Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Pink Floyd
Label: EMI Records
Release: 1973
Rating: 5/5
What more could anyone possibly write about the “dark side of the moon”, this extraordinary album that, more than three decades after its release, is still a global music phenomenon like no other? It revolutionized the development of both popular and experimental music and racked up a fabled sales tally of more than 40 million copies. With “Dark Side Of The Moon”, an evergreen conceptual explosion of compositional perfectionism, the legendary prog rockers Pink Floyd suddenly morphed from a cult but obscure psychedelic attraction into world-class music stars with a clear musical direction, for whom every stadium had become too small. There’s no point even debating the fact that from this album on they were also the commercially most successful band in the history of progressive rock. What matters far more is that with “Dark Side Of The Moon” they finally matured into superb composers of rounded, coherent works, so that the world was at last ready to welcome with open arms the former masters of psychedelic-avant-garde experimental oddities, who simply couldn’t shake the long shadow of their tragic founder Syd Barrett.
There are several answers to where the main source of the incredible success of “Dark Side Of The Moon”, without a doubt one of the best and most influential albums in the history of rock music, is hiding. Number one, though, is surely the incredible harmony between the individual sonic themes, the majestic moods and an exceptionally intelligent concept that holds plenty of life lessons and so easily touches the deepest corners of the human soul. The groundwork for “Dark Side Of The Moon” had, admittedly, already been laid on a few sonic themes from the previous album “Meddle” (1971), which offered at least a partial answer to where the further evolution of their sound would take them. This shift toward greater accessibility finally blossomed here in numerous compositional peaks of their career, like the unforgettable masterpieces “Breathe”, “Time”, “The Great Gig In The Sky”, “Money” and “Us And Them”, every last one of them a track with a far-reaching influence on entire generations of future musicians.
The earlier psychedelic, improvisational experiments, which were often indigestible for the wider music-loving crowd, gave way to carefully built, coherent compositions, a much fuller and subtler sound, and far more melodic arrangements. The saxophones of outside collaborator Dick Parry on “Money” and “Us And Them” steered their sound noticeably toward jazzy waters, while the guest female vocals of Clare Torry on “The Great Gig In The Sky” bring a bewitching dose of raw soul into the dreamy atmosphere of this masterpiece and deliver one of the most majestic moments in the band’s history. Plenty of credit for the album’s success also goes to the then-young sound engineer Alan Parsons (who later became the head of his own hugely successful band, The Alan Parsons Project), who, using a few recording techniques that were revolutionary for the time, made sure the album sounds incredibly fluid, even though the band members have been trying to downplay his importance over the years at all costs.
Roger Waters, the bassist/singer, lyrical genius and main architect of their socially meaningful, philosophical concepts that still stir up debate with their forward-thinking nature, hit the nail on the head with an excellent concept reflecting all the beauties and burdens of average everyday human life. The album’s central themes are greed, conflict between people, aging and madness (the latter was no doubt inspired by the shattered mental state of their former pal Syd Barrett, and it remained a theme Pink Floyd kept coming back to on their following albums). In doing so, Waters showed an enviable amount of empathy for certain social phenomena and emotional states, which keeps this album and its messages relevant for all time. Besides Waters, who by then had already established himself as the writer of all their lyrics, the other band members still had an equal say in writing the music. Guitarist and singer David Gilmour in particular, the crowd’s pin-up boy, who with his guitar wizardry and velvety voice poked into the subtlest spheres of their music, reached for the stars compositionally for the first time on this album, and with his contribution played the lion’s share when it comes to the emotional immortality of individual tracks, something that would have been very hard for an eternal cynic like Waters to pull off alone. Meanwhile, keyboardist Rick Wright played a key role in two of the three best compositions on the album (“The Great Gig In The Sky” and “Us And Them”) and wowed with his layered use of some synthesizers that were revolutionary for the time. Even drummer Nick Mason contributed his small but important compositional share at the start of the album.
The unforgettable adventure through the various emotional states of human society is kicked off by the short intro “Speak To Me”, one of the very rare solo compositional contributions from the jovial drummer Mason (Waters once declared, in his typical style, that this was his gift to the unsuspecting drummer, something he later, after leaving, increasingly regretted). It’s a collage of various interconnected short spoken samples and sound effects. Each of them represents one of the album’s key motifs and so hints at what awaits the listener further into the record.
