Album Review; Pink Floyd, the Wall

Album Review; Pink Floyd, The Wall

Pink Floyd's 1979 album The Wall, is seen by many worldwide as a milestone in the history of psychedelic/rock music. The creative and imaginative qualities are so perceptible throughout every track of the album that it is hard not to call it a masterpiece or to see it as the definition of a concept rock album. The bands front man, Roger Waters, influenced the general theme and idea after feeling a sense of alienation and separation between the band and their audience while being on their In The Flesh Tour. "People would come to our shows for the experience not necessarily for the music" said Rogers in an interview leading him out of frustration to imagine physically building a wall between him and his spectators. The album is semi autobiographical of Rogers' life following experiences of a fictional character named Pink. The death of Pink's father from the Second World War, the abuse and ridicule taken from his school teachers and the effects of an overprotective mother, are all examples of bricks being used to help build his wall, distancing himself one brick at a time further and further away from society. This essay will discuss and analyze 13 tracks on the first two sides of Pink Floyd's The Wall, focusing on how lyrical contents, instrumentation, sound effects and vocal timbre all tie in together to captivate the listener and tell a story musically.

The first song of the album is titled "In The Flesh?" and is also the name of the tour where Waters first noticed this miscommunication the band had with the audience. At the very beginning of the track we hear a subtle voice saying "we came in" when put together with the same voice also heard in last song of the four-disk record titled "Outside The Wall" we get "isn't this where we came in" displaying cycles often seen in other Waters-Driven albums such as Dark Side Of The Moon. After hearing a melody snippet of a harmonica and a flute playing in unison also heard consistently throughout "Outside The Wall", the melody is rudely interrupted by the whole band. The musical texture thickens unexpectedly after 17 seconds by beating drums and a powerful guitar riff imitated by the bass forming a call and response with the organ also included in the mix. The four verses sung by Rogers eventually appear halfway throughout the song. With lyrics like " So ya thought ya might like to go to the show to feel the warm thrill of confusion and that space cadet glow" and "Is this not what you expected to see" could be seen as the band indirectly confronting the audience about this wall they felt was being built between them. The track ends with Rogers shouting out " Lights! Roll the sound effects, action!" displaying the theatrical aspect of the album, also consisting of airplanes also heard in "The