I’ll be honest, I used to like Disturbed, but looking back I have no idea why. I’m not the kind of guy to denounce the music I liked when I was younger because it’s no longer cool, it’s simply that it really, really sucks. But after a hiatus, Disturbed have returned with a new track and, well, if you’ve ever heard a Disturbed song before you’ll know exactly what it sounds like. I want to say nobody was asking for this, but then I remember just how insanely popular Disturbed were for most of the 2000s.
Even before anyone had heard a snippet of it, the quality of Pink Floyd’s The Endless River was being hotly debated. It’s easy to see why so many people were hyped for this album. It’s the first new material from Pink Floyd in twenty years, and includes material written by late keyboardist Richard Wright. That said, it’s also obvious why many are less than thrilled about this record. The music comes from the recording sessions for The Division Bell, which itself is a “love it or hate it” album among Floyd fans. Not only that, but Roger Waters, who led the band through their most successful period, is not featured at all on the album. So does The Endless River live up to Pink Floyd’s classic work, or does it fail?
Polly Samson, the wife of David Gilmour has revealed that a new Pink Floyd album will be released this October. The album is set to be called The Endless River and will be their first since 1994’s The Division Bell.
This news is certainly surprising, but the fact that this material isn’t entirely new makes it somewhat less surprising. The tracks on this album are based on sessions from 1994 and have been described by Samson as “Rick Wright’s swansong and very beautiful.” Pink Floyd fans will forever argue whether Syd Barrett, Roger Waters or David Gilmour was the best frontman, but the idea of a Wright-led Floyd adds a new dynamic. Wright was much less prolific as a songwriter than any of them, but his contributions to the group shouldn’t be overlooked. It shouldn’t be forgotten that Wright contributed in writing much of The Dark Side of the Moon (particularly “Us and Them”), as well as “Echoes” and “Shine on You Crazy Diamond,” two of Pink Floyd’s most celebrated tracks. As well as this, he had a beautiful voice that harmonised with Gilmour’s wonderfully.
Personally my favourite Pink Floyd works are the Waters-led Animals and The Wall, and while that’s unlikely to change I am very interested in hearing this upcoming album. Although Pink Floyd’s two albums without Waters are far from my favourite, I still found much to enjoy on them, and the Waters fan in me still has his upcoming solo album to look forward to. At the very least, this will serve as a great way to remember the late Rick Wright.
It should be noted that Pink Floyd have made no official announcement about the album as of yet. Below is arguably Rick Wright’s greatest contribution to Pink Floyd, “Us and Them.”