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Gen 20 2012, 0:46
A Momentary Lapse of Reason (1987)
After the release of The Final Cut, the band went off their separate ways, but not without Roger Waters observing their every motive with hawk-like precision. He wanted to make sure that he was the owner of Pink Floyd, that the band was his and that none of the other members would do anything to jeopardize his possession. Four years of recording solo albums and playing with other artists almost saw the end of the band, but not on David Gilmour’s watch. By the mid-80s, he managed to bring back Nick Mason and Richard Wright all while assembling a entourage of musicians to all record under the name of “Pink Floyd”, much to the dismay of Waters (and the legal system, but that’s another story). The band had risen from the ashes like the phoenix that it is, but is it ready to fly?
Ors being pushed with a focused force. The swishing of water as a boat rows by. The creaking of the wood as the ors turn and turn. These are the first sounds the listener hears on the album. For a Pink Floyd comeback album, something a little more triumphant would be expected, but now that David Gilmour is in charge, things are going to be a little different. Waters’ anger and spite will soon be replaced by ambient landscapes and relaxed musicianship. For here on out, it will be all about the music. The rowing in question is featured on the opening track “Signs of Life”. Once the synths begin to blair, it was evident to me that I was no longer on Earth. The music was taking me somewhere far away, a quality about Floyd’s music that I had long missed since the days of Wish You Were Here. I’d actually wished that the instrumental track had continued. By the time I invest myself in the track, the album remembers that it has a single to promote.
“Learning to Fly” takes me from the misty lake of the opening track to heights unseen. The rhythm of the track is neither tribal nor electronic. It’s organic, but it’s also synthetic. The instruments all seem to move into each other like cogs in the machine, which could act as an appropriate piece of evidence for those who don’t like the album. The album isn’t ready to highlight Gilmour’s guitar work just yet. His playing on the track is just a warm-up for now. Even though the track is about Gilmour and Mason’s experiences with flying, it can also be cited as a piece about the fear of the unknown and not knowing what to do or where to go when one is hurled into complete uncertainty. The band was smart in making this a single, as it is an uplifting track with good production values. It feels so good to write the former about a Pink Floyd track after all this time.
The third in a series of good album tracks is “The Dogs of War”, Gilmour’s take on the theme of war and how the higher-ups use money and other manipulative tactics to ignite fighting against other nations. Despite me saying that this is a good track, the song is plagued with the kind of average lyricism that many listeners criticize Gilmour for penning, even with the help of a few writers. Waters-esque political commentary this is not. On the positive side, this is also proof that Gilmour is one who is more concerned (possibly subconsciously) about making a track sound good than the track’s message. He’s stated numerous times that he’s not good at writing lyrics, but he’s more than confident in his playing. What I find most interesting about the track is the juxtaposition of industrial, synth-driven playing and Gilmour’s bluesy vocal delivery. It’s nice to hear that both his playing and singing have held up even after his departure from Waters’ Floyd. The instrumental break speeds up the tempo and keeps things interesting. The sax solo adds a little spice to the track, making this one of the stronger efforts on the album.
Just when I thought this album couldn’t get any better…the quality recedes a little. “One Slip” seems like a step back from the headstrong determination of the first three tracks. The track sounds like it could have been off of Gilmour’s About Face album, which was released several years prior to Lapse. This track has nothing notable to offer with its commercial 80s pop sound. Good thing another noteworthy track is to follow on the album.
With its arresting, near-a cappella opener, “On the Turning Away” is one of those songs where you have to stop what you are doing and listen. The main melody, seemingly celtic in nature, is strong enough that I don’t mind how it is used for every verse of the song. The main theme, so to speak, is only strengthened by the choral backing on Gilmour’s vocals and the empowering solo at the end of the song. Gilmour the guitarist is back, ladies and gentlemen.
“Yet Another Movie” is, for me, the most interesting song on the album in terms of lyrics. The majority of the lines in the song seem like they were taken from a stream of consciousness rather than thought-out complete sentences. The song seems to detail the possibility of escapism losing its power. In the case of films, it’s stating that people are becoming so blasé towards familiar tropes and writing schemes that the world is becoming unfazed by the magic of suspending one’s disbelief. The music, as a whole, is slightly nostalgic, since it sounds like some of the Madonna music and late 80s/early 90s pop that I grew up with as a child. The song is underwhelming compared to the previous track, but it’s still worth a listen nonetheless. The track “Round and Round” is practically an extended ending for the song and is of no concern to this reviewer.
