Pink Floyd - Animals (Remastered) (CD)

The "Animal" Kingdom...

By Scott  Apr 9, 2004 | 2 out of 2 found this Animals (Remastered) review helpful

Pros: This album is no dog...

Cons: Cheery, this ain't...

To the casual Pink Floyd fan, “Animals” is the lost one. Squeezed in between the masterworks “Wish You Were Here” and “The Wall”, this is the neglected middle child that never finds a place on today’s radio. Unconventional and uncompromising, ...the three songs that make up “Animals” – “Dogs”, “Pigs (Three Different Ones)” and “Sheep” – aren’t comfortably squeezed into a “power hour” or “Two-for Tuesday”.Of course, there’s good reason “Animals” hardly shows up on classic rock’s radar. If “Dark Side of the Moon” had soul, and “Wish You Were Here” had melody, then “Animals” is all attitude. Those looking to put this on the turntable and ride out a good buzz are in for a rude awakening. Gone were the gentle chord passages, the soothing female voices, and the collage of sound effects. In their place were snarling guitars, unfettered production, and the singular voice of a very agitated Roger Waters. On “Animals”, Waters has taken Orwell’s “Animal Farm” and updated it to late-seventies England. Unlike previous albums which had taken on a more inclusive world view or sympathetic longing, the new album was about Modern England – its politics and people. Waters turned his sharp eye for detail on British society and set them into three separate casts – pigs, dogs, and sheep. The “dogs” are the wealthy capitalists, pigs the self-righteous, and the sheep are the masses who follow blindly their false leaders – into the awaiting slaughterhouse.Waters spares nothing and no one – this is some of the bitterest music ever put to tape(no small statement, considering “Animals” was released during the birth of punk, 1977). Yet, as the lyrics vomit forth bile the music soars – especially guitarist Dave Gilmour, seemingly relishing the chance to kick a little dirt into the Floyd’s usual smooth sound. Gilmour’s guitar techniques range from subtle animal noises to wails, shrieks, and more than a few blistering solos. On “Animals” , Waters is clearly the captain of the Good Ship Floyd – but its Gilmour down in the engine room, providing thrust and steam.“Animals” ushered in the end of Pink Floyd’s rich middle dynasty. From this moment on, Waters assumed creative control of Pink Floyd, relegating his fellow members Gilmour, Nick Mason, and Richard Wright to mere sidemen. Roger Waters, the critic of the dogmatic and pigheaded, became the very thing he despised . Read more Less