madcat

The guitar lines in David's solos in songs like "Time" or "Money" always have a redemptive quality for me............I own it both on vinyl and on CD.

Memorable solos, yes, just like Gilmour often does, the ending of Eclipse has always given me chills, perfect, in 2 minutes it encapsulates everything that has happened in the album and brings it to a perfect conclusion, a liberating finale.

Yet, after more than forty years, it remains an album of such "freshness" that disarms; a sound so full, with the songs flowing seamlessly into one another, and a production that can only be described as perfect—almost reductive. I stop here, otherwise my absolute love for this WORK OF ART drives me to go on infinitely.

My favorite remains Dark Side, but this one comes right after. ;) The Wall, on the other hand, I place a good number of positions lower.

Oh my, Syd Barrett is turning in his grave. Yet he worked so hard to make Astronomy Domine!

Right after The Wall and Wish You Were Here, I place Animals, followed by Dark Side of the Moon and Meddle, sharing the same spot :)

I don't think Syd was that committed :D No, but Holdsworth is right, goats!

hyyiyiyiiy knows very well that I consider the piper at the gates of dawn a masterpiece, the greatest psychedelic album of the 60s, but the Pink Floyd I prefer are in those 5 albums.

For me, even those from the psychedelic period are masterpieces, but I have a special attachment to Pink Floyd from '70 to '77 for personal reasons. :)

And then hey, here’s someone who picked a pretty explicit nickname huh :D

If that's the case, with the nicknames, you’d both be in it together ;) Anyway, you don’t have to explain the history of your lives to me, guys. I intervened just a little, I’ve been out running and exercising since 7 in the morning, and now I needed to say some nonsense :D

Oh yes. :)

I was referring to Syd, of course; mine is madCAT, not madCAP :D

It's true, I've known it for centuries, but I repeat, I'm a bit low on oxygen.

Yes, that (just slimmer) was me a couple of hours ago (I had already been active for another two), completely worn out. I must have killed a couple of gardeners :D

Did you also follow the girl in red? :D

No mad, I haven't seen any hill in front of me :D

: D

A remarkable album, released amidst punk, has not gone unnoticed at all; on the contrary. Quality and style to spare here.

Meho

definitely Mad.

In the sense that you are crazy, yes :-)

A slightly adequate album, seasoned with atmospheres just above banality. Pink Floyd are the band where the boss was a certain Waters.

But look, setting aside the evaluation of the album (that's a matter of taste and perspective), what has always perplexed me is the desire to pinpoint who was the rooster in the Pink Floyd chicken coop. I have a deep respect for Waters and his great songwriting, but in terms of sound and musicality, he would have accomplished very little with Pink Floyd without Gilmour and Wright. Without Waters, Pink Floyd certainly lost a lot (and vice versa), but the "Pink Floyd sound" was essentially those two. So honestly, between Pink Floyd without Gilmour and Pink Floyd without Waters, I would still prefer the second option. However, I find it utterly pointless to argue about who was the boss.

Personally, I’ve always thought that the greatness of Pink Floyd (and I’m referring to the post-Barrett Pink Floyd, before someone asks me "and Syd?" :D) stemmed from the meeting of a genius (Roger) and two musical geniuses (David and Rick). This implies that the first, who was not particularly relevant from a purely musical standpoint (let’s be honest, anyone could have played the bass in place of Roger, considering that Gilmour played it on several studio recordings...), was essentially the "mind" of the group, the fundamental creator of the conceptual and lyrical side, while the other two were tasked with defining the musical universe that would give voice to the ideas of the volcanic bassist/lyricist.
The Floyd without Waters haven’t lost (in my opinion) anything at all in terms of music and sound; rather, they lost a great deal on the conceptual level (so much so that to write the lyrics they had to call in outside people like David’s wife...). Conversely, Roger as a solo artist has always had crystal-clear ideas regarding concepts and lyrics, but the same cannot be said for the musical side, which at least in his first two albums is not perfectly focused (just look at the almost total melodic inconsistency of the verbose "The Pros and Cons...", saved only by Clapton’s exquisite guitar, and the unthinkable plastic pop hit of the ‘80s "Radio Kaos", which ruins tracks that with a different production approach could have been truly excellent). However, I don't think I need to reiterate that I am crazy in love with Waters' songwriting...

Anyway, I really like this album a lot, but I wouldn’t give it 5 stars because then I’d have to give at least 7 to "Dark Side" and "Wish," and that wouldn't be possible, so I would lean towards a solid 4. It's a really great piece of work, no ifs or buts.

The Punk Floyd without Waters are a band like many others. Radio K.A.O.S, while not a masterpiece, contains some truly interesting tracks, just as 'The Pros andò cons' does.

I repeat, tastes. Although I don't know how much "a group like many others" can produce records like this and perform live like "Pulse," to stay within the period.

