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.