“Speak To Me” flows straight into the melancholic classic “Breathe” (the full title of the track is actually “Breathe In The Air”), where the pretty boy Dave shines with his warm, velvety voice and exquisite finesse on slide guitar. The calm tempo is also dictated by the rich palette of Wright’s textures. Waters’s lyrics, delivered by Gilmour with uncommon heartfelt warmth, are a touching message to everyone who diligently carries out their duties to our social system every single day: take a breather for a moment, breathe deep, slow your pace, ease off the constant chase for bigger profits, and try to find the meaning of your existence in more important things.
Next comes the experimental “On The Run”, a rare specimen of their psychedelic-avant-garde past on this album and a great contrast to the otherwise melancholic beauty and poignancy of most of the tracks here. Wright, Gilmour and Waters push a peculiar kind of electronic minimalism to its peak here, using various psychedelic effects on VCS3 synthesizers and experimenting with multi-dimensional analog sequencers. These electronic effects were undoubtedly ahead of their time. The central theme of the track is the pressure and stress caused by long journeys, nicely illustrated by assorted effects of conversations, running down a corridor, manic voices and a final explosion depicting a plane crash. The track is thoroughly saturated with a peculiar claustrophobic, almost sinister mood.
That’s followed by the evergreen classic “Time”, one of the most majestic and also most shattering creations in the band’s history, and the only piece on the album that every single member took part in writing. Its central beauty and gut-punch lie both in its incredibly ethereal musical image, which, through the magical beauty of countless ambient waves, effortlessly carries the listener into the depths of their deepest emotions and forces them to look inward, and in its core message, which revolves around the ruthlessness brought on by the passing of time. The older we get, the faster time flies, and the deeper we sink into despair when we remember our youth, happy times and all the missed chances that slipped through our fingers (yet another very true-to-life theme they would return to on their later works).
After a stormy, almost provocative intro with the loud ringing of alarm clocks and alarms (try pulling a prank on one of your nearest and dearest some morning, preferably someone who doesn’t know the track, spin them this intro and watch their reaction to the unexpected wake-up call), the atmosphere gradually builds through various effects on bass and percussion. Suddenly, via a decisive transition, Gilmour’s vocal cuts in, and after the manic, fervent start it slides in the choruses into more protective, velvety vocal waters that wrap the listener up in their warmth from head to toe, especially once the accompaniment of majestic female vocals joins in. Meanwhile Wright handles the vocal duties between the individual passages superbly and makes the contrast between the motifs even sharper. The central motifs of this legendary composition are built mainly on melancholic passages of Dave’s slide guitar and Rick’s keyboards. The peak arrives after the second chorus, when the still breathtaking, dreamy guitar solo kicks in, undoubtedly one of the best in the history of the guitar pin-up himself. At the end, the central motif from “Breathe” comes around once more.
Then the track tips over into the fantastic “The Great Gig In The Sky”, another esoteric masterpiece whose magic hypnotizes even the most stone-cold, feet-on-the-ground person in a heartbeat. For those who know that its message revolves around death and speculation along the lines of “what happens next”, it’s an even more shattering listening experience. The central star of this immortal creation is without a doubt the phenomenal Clare Torry, whose passionate vocal improvisations create an incredibly magical atmosphere. Wright provides the excellent backing above all, with his melancholic passages on piano and Hammond organ, while Gilmour and Waters stay more in the background with their guitar lines this time, but are just as effective at building that exceptional atmosphere.
Waters hits his main compositional peak on the album with the cynical masterpiece “Money”, opened by the sound effects of cash registers opening and coins jingling. Roger really got to let off some steam here with a socially critical lyric about the main affliction of our capitalist system and the constant, headless chase for profit (the social theme of class divides, which he would happily use on some future releases too). Compositionally, it’s one of the most interesting creations in the band’s history, marked by unusual, dramatic time changes and sudden returns of individual motifs. The central funk-leaning guitar riff, repeated several times over neighing bass lines, sounds seriously witty. In between, it’s all held together by Gilmour’s ever-expressive vocal, which conveys undisguised cynicism toward the incorrigible materialism of Western civilization. In time Dick Parry’s saxophone joins in, adding some very welcome jazzy pathos and at the same time announcing an energetic instrumental section. And of course there’s no skipping another monumental Dave guitar solo, one that still inspires countless guitar hopefuls around the world.