Anyway, that "PUnk Floyd" is fantastic!

Perhaps I was not very clear about my position on Roger's early solo work. I really like them, but I find that on the musical side (be it melodic or related to production and arrangements) they have many weaknesses that the Floyd's work has never had, neither with Roger nor without him. But as for songwriting, I find them excellent from beginning to end; for example, I believe "Every Stranger's Eyes" and "The Tide Is Turning" are two masterpieces comparable to the more renowned productions of the '70s. Not to mention Amused to Death, which I consider a perfect album.
Pink Floyd without Waters "just another band"? I don't believe that Gilmour and Wright can be considered just another guitarist and another keyboardist, frankly. I think their unique sound and especially the chemistry they created with each other set them apart from the many. Of course, undeniably de gustibus.

Oh man, I tried... oh boy, did I try. At least since the late '90s. I like Pink Floyd but they're not my favorite band. I've given them all a shot up to this point, and this is the one I like the least. I hope I won't lose your respect :)

He's so used to it; I've been telling him for two years that this is driving me crazy :)

let's say it's a bit too monolithic... almost a wall, indeed. compared to this ummagumma, it grabs me much more, even the studio part.

@ Psycho imagine, my respect for you will always be there :D by the way, Ummagumma was the second album I bought from Pink Floyd after The Wall. I've always had a bit of a struggle with Ummagumma, in the sense that I liked it immensely right away (tracks like Set the Controls, A Saucerful, which were the first versions I listened to of those, or The Narrow Way and Sisyphus were really a fascinating trip), but then it kind of dipped for me over the years only to be reevaluated in the last few months. The discussion about The Wall is an old one between me and Hyhy; I must say that the period I prefer from Pink Floyd is from Atom to The Wall (many people prefer the early period, like Hyhy, I don't know about you Psycho), and among those albums, my favorites are probably the four concept albums, without taking anything away from Atom and Meddle, and also Obscured, which reach remarkable heights. The Wall has always emotionally engaged me a lot, also because of the story in which I’ve often identified myself in some way.

I am indeed convinced that each of us, in some way, at certain times in life, finds themselves needing to break through "walls" (which are different for each of us), and The Wall is, in my opinion, one of the best soundtracks for certain moments.

AH AH! hyhy :) I'm used to it, yes!

For me, though, Atom, Live at Pompei, and even Meddle are my favorite period of the Floyds.

I was referring to: "many people prefer the first period, like hyhy." For two or three albums, our favorite periods align.

that's true, I wasn't thinking about it hyhy

Lucky that I'm here :D

Damn, apart from the fact that it's not a Pink Floyd album,

It's definitely bad; at least from Division Bell there were some salvageable tracks, and I'm telling you this as someone who literally idolizes Pink Floyd.

But look, I must say that, as always, it comes down to personal taste (I repeat, for me it is definitely beautiful, just like The Division Bell was), what always makes me smile is the phrase "it's not a Pink Floyd album," because I would love to understand its meaning: Pink Floyd with Barrett, Pink Floyd with Barrett and Gilmour, Pink Floyd without Barrett, Pink Floyd without Wright, Pink Floyd without Waters: now, either all these formations are "Pink Floyd," or none of them is.

If it's rigor when the referee blows the whistle, it's Pink Floyd when Gilmour decides it's Pink Floyd. That said... is it good, is it bad? I like it a lot. And I always think that if this album had been made - IN THE SAME WAY - by a group that weren't Pink Floyd, it would hardly have received all the negative criticism it has. To be objective, this album is a truly beautiful experience (Floydian or not), and it doesn’t surprise me that the criticism (paradoxically but not too much) mostly comes from those who claim to "idolize" the Floyd, which in my opinion takes away a lot of objectivity from the judgment. We would have lived perfectly well without this album, I agree, but I just can’t find it UGLY, just as I can’t help but see at least a hint of bias in those who say so. I think "The Endless River" magnificently fulfills the task for which it was assembled (to put a "period" at the extraordinary career of the group) and that's enough for me.

The Pink Floyd are that band with Sir Roger Waters at the helm, objectively speaking. The rest of the production is a poorly executed attempt to replicate the glories of the golden age.

Ah. objectively speaking, then there's nothing left to do but agree with you.

I quote @[Zimmy]: I also can't find this album ugly... Anyway, we have to consider that it was released for "philological" purposes, it's a tribute to that great musician Rick has been. And come on, closing the discography with a piece (still classy) like Louder Than Words is much less bleak and paranoid than doing it with "High Hopes."

I absolutely agree with @[Kotatsu] on Louder Than Words, definitely a "laid-back" closing track (High Hopes is a fantastic piece, with one of the best solos on the album, but indeed rather "heavy" to remain the closing piece of their journey) and of course classy. It's nice that it's the only sung piece and arrives after all the instrumental flow of the album.

