Arriving in UK stores tomorrow (December 31st), and available worldwide online is the new issue (issue 116) of the UK's Prog Magazine. Always a great read, this month's issue - as made clear from the striking cover - has a major feature of particular interest to Pink Floyd fans.
Inside the magazine is a fascinating ten-page analysis of the Floyd's 1977 album, Animals. Coming after The Dark Side Of The Moon's narrative flow, and Wish You Were Here's evocative sound, Animals arrived at the height of the punk explosion in the UK, and tapped into the feelings of anger and injustice, with a sound and feeling at odds to WYWH, but in line with music emerging at the time. As Prog puts it, the album "captured the moment when Pink Floyd made the giant leap from lush to harsh, from a pillow of winds to cold shafts of broken glass".
The article pulls into sharp relief the background and inspiration for the album, and via some interesting insights from engineer Brian Humphries, much detail on the recording of the album and the then new Britannia Row Studios used for the album. There's also a look at the reaction to the album, and the thoughts of the band members retrospectively on the project.
Alongside the article, there's a look at the background to the rare, sought after (and fun) French record store bins made out of plastic for the release, shaped like the album's cover star; there's an illuminating chat with Howard Bartrop, one of the photographers for the cover; and there's a piece from Steven Wilson with his (very positive) views on Animals.
Finally, there's a look at the supposed Animals box set release, which from what Roger Waters noted, was to include a 5.1 surround mix of the album. Things have all gone quiet on that front, and they ponder on this, wondering if it is still to come in future.
Elsewhere in the magazine are the normal range of features on other artists, the latest news, reviews and more. There's also the results of the 2020 Readers' Poll, and a cover-mounted, 11-track CD of new prog music.
If your local store doesn't stock this magazine, you can get a copy, shipped anywhere in the world, through this direct link.
Over many years, Brain Damage's Ed Lopez-Reyes has brought us carefully researched, in-depth looks at various aspects of Pink Floyd's story. He has just set up a new website as a home focused on these articles as well as others, moving forwards. His work will still appear here on Brain Damage but the new site is more of a focused repository for those seeking deeper, more academic dives into various subjects, without it covering the normal news and other features found here.
The site - PubliusEnigma.co.uk - is focused on Pink Floyd's post-1983 activity, with an "additional focus on, and an expansive view of, the studio and touring musicians associated with them."
Ed notes that "The idea is to provide a resource that spans Pink Floyd's 'David Gilmour era', from the departure of Roger Waters through today. This period set the stage for the longest era in the band's history and for each band member's most prolific work outside the band itself."
To coincide with the launch of the site, there are new interviews with The McBroom Sisters (Pink Floyd backing vocalists), Bjørn Riis (vocalist and guitarist for Norwegian band Airbag and publisher of Gimourish.com), Scott Page (Pink Floyd saxophonist and rhythm guitar player), and with Jon Carin (of Pink Floyd, Roger Waters, and David Gilmour) in a piece titled A History and Anatomy of Yet Another Movie.
With photography by Marie Lopez and artwork by Ahmed Emad Eldin, designer of the album cover for Pink Floyd's The Endless River, the site is well worth visiting, at PubliusEnigma.co.uk, and we wish Ed all the very best with it!
We recently told you about some new music from respected guitarist Chester Kamen. Amongst many other artists, Chester has toured with Roger Waters, joining his band in 2002 and playing on subsequent tours, and with David Gilmour on his 2016 Rattle That Lock tour. He first played with David back in 1985 during the Live Aid show - David and Chester were both part of Bryan Ferry's band for that show (as was Jon Carin).
Chester has, like many musicians, kept himself busy whilst lockdowns and restrictions due to Covid-19 have called a halt to many things - in particular, live performance. In October, he shared his recently finished new piece of music called Take This, that runs for over 23 minutes. Chester told us that Take This is the first side of an album he is currently working on - following, or inspired by, the old Floyd blueprint of one long piece and several songs on the flip side. Last month saw the first of the songs on the second side of the album: Brand New Day.
Chester has now uploaded the next track on the album to YouTube. It's called Swimming and features an appearance on bass by Felix Howard, who is Roy Harper's son. Chester tells us that "this one is a bit darker, reflecting my state of mind at that time." We'll update you as he progresses with the rest of the album, as we know that a good number of you are enjoying the songs revealed so far!
With this time of year often comes time to sit back, relax, and read about things that interest you. With Covid-19 restrictions in many places too, this has been enforced onto people who might otherwise be out and about, enjoying live entertainment, shopping, or eating out. We've had a couple of BD readers in touch with articles they've written, that you might be interested in...
First, Adamo Prina contacted us to let us know about a blog he has started up about cinema. For the first article, he has focused on the Roger Waters The Wall movie, looking in some detail at the film, and Roger's narrative addition of the trip to Anzio/Cassino. To read the article, visit take-one.eu/movies/roger-waters-the-wall. If you like what you read on there, or have comments or suggestions, Adamo will be glad to hear from you, and his email address is on the site.
The other article of interest comes from Chris Rand, who edits a local residents magazine in Cambridge, and for a recent issue he wrote a 2000-word article on the origins of Pink Floyd in the streets around the Queen Edith's area. In the story, there's some original quotes from residents who knew Syd and Roger as kids. He said that "as a huge Floyd fan, it's a story I've been itching to write for years!"
Our thanks to Adamo and Chris, and we hope you enjoy their articles. We always welcome contributions of any kind from our readership, so do please get in touch with anything!
The Pink Floyd Exhibition: Their Mortal Remains has just announced that it is going to the USA as its long-awaited next step, arriving in the country for the first time. The exhibition will open at the Vogue Multicultural Museum in Los Angeles, California in 2021.
The venue, along Hollywood Boulevard, is considered a historical landmark of Los Angeles. The building was built in 1935, and was eventually remodelled in 1959. It closed its doors in 1995. The space has been used for film locations and live performances. Now, the Vogue Multicultural Museum has opened its doors to welcome all types of cultural and artistic expressions, becoming a unique place in the heart of Hollywood, and the Pink Floyd exhibition is the first exhibition it is hosting.
Visit www.vmmla.com to join the email list for early access to pre-sale tickets when they become available, and for more information including location and dates that the exhibition is being staged.
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