Brit Floyd
Sunday, 26 Oct 2025
Ljubljana / Media Center / Slovenia
Brit Floyd are one of those tribute bands that have, over the years, made Slovenia something of a home turf. Just over a year ago they played Hala Tivoli with a two-and-a-half-hour set that was a faithful replica of the legendary Pink Floyd’s Division Bell tour from 1994 — and now they were back in the Slovenian capital with a set celebrating the 50th anniversary of Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here” (1975), with a promise to play the album in its entirety.
Brit Floyd are widely regarded as the finest Pink Floyd tribute act out there, so seeing them is always a richly rewarding experience. This time they rolled into Ljubljana with a noticeably scaled-down production — no Hala Tivoli, but a packed Media Center with a good 2,000 fans in attendance. A smaller stage, and a light show adapted accordingly. The band also had no official merch on sale — a year ago, the merch table at Hala Tivoli was practically groaning under the weight of everything on offer.
Whatever else you might say, performance is always what matters most — and on this evening every devoted Pink Floyd faithful showed up for exactly that, for a band you can say with near-certainty will never play a stage in this lifetime again. The nine-piece outfit, led musically by Damian Darlington — guitarist and one of three lead vocalists — once again delivered something close to flawless perfection. The male contingent remains unchanged: alongside Darlington, Ian Catell (bass, lead vocals), Rob Stringer (keyboards, backing vocals), Edo Scordo (guitar, lead vocals), and drummer Randy Cooke. The women in the lineup: Rhiannon Dewey (saxophone, percussion), who has stepped into the spot previously held by Ryan Saranich, plus three backing vocalists — Liza Melfi, Shannon Fayth, and Jessie Lee Houllier. It was Houllier who drew the biggest gasps when she strapped on an electric guitar and launched into the solo during the finale of Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2 (Brit Floyd tackled the Delicate Sound Of Thunder version of the track, which stretches the ending well beyond the original), and who also had to step up and carry the vocal for The Great Gig in the Sky — a track that is a genuine little challenge for any vocalist. She was mixed just a touch too quietly in the sound, which was the only slip in an otherwise perfectly mixed concert — brilliant, full stop.
The sound itself worked perfectly. The lighting — with its unforgettable, obligatory laser integration — the staging with the iconic circle at the centre of the stage, and the moving video projections that breathed generous life into the poetry of Pink Floyd and amplified the intense atmosphere that is unique to the rock ‘n’ roll universe.
The band split the show into two sets. The first covered material no later than 1973 and “Dark Side Of The Moon”. A bombastic opener with Learning To Fly, then on to the mystical testament and the epic High Hopes, where Darlington’s pedal steel purred like a cat. The combination of acoustic guitar finesse, rolling percussion, all three backing vocals weaving in — goosebumps were unavoidable through every manifestation of that perfection. A leap into “The Wall” (Goodbye Blue Sky, Empty Spaces, What Shall We Do Now?), an eruption with Time and a phenomenal guitar solo, the aforementioned drama-of-all-dramas in The Great Gig in the Sky, a setlist surprise with the inclusion of The Final Cut track Two Suns in the Sunset, and a stunning finale with the immortal “Animals” classic Pigs!
After that opening round — a chapter unto itself — a 20-minute break gave way to the second set, headlined by a full performance of “Wish You Were Here”, which ranks sky-high among Pink Floyd devotees, with many counting it as their all-time favourite Pink Floyd album. But first, an introduction: the “Meddle” classic One of These Days, taking us back to 1972. Scordo handled the opening guitar solo in Shine On You Crazy Diamond — breathtakingly gentle. Welcome to the Machine is perhaps the toughest challenge in interpreting the five tracks on the album. Here the band nudged the rhythm slightly, but in the outro they stunned with the accuracy and pinpoint precision with which Brit Floyd drove us into the defiant Have a Cigar. There too the exit was handled with masterful craft, building a seamless bridge to what was arguably the most anticipated song of the evening — Wish You Were Here. In the grand finale of the epic Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts VI-IX) I was feverishly waiting for the closing section, where the keyboards assume absolute dominant status. In one word: flawless. Flawless melancholy! And the final note accompanied by an image of Syd Barrett on the big projection screen. What an insane reach for emotion and passion!
The minutes spun no less madly. They felt like seconds. Just like the great originals, Brit Floyd conjured a hypnotic atmosphere that sucked us into that singular world for two and a half hours. The magic didn’t let up for a single moment. The closing Comfortably Numb! It was clear this was the end. And then that solo and the intense theatre of drama that Damian Darlington created with hair-splitting finesse — the filigree precision of daring to walk in the footsteps of David Gilmour. Outstanding, once again.
Over the years, Brit Floyd have pushed the whole thing to a remarkable closeness — within an inch of the real thing. They constantly invest in their instruments, their logistics. At the same time, they are vocally exceptional. All three vocalists — with bassist Ian Catell being the most crucial, an ideal middle ground splitting the difference between Gilmour and Waters — which is why he carries the bulk of the songs. The encore confirmed their strength one more time. Run Like Hell had the entire venue on its feet one last time, and with a tightness that put them within a hair’s breadth of the original, they proved their tribute mastery all over again. The mileage, the knowledge, the experience — they have it all in abundance. And that’s the essential pinch of seasoning you add on top, so your show leaves an even deeper mark.
Brit Floyd truly remain in a class of their own when it comes to Pink Floyd tribute acts worldwide. I’m not someone who usually goes for tribute bands, but Brit Floyd always bring me to my knees. This time was no different. And that’s how it’ll stay. Until next time.
Words: Edita Klemen & Aleš Podbrežnik
Photos: Aleš Podbrežnik & Edita Klemen
Brit Floyd – setlist:
Set 1:
1. Signs of Life
2. Learning to Fly
3. High Hopes
4. Goodbye Blue Sky
5. Empty Spaces
6. What Shall We Do Now?
7. The Dogs of War
8. Time
9. Breathe (Reprise)
10. The Great Gig in the Sky
11. Two Suns in the Sunset
12. Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2
13. On the Turning Away
14. Pigs (Three Different Ones)
Set 2:
15. One of These Days
16. Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V)
17. Welcome to the Machine
18. Have a Cigar
19. Wish You Were Here
20. Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts VI-IX)
21. Comfortably Numb
—encore—
22. Run Like Hell