The “New Machine” tracks are just two of some Gilmour-what-the-hell-were-you-thinking moments that have happened throughout his career. There seems to be no purpose to the song outside of it being an intro to the instrumental “Terminal Frost”, and even then the placement of this track is awkward, as is the placement of the second “New Machine” track. The lyrics of the tracks and detached effect on Gilmour’s voice, for some reason, make me think of the movie Ghost in the Shell. It gives me the impression that the voice is coming from some kind of mechanical body that humans take for granted, most likely from a computer. Even so, the tracks are both unnecessary and add nothing to the album.
“Terminal Frost” however, is undeserving of being sandwiched inbetween such random tracks, as it is an instrumental track that firmly establishes the staying power of the band’s musicianship. The piano riff sounds cinematic borderlining on melodramatic and the soprano sax puts the track in danger of reducing the song to muzak level, but fortunately, Gilmour’s smooth guitar work has managed to elevate the track to credible heights, making all these elements work in favor of each other. The track is a grower, but for those who can’t wait, it’s a nice track that really pays off in the end.
“Sorrow” was one track that I was anxious to listen to. I’ve heard many great things about the song, but I hate to say that I was unimpressed with it as a whole. The intro is a startling (in a good way) piece of distortion, the solo is great, and the chorus is wonderful, but aside from that, it didn’t seem to offer anything else. I was hoping for something a little more as the counterpart to “Signs of Life”.
My expectations for the album were very low, given how many fans have panned it in comparison to the cynical bite and innovative musicianship of their glory days. In fact, that’s probably the main reason why this album is considered unfavorable by so many fans. They were so underwhelmed by the fact that this is nothing compared to the band’s stronger efforts that it was deemed as just “bad” by a lot of fans. I may be a Pink Floyd and David Gilmour fan, but I am being completely unbiased when I say that I liked this album. Nostalgia isn’t even a factor, either. I just like the sound of the 80s production working in favor (well, mostly) of the band’s technique. The production, at times, may have sabotaged the band’s efforts to create something vast and majestic only to make it seem dated and pretentious, but when it works, it’s a joy to listen to. I like this album, and I’m not ashamed to admit it. It’s no Dark Side, but it’s a nice return to the idea that music can tell its own story, even without strong lyrics. Boys, it’s good to have you back..sort of.
4/5
Key tracks: “Learning to Fly”, “The Dogs of War”, “On the Turning Away”, “Terminal Frost”, “Sorrow”
After the release of The Final Cut, the band went off their separate ways, but not without Roger Waters observing their every motive with hawk-like precision. He wanted to make sure that he was the owner of Pink Floyd, that the band was his and that none of the other members would do anything to jeopardize his possession. Four years of recording solo albums and playing with other artists almost saw the end of the band, but not on David Gilmour’s watch. By the mid-80s, he managed to bring back Nick Mason and Richard Wright all while assembling a entourage of musicians to all record under the name of “Pink Floyd”, much to the dismay of Waters (and the legal system, but that’s another story). The band had risen from the ashes like the phoenix that it is, but is it ready to fly?
Ors being pushed with a focused force. The swishing of water as a boat rows by. The creaking of the wood as the ors turn and turn. These are the first sounds the listener hears on the album. For a Pink Floyd comeback album, something a little more triumphant would be expected, but now that David Gilmour is in charge, things are going to be a little different. Waters’ anger and spite will soon be replaced by ambient landscapes and relaxed musicianship. For here on out, it will be all about the music. The rowing in question is featured on the opening track “Signs of Life”. Once the synths begin to blair, it was evident to me that I was no longer on Earth. The music was taking me somewhere far away, a quality about Floyd’s music that I had long missed since the days of Wish You Were Here. I’d actually wished that the instrumental track had continued. By the time I invest myself in the track, the album remembers that it has a single to promote.