After the reckoning with the capitalist brood, it’s time for a reckoning with all the militaristic brutes who just won’t stop rattling their weapons, and whom Waters didn’t let catch their breath for even a second. That means it’s time for the incredible esoteric masterpiece “Us And Them”, which in my pick is not only the peak of the album but one of the best creations in the history of rock music. In all its melancholic beauty, it reflects the complete senselessness of all past and present wars. Its calm nature, adorned with jazzy flourishes, only amplifies the effect of the individual’s total helplessness before the deadly cogs of the war industry. While Wright creates exceptional ambient atmospheres through multi-part harmonies on keyboards, especially Hammond organ, Gilmour’s vocal is the main pillar of the whole composition. In the majestic choruses he reaches a dramatic scale and creates an exceptional contrast, shifting from warmth to anger. Then there’s the excellent Dick Parry with jazzy passages and solos on sax, though later both Gilmour and Wright leave him in the background with their own artistry. “Us And Them” is one of those rare rock classics that you simply can’t praise enough.
Then comes yet another top-tier emotional experience in the form of the superb instrumental “Any Colour You Like”, which expresses our fears of major life decisions. After some fun synth bits, a seriously witty guitar solo kicks in and goes on to sail successfully through a sea of effects, Hammond organ sounds and funky bass lines. A sudden transition into the phenomenal “Brain Damage” follows, the only moment on the album where Waters steps up as lead vocalist, and he does it with distinction. The role, where he has to play a person whose mental state keeps deteriorating, suits him perfectly, since the phenomenon of human madness has been one of his favorite lyrical themes ever since Syd’s reputation took hold. The central, simple, pastoral acoustic guitar melody is almost characteristic of Waters’s creations (in the style of “If”). The greatest richness of “brain damage” hides in the exceptional, magical chorus, where dramatic backing female vocals come in and deliver the central message of the whole album, “I’ll see you on the dark side of the moon”. The mood of someone whose reason is slowly slipping away, who is gripped by neurosis and hears strange sounds in their head, is heightened even further by the recorded effects of Waters’s manic laughter.
Because of its central line and the fact that it was created before its “brothers” and “sisters”, many call it simply “Dark Side Of The Moon”, or see it as the central piece of this album. Interesting that Waters was reportedly rather unconvinced about his singing abilities back then and Gilmour even had to encourage him, especially considering that on later releases he became almost a complete vocal dictator. This track also marked the first major dispute between Waters and Wright. Wright never much liked the piece because of its simplicity. That dismissive attitude of his toward Waters’s compositions only grew over the years and indirectly led to his departure from the band at the end of the 70s. Finally, via a direct transition, comes the album’s closing climax, “Eclipse”. With majestic group vocal arrangements and repetitive melodies in the final verse, it delivers the ultimate revelation, expressing the human longing for complete freedom. It all ends with a heartbeat, the same one that opened the album in “Speak To Me”, and so makes for a rounded close to this magnificent conceptual epic.
“Dark Side Of The Moon”, for many the brightest jewel among all of Pink Floyd’s masterpieces, remains for ever and ever one of the greatest achievements in the history of rock music, one that with its musical themes and messages shakes the listener from head to toe again and again and sets them thinking about some key symbols of human existence. Millions of reviews of one kind or another, articles, theses, novels, doctoral dissertations and so on have been written, and will still be written, about one of the best and most influential albums of all time, so it would be truly pointless to philosophize at length about what those who somehow don’t (yet) have the album in their household are missing, or who have by chance spent too long under a rock and missed the news of its existence. Pink Floyd, freshly minted rock stars, carried the titanic success of “Dark Side Of The Moon” over to their following masterpieces such as “Wish You Were Here” (1975), “Animals” (1977) and “The Wall” (1979), even though Waters gradually started pushing his dictatorial politics on the other members more and more, which later led to some seriously dramatic consequences. Let this review close with the note that every new generation discovers this wonderful album again and again in its own way, and always finds something new in it, which is probably its main virtue. Tickets for an unforgettable, adventure-packed musical journey to the dark side of the moon will therefore never sell out.
Lineup
David Gilmour – vocals, guitar, VCS3 synthesizer
Roger Waters – bass guitar, vocals (9), backing vocals, special effects
Richard Wright – keyboards, backing vocals, VCS3 synthesizer
Nick Mason – drums, percussion, special effects
GUEST MUSICIANS:
Dick Parry – saxophone (6-7)
Clare Torry – vocals (5)
Leslie Duncan – backing vocals
Lisa Strike – backing vocals
Barry St. John – backing vocals
Doris Troy – backing vocals
Production
Pink Floyd
Tracklist
1. Speak To Me (1:16)
2. Breathe (2:44)
3. On The Run (3:32)
4. Time (7:06)
5. The Great Gig In The Sky (4:44)
6. Money (6:32)
7. Us And Them (7:40)
8. Any Colour You Like (3:25)
9. Brain Damage (3:50)
10. Eclipse (2:04)
Album length: 42:53
