The Dark Side Of The Moon

For me, Dark Side of the Moon is not just about the music (which of course is amazing) but the whole package. Like The White Album and Quadrophenia, it's the extras which make owning these albums a real pleasure and give the sense that you have acquired a piece of art. With prices of mint condition original presses of DSOTM going for hundreds of pounds, this seemed like a good opportunity to get hold of a fresh print at a not unreasonable price (under twenty quid), particularly as my old vinyl edition (4th or 5th press I think) is a bit long in the tooth and the posters have long since disappeared. I also have the 30th anniversary CD which has kept me going on the iPod for the last few years.Receiving this album through the door really did recreate that long-lost thrill of receiving a brand new vinyl LP. Compared to my old edition, the rainbow colours really stand out on the beautiful black sleeve. Inside, all the components of the original package are present and correct. The pyramid poster looks slightly more purple than my original which was more blue while some of the pictures on the group sleeve have been flipped to show that Dave and Roger are actually not left-handed guitarists, something that always bugged me about the original poster! In addition, there is a stunning new poster (by Storm Thorgerson?) which reproduces the sleeve design in swirly, psychedelic paints. A couple of clues on the sleeve tell you that this a new edition though. The sleeve was printed in the EU (rather than GB) while a sticker on the back refers to (takes a sharp intake of breath) a digital remaster. I know there will be lots of people who will take umbrage at this idea but the information on the sleeve that the album is also available in 8-track cartridge format may prove to be a red herring for analogue lovers.So how does the all-important 180g slab of plastic sound on the wheel of steel? Pretty good actually. The vinyl itself is solid with little flex and there is no noticeable surface noise, clicks or pops. The album doesn't sound too different from previous vinyl and CD versions I've heard but the one thing I have found is that it is noticeably easier to track the bass line while some of the keyboard sounds seem to emerge more from the mix. All the special effects (especially the clocks) still sound amazing and I couldn't hear evidence of this being a digital transfer. I can't really give a more considered assessment than that though not having heard a 'holy grail' pressing on a top end system but in the end it's the music which counts. I leave others to quibble over the relative merits of all the different editions of this album but I am very happy with this purchase. The MP3 download code included with the album is a nice touch but does not include any of the extra material included in the expanded CD sets which is a shame. I would have at least liked the Empire Pool show without having to pay separately for it.

Isn't it sad that the days when people sat down and listened to an entire album are over? You don't just play one track off "Dark side of the moon". You put in on the turn table, and just let the album play. It is supposed to be an experience. You can listen to it with friends. You can listen to it alone. It doesn't matter, just so long as you get caught in the moment.When this was released in 1973, it turned Pink Floyd into rock stars. After their original frontman Syd Barett left some years earlier due to taking large amounts of LSD and continual eratic behaviour, as well as schizophrenia, the band went through some strange musical times. With out Syd they experimented, perhaps going off into weird pastures, not knowing why or how. But it was a phase they had to go through. Because it led to this...quite simply one of the most important albums of all time. Up there with what The Beatles wrote. Perhaps more relevant than what Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath or The Who was releasing around this era.It is layered and produced so well. Like an orchestra. You take one part away, it all goes down hill. This isn't one of those albums where you can say it relies heavily on guitarist David Gilmour, or bass player Roger Waters, or keyboard player Richard Wright. It all comes together to create this astonishing body of work. The amount of moods and themes this album go through is quite breath taking. Some of the songs have a bitter feel to them under the catchy instrumentation like "Money". I could also mention "Time" in that respect as well, and as a guitar player I have to mention the guitar solo on that song. It sounds huge, as if it were carved out of granite. I have always loved David Gilmour, and although I own many guitars, he was the reason I bought a Strat ten years ago."Us and them" has a sad but dreamy vibe to it, one might say it could conjure up feelings of hopelessness or longing for a time that never really existed. Nice piano work by Richard Wright may I add. Nothing technical, but it doesn't have to be. There is no denying how "On the run" influenced electronic music in a huge way. You never hear people go on about that side of it. "The great gig in the sky" with it's extremely dramatic piano intro, reminiscent of Elton John, working with the gorgeous pedal steel parts played by Gilmour. Then those amazing female vocals come in. One of those absolute astonishing and memorable moments.For new listeners, I really hope you get out of this, what I have all these years. I kind of envy the younger ones, exploring and experiencing all this great rock music for the first time.

Everyone already knows that Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon is one of the best albums *ever* recorded, and - by extension - that it should wind up in the archives of any record collector. Even if prog isn't your thing, and it wasn't mine for many years, the instrumentation and melodies bleeding throughout this album are works of genius. The once-mighty duo of Gilmour and Waters shine here. Whether it's the enigmatic 'Breathe', soaring choruses of 'Us and Them', salacious blues of 'Money' or unrivalled poignance showcased in 'Brain Damage/Eclipse', this concept album on life and death (with the hypnotic 'The Great Gig in the Sky' serving as symbolism of the latter) is enthralling. And all these years later, it *still* somehow sounds ahead of its time.In this record, you get all the extras as available with the original pressing: two pretty darn large posters (one of the band at that time, and one of the purple pyramids) and two little cubist stickers. The vinyl sleeve is also presented in a luxurious matte material which - whilst highlighting fingerprints, so be careful! - feels and looks far better than something glossier, like there is with the current The Wall vinyl pressing. The front and back covers, as well as the inner gatefold, is also faithful to the original, and looks amazing. This vinyl sounds phenomenal, as an album like this deserves. A true classic, something that'll never go out of fashion.