimental way such as by Eno in Roxy Music and Tim Blake in Gong. I can also still remember Hawkwind’s “Silver Machine” hitting the No 3 spot in 1972 and seeing them perform it on TV that year and their music subsequently became a great influence and inspiration. What also had a profound and life changing effect upon me was hearing Tangerine Dream for the very first time when they were providing live music for a BBC Radio One programme broadcast from Germany in 1972 about the UK joining the EU. I was immediately captivated by the cosmic sounds they were creating and became aware of a psychic dimension to what they were sonically conjuring up. It was truly a magical and transformative experience for me. I’d witnessed and experienced paranormal events throughout my childhood but this was the first time I was hearing music that crossed the divide to other realms. All of these things took my life in the direction of wanting to create music myself and to dedicate my life to doing so.“
You have explored different genres and sounds throughout your career, how has your style evolved over time?
“My first musical endeavours were very much electronic, using the audio generator that I had built to record free form electronic music collages. Over time I got an electronic organ and guitar and began to incorporate them into my collages and I also began to teach myself music theory, composition, etc. Consequently my music became more structured over time and after pursuing electronic music in the 70’s and 80’s I became more progressive rock influenced in the 90’s and got signed to the Cyclops Records progressive rock music label here in the UK who released four solo albums. Along the way I became the keyboard player in a prog rock group called Ra Rising and I also ventured into new musical directions such as in the 00’s when I was signed to Chicago based record label Dreamfast who released my album “The World Over” which was very orchestral and jazz based and done as if for an imaginary spy movie in the style of Bond composer John Barry. I’ve continued to work in many genres ever since those early years back in the 70’s!“
Your most recent project The Trance Dimensionals was formed in 2016 by meeting Nik Turner, how did this band come about?
“As I mentioned previously, Hawkwind had long been a great influence and inspiration for me and by the 2010’s I decided I wanted to make music with a strong space rock vibe. In 2015 I began exchanging emails with Nik and sent him some demos and outlined my ideas, which he liked and when we got to meet each other in 2016, he agreed that we could work together. Nik and I shared a similar fascination for the esoteric, mysticism and ancient cultures so we got on extremely well. Around this time I was also in the prog rock band called Ra Rising and I asked our drummer Dai Rees and bassist Clog to join us in recording an album. Nik’s Space Ritual and Crazy World of Arthur Brown’s dancer, Angel Flame, also came onboard as did former Amon Duul II, Hawkwind and Groundhogs bassist Dave Anderson and so the THE TRANCE DIMENSIONALS band became born!“
The band’s second album “Space Angels” was released in January 2025 via Black Widow Records, how would you describe this work?
“It’s very much a continuation and development of the first album “Synchronicity” with the musical emphasis very much upon a fusion of space/ psychedelic / progressive rock and electronic elements.“
The album also features Dave Anderson, Angel Flame and Mr. Dibs, what did they bring to the sound of this work and in the songwriting process?
“As with the first album, I’m very much the primary songwriter of the material – Dave plays bass and Angel does vocals. Mr Dibs role was solely as guest vocalist on the track “Higher And Higher”. I’m hoping that our third album, which we’re currently recording, will be more of a colloborative songwriting experience.“
Six tracks ranging between Space Rock, Electronic and Progressive Rock, how is the creative process of your music and in particular of this album?
“Our first album was mainly recorded in my home studio where I first recorded guide drums, bass, guitar, keyboards and synths. Our drummer Dai Rees and bassist Clog then recorded their parts at a later date, along to my backing tracks at another studio. When it came to recording Nik’s vocals, sax and flute, Angel’s vocals and Dave Anderson’s bass on “Children of the Sun”, we all met up at Foel Studio in Wales to record them. Following the loss of Nik, our engineer Mike Bew became a vocalist in the band and Dave Anderson is now our bassist. Our approach to “Space Angels” was somewhat similar to our first, but was much more of being a band in a studio situation. Although my guitar, keyboards and synths were recorded in my home studio, they were re amped at Foel Studio where Dave’s bass, Dai’s drums, Angel and Mike’s vocals were also all recorded.“
Both Nik Turner and Angel Flame take care of the vocals, what themes do the lyrics and the album in general deal with?
“The ethos of the band is very much rooted in science fiction, ancient cultures, the occult and mysticism so that’s very much reflected in the lyrical content of the songs and narratives and the musical sounds we use to create atmosphere, etc.“
This is the band’s second work, how does it differ from the previous one?