“Learning to Fly” takes me from the misty lake of the opening track to heights unseen. The rhythm of the track is neither tribal nor electronic. It’s organic, but it’s also synthetic. The instruments all seem to move into each other like cogs in the machine, which could act as an appropriate piece of evidence for those who don’t like the album. The album isn’t ready to highlight Gilmour’s guitar work just yet. His playing on the track is just a warm-up for now. Even though the track is about Gilmour and Mason’s experiences with flying, it can also be cited as a piece about the fear of the unknown and not knowing what to do or where to go when one is hurled into complete uncertainty. The band was smart in making this a single, as it is an uplifting track with good production values. It feels so good to write the former about a Pink Floyd track after all this time.
The third in a series of good album tracks is “The Dogs of War”, Gilmour’s take on the theme of war and how the higher-ups use money and other manipulative tactics to ignite fighting against other nations. Despite me saying that this is a good track, the song is plagued with the kind of average lyricism that many listeners criticize Gilmour for penning, even with the help of a few writers. Waters-esque political commentary this is not. On the positive side, this is also proof that Gilmour is one who is more concerned (possibly subconsciously) about making a track sound good than the track’s message. He’s stated numerous times that he’s not good at writing lyrics, but he’s more than confident in his playing. What I find most interesting about the track is the juxtaposition of industrial, synth-driven playing and Gilmour’s bluesy vocal delivery. It’s nice to hear that both his playing and singing have held up even after his departure from Waters’ Floyd. The instrumental break speeds up the tempo and keeps things interesting. The sax solo adds a little spice to the track, making this one of the stronger efforts on the album.
Just when I thought this album couldn’t get any better…the quality recedes a little. “One Slip” seems like a step back from the headstrong determination of the first three tracks. The track sounds like it could have been off of Gilmour’s About Face album, which was released several years prior to Lapse. This track has nothing notable to offer with its commercial 80s pop sound. Good thing another noteworthy track is to follow on the album.
With its arresting, near-a cappella opener, “On the Turning Away” is one of those songs where you have to stop what you are doing and listen. The main melody, seemingly celtic in nature, is strong enough that I don’t mind how it is used for every verse of the song. The main theme, so to speak, is only strengthened by the choral backing on Gilmour’s vocals and the empowering solo at the end of the song. Gilmour the guitarist is back, ladies and gentlemen.
“Yet Another Movie” is, for me, the most interesting song on the album in terms of lyrics. The majority of the lines in the song seem like they were taken from a stream of consciousness rather than thought-out complete sentences. The song seems to detail the possibility of escapism losing its power. In the case of films, it’s stating that people are becoming so blasé towards familiar tropes and writing schemes that the world is becoming unfazed by the magic of suspending one’s disbelief. The music, as a whole, is slightly nostalgic, since it sounds like some of the Madonna music and late 80s/early 90s pop that I grew up with as a child. The song is underwhelming compared to the previous track, but it’s still worth a listen nonetheless. The track “Round and Round” is practically an extended ending for the song and is of no concern to this reviewer.
The “New Machine” tracks are just two of some Gilmour-what-the-hell-were-you-thinking moments that have happened throughout his career. There seems to be no purpose to the song outside of it being an intro to the instrumental “Terminal Frost”, and even then the placement of this track is awkward, as is the placement of the second “New Machine” track. The lyrics of the tracks and detached effect on Gilmour’s voice, for some reason, make me think of the movie Ghost in the Shell. It gives me the impression that the voice is coming from some kind of mechanical body that humans take for granted, most likely from a computer. Even so, the tracks are both unnecessary and add nothing to the album.
“Terminal Frost” however, is undeserving of being sandwiched inbetween such random tracks, as it is an instrumental track that firmly establishes the staying power of the band’s musicianship. The piano riff sounds cinematic borderlining on melodramatic and the soprano sax puts the track in danger of reducing the song to muzak level, but fortunately, Gilmour’s smooth guitar work has managed to elevate the track to credible heights, making all these elements work in favor of each other. The track is a grower, but for those who can’t wait, it’s a nice track that really pays off in the end.
“Sorrow” was one track that I was anxious to listen to. I’ve heard many great things about the song, but I hate to say that I was unimpressed with it as a whole. The intro is a startling (in a good way) piece of distortion, the solo is great, and the chorus is wonderful, but aside from that, it didn’t seem to offer anything else. I was hoping for something a little more as the counterpart to “Signs of Life”.
My expectations for the album were very low, given how many fans have panned it in comparison to the cynical bite and innovative musicianship of their glory days. In fact