David Gilmour's new cd. WOW
binauralsounds
Posts: 1,357
FREAKING LOVE IT!!!!!!!! Sounds like OLLLLDDD FLOYD. BEAUTIFUL work once again by Dave. Anyone else hear it?
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Here is a link from local radio station in Louisville that is sneak previewing it via streaming audio. They do this quite abit. Man I am DEFINITELY gettin this cd.
http://www.whas.com/cc-common/mfeatures/davidgilmourSP/
hope you guys enjoy!! WORK OF ART!
David Gilmore, Nick Mason, and Richard Wright is PINK FRAUD, not Pink Floyd. They should never use the name Pink Floyd w/out Roger Waters. If you don't believe me check out Roger Waters live album & DVD "IN The Flesh Live". In my oppinion, way better than anything they've put out post-Waters. If anything they should call themselves The Post Roger Waters Band, or the Roger Waters Cover Band. It would be more accurate.
To each their own. I saw Roger in concert a few years back in cincinnati. Freakin incredible show! I love them both, so...
Waters was the head and the others members... the body parts.
Last Thursday I had an opportunity to attend the Minneapolis "listening party" for 'On an Island'. Considering how anal Sony/Columbia was about getting the proper affidavits signed and delivered before allowing my friend and I to go, I thought this event was going to be a strict affair. As it turned out, it was more for the local music biz people to get together over hors d'ouevres and talk incessantly over the repeated spins of the album. I wanted to hear the new material, so I tried my best to listen and take a few notes to share with the group.
If you don't want to know anything about the album I advise you stop reading now.
The album review in short: It's OK.
The album review in Long:
Sony/Columbia was nice enough to provide a packet with the album art and lyrics. I really like the artwork for the album. According to DGs blog site, the CD is going to be packaged like a bound book (I'm guessing like Sigur Ros' 'Takk'), so this leaves open the possibility for a very unique presentation of the art and album. One quick glance through the lyrics of the record and... if you are pro-Waters, you'll have plenty of ammunition here. There is not much room for ambiguity with the lyrics on this record- it's clear he is in love, he is content with his place in life, he loves his children, etc.- but this doesn't mean it is necessarily very interesting to hear about and the lyrics themselves are just too simple to take to a different level of appreciation.
As for the sound of the record- this is a lazy album. All but one track is down-to-mid tempo with Gilmour's vocals largely staying in the soft and airy range. There are no real rockers on this record. If I had to compare sound of the the album to his previous work, I'd say it is a fair mixture of his first solo record and The Division Bell. If you like both of those, chances are you'll like this. The guitar work on the album is what we have come to expect from him and there isn't anything terribly new or groundbreaking, just good old fashioned Gilmour guitar work, and there is certainly nothing wrong with that.
Track by track:
Castellorizon-
Basically a sound collage with a guitar solo at the end. It acts as sort of an album preview, integrating bits of later parts of the record. I wrote in my notes that it is the most Floyd-sounding thing on the record, so take that for what you will. I also said that it would have fit on Rick Wright's last record quite well.
On an Island-
I'm guessing most of us who would want to hear it have already heard it, so I didn't bother to write anything down. It *is* probably one of the stronger tracks on the record, so if you don't like it, I'll be curious to see your thoughts on the rest of the album.
The Blue-
A slow ballad with an end solo. The guitar on the track is reminiscent of Marooned, likely not unintentional. The song succeeds at evoking a image of a slow day at sea. That said, the song itself is not very interesting and doesn't really go anywhere, and the lyrics might be the some of the worst on the album.
Take a Breath-
This is the lone "uptempo" track on the record and the heaviest, too, with a slow, plodding rhythm. Ged Lynch was a good choice for drumming duties on this track. The opening "take a breath, take a breath now" vocals are repeated several times and are 'Waiting For the Worms'-like in their delivery, evoking a slow march. There is a 'Sorrow' like breakdown (with the track getting quiet for a period) prior to the final verse.
Red Sky at Night-
The first real instrumental on the record, it is notable for Gilmour being the person playing the saxophone. His sax work is up to par and the highlight of the track, but the parts he's playing aren't anything seemingly too difficult- not that *I* perform it or anything, but he isn't exactly shredding on the sax. The track is largely atmospheric and New-Agey.
This Heaven-
This song is the track on which I could see how he was inspired by the RFH shows in '02 as the beat and feel of the song is similar to that of his rendition of Dominoes from those same performances. That said, the track also is reminiscent of work on his first solo album, and the guitar sound employed on the track is the of the 'dirty' type.
Then I Close My Eyes-
Another New-Age type instrumental but with a modern feel. The acoustic slide guitar is prominent and segues well (as does the title, lyrically) into...
Smile-
We've all heard it and it isn't very different. It does have the studio polish that the DVD version obviously lacks. The vocals also stand out a bit more than on the DVD version, and Polly's backing vocals aren't anything to be concerned about.
A Pocketful of Stones-
I predict there will be debate about the merits of this track. There is no real sense of structure to the song, it seems almost free flowing. The majority of the vocals are delivered over minimal backing instrumentation (think A New Machine) with darker interludes between verses. There is a standard end guitar solo, also. The lyrics, though, might be the strongest on the record.
Where We Start-
All I wrote down about this track after hearing it at least three times was that it is similar to 'On an Island' and right now I can't think of anything that particularly stood out about the song. I do remember thinking it was a disappointing album closer. The lyric book has a photo of David and Polly on a walk together in case you lack the ability to grasp the simple narrative of the lyrics.
As a whole, the album isn't bad. But I don't think it's that good, either, and I don't see it standing up to many repeated listens after the initial wave of excitement- the 'hey, it's something new!' syndrome- wears off. The music on the record isn't anything you will be surprised to hear. It's solid, if not interesting. There are Floydian moments, especially in his distinctive guitar playing, but there are also Floydian elements from the '87 and '94 albums that a few people will no doubt not appreciate. As for the lyrics... I'm not one to really care much for lyrics, they are usually the last thing that I notice in a song, but even I chuckled at a few of the lyrics of this record, which can't be a good sign for those who are looking for deeper meaning or discussion points. David is advertising this as his most personal record to date. In my opinion, by making it his most personal album- writing about his life now to the point that there isn't any ambiguity or room for interpretation- he has taken away an element that allows for a deeper connection to his work. If his recent interview in Billboard is any indication, he doesn't necessarily care about that kind of thing, this album is for him anyway... which is his right and I don't blame him, but I hope he isn't expecting a lot of critical praise because I just don't think it will happen.
I *am* disappointed in the album, but I guess I am not too surprised, either. I had high hopes (no pun intended) for the album, especially since he said he was inspired by the RFH concerts as I enjoyed those shows immensely. I had hoped the album lineup would largely include the type of instrumentation that he employed for the show and that the resulting record would be something different than what we are accustomed to. He may have started that way, I don't know, but as it is, it just seems he fell back into old habits, recruiting his usual stable of musicians and a few friends to accompany him in the studio and piece together an album.
So, in the end, after all this blabbing and nonsense, my feeling on 'On an Island' is that it's an album that does just enough to make me not dislike it.
any news when it comes out???
Don't all the critics say the same of Pearl Jam albums? LMAO!!!!!!!!!
I LOVE Daves new cd! SWEETTTT!!!!!!!!