“All the band feel the same way, that this album is a step on from our first, not only musically but in its production values as well. Whereas our debut album “Synchronicity” was in the main based on ideas that I’d written back in the 80’s and 90’s, for “Space Angels” I wrote new music with Nik very much in mind both musically and lyrically. There’s also much more of a “rock” approach to the music.”
The album was released via Black Widow records, how did the collaboration with this excellent Italian label come about?
“Once we had enough material recorded for our first album and since we’re UK based we did approach several UK based record labels but we got zero interest from them. Likewise with US based labels. The lack of interest was extremely disheartening and I’d personally almost given up but I became aware that Black Widow Records had released albums featuring Nik so I sent them a demo and the team at Black Widow came to the rescue and agreed to sign us up!“
Many of your fans and our readers are wondering if there will be a chance to hear your music live, do you have plans for this project or anything else in the near future?
“The current band line up had it’s debut gig at last years Sonic Rock Solstice music festival here in the UK and we’re planning on playing at a few small venues in late 2025 early 2026 and hopefully a few larger music festivals in Summer 2026 onwards.“
Do you have any memories or anecdotes in particular that you would like to tell us about your live experiences, maybe something from the beginning of your career?
“I will always have special memories of my first gigs especially as they were with my late wife Linda who played flute and keyboards. The first Trance Dimensionals album I titled “Synchronicity” because of all the many synchronous events that had ocurred throughout my life – my first gig in particular was one such event. It was organised by an electronic music promoter and they put forward the idea in their fanzine of holding an electronic music event in the UK and I expressed an interest of playing there and their representative went in search of a venue. Much to my late wife Linda’s and my amazement he booked the school where Linda and I had first met 15 years earlier! I don’t know what the chances would be of that happening as the venue could have been anywhere in the UK but he chose that particular one. That’s always stuck in my mind!“
Music is constantly evolving, how do you see today’s scene in the Space, Electronic and Progressive scene?
“I think that it’s important that it continues to sonically explore inner and outer space and time! My brain has been saturated in Space, Electronic and Progressive rock for decades so for the sake of my sanity I don’t really follow the modern scene as closely as I used to and tend to listen to music in my leisure time that is something other than those genres unless it’s those groups I grew up listening to. However, I can say that here in the UK the scene is certainly very much alive and well with many bands and festivals promoting and keeping this music alive!“
Given your experience, what advice would you give to young artists approaching music in a more sophisticated genre such as yours?
“I think it’s important when starting out to study the music of the original masters and pioneers of the genre that you’re interested in, study how they created their music, its structure, the instruments they used, etc. and having done that to develop a sound that’s uniquely your own by bringing in your own influences, life experience, etc.“
Being a lover of Experimentation, how do you see this massive technological input in the making of music nowadays?
“I’ve always been of the view that technology is not all that important when it comes to being creative, yes it can aid a person to reach a goal but what’s important is the creative force within a person. It’s also not important to have expensive or brand name pieces of equipment and technology to achieve anything creatively – there’s no replacement for the soul and life experiences of an artist and that can flow through the most rudimentary of technolgies. At the end of the day technology is their to serve and aid the artist and should not be an end in of itself.“
Besides The Trance Dimensionals, are you working on any other music or artistic projects?
“I’ve continuued to create electronic music in the vein of early Tangerine Dream by colloborating with Greek synthesist Thaneco with whom we’ve released three albums. I still release solo albums in different genres such as 2023’s prog based “Sunsets Of Summers Past” or in my medieval personna of Medievalus with 2024’s “Vestiges” album. I also work with lyricist and drummer Dave Rees with whom I’ve recorded three albums of song / orchestral / film score genre music and we’re currently working on our next album.“
Do you have any other activities or artistic passions outside of music?
“I had the opportunity of being a graphic designer in the 70’s but chose music as my path in life so designing cover artwork, etc. is still a feature of my life. For several years I also used to colloborate with Mike Oldfield’s sister Sally Oldfield on video work for her.“
I thank Steve for the interview and wish him all the best in the promotion of his new album and the continuation of his artistic career.
“Many thanks to YOU for taking the time and for having the interest in our music which we very much appreciate!“
Purchase the album on Bandcamp: https://stevehillman.bandcamp.com/album/space-angels
Read the Review of the new album here: [Review] The Trance Dimensionals feat. Nik Turner – Space Angels