Reason belongs to donkeys. The objective fact is that the exponential growth of the lyrical and musical potential of the Floyd began and ended with Waters as the 'deus ex machina.' The petty squabbles are childish attitudes, dear Mad. The records released after 'The Final Cut' served solely to inflate the already well-filled wallets of the remaining 'three amigos,' but in terms of validity, they are forgettable.

Forgive me, but here it seems to me that the one continuing with "childish attitudes" is you, insisting on a vaguely specified "objectivity" of the issue that is nothing more than your opinion, worth as much as mine or anyone else's, which is zero. You tell me that the albums post "The Final Cut" (which I also like a lot) are invalid, I reply that I consider this and "The Division Bell" to be better than "The Final Cut." The point is that you are a great admirer of Waters, and (as Zimmy also says above) by labeling two albums like "The Division Bell" and "The Endless River" as "ugly, invalid, etc.," you come across as a bit biased, trying to pass off your simple opinions as "objective."

So, would the post-Waters production be on the same level as the previous one? Convince you.

I also consider myself a great admirer of Waters, but that doesn’t make me a detractor of the post-Waters era. Personally, I believe the post-Waters production is not on par with the previous one, but it is still excellent.

When I'm asked what my favorite period of Pink Floyd is, I reply from Meddle to The Wall, just to give you a sense of how much I love that era; but I also tell you that, for example, I'm finding myself listening to this and the previous one with the same enjoyment I have when I listen to the albums from the Waters era, and for me this is the only thing that matters when it comes to placing certain albums "on the same level" as others.

What a blast!!

A masterpiece, capperibelli.

Masterpiece Surfer, beautifully strong the Ep.

I really wouldn't know how to choose among the 4, for me they are all a 5.

Nice little disc. But, in my opinion, it pales in comparison to Surfer Rosa (especially) and Doolittle.

I really don't understand why many people keep saying that the third and fourth are inferior compared to the first two. They don't lack anything; this is bossa nova compared to the first two, in my opinion. In fact, in some ways, they have something that the first two don't have. For me, all four are a 5, without a doubt.

I didn't say it's bad, mind you, quite the contrary! It's a great album, but I don't know... I really like the first two a lot more, I love them, this one a bit less. To tell you the truth, the one I like the least is Bossanova. Personal taste, maybe :)

but in fact I was making a general statement Silas, I mean, especially here on deb, there’s an absurd and unfair undervaluation of these 2 albums, everyone basically says "yeah but the first 2 are great albums, the rest is nice but nothing special" when it's absolutely not true for me, of course tastes are tastes

True...going through the old reviews, I noticed that it’s not just my opinion :) Anyway...

I confirm, this is nice, Bossanova isn't bad either, but I like the first two and also Come on Pilgrim more ;)

Sure! Please provide the text you'd like me to translate.

I have come to appreciate it a lot. However, you see it as more metal than I do, evidently. Right, Wedding Nails...

You’re right, but I actually wrote about the balance between what they had done up until the previous album and what they will do afterwards, where they will intensify the “metallic” aspects. Anyway, besides "wedding nails," I would mention "gravity eyelids" (where the blending of the two souls is evident), "blackest eyes," and "strip the soul." Throughout the album, I would say they seek and find the synthesis and evolution of their sound.

I had a friend who was literally crazy about these guys. I liked "Up the Downstair," "Metanoia," and "Voyage 34" quite a lot, even though they were veeeery derivative of certain second phase Pink Floyd. The rest I listened to, definitely not. Aseptic. Then, I don’t know, maybe I should listen to them again. Just a personal opinion, mind you.

mmm have you listened to their first phase, undoubtedly the one with the strongest Pink Floyd influences, it is indeed with this album, as I mentioned in the definition, that their second phase begins: with this, Lightbulb Sun, In Absentia (in my top 20 of my all-time favorite albums), Fear Of A Blank Planet, Nil Recurring they truly give their best. I would really recommend "In Absentia" because not only is it a fantastic album but it is also the key to understanding the direction of their second phase, it's a bit of a watershed, if you don’t like that either then it means you just don’t like them at all.

I have the CD bought second-hand when it was released, never listened to it, I even forgot I had it. I like the early works. I have to listen to this one; it should please me if, as you say, it's still connected to the early period.

In fact, what I was trying to make clear is that this is where Porcupine Tree enters their second phase, leaning more towards different music and sounds. Here in particular, they shift much more towards song structure compared to the past, while in the subsequent works, the influence of distorted rock outbursts, sometimes bordering on metal, increases significantly, enriching their psych/prog influences and resulting in two albums like Lightbulb Sun and especially their masterpiece for me, In Absentia.

I understand, then all I have left is to listen to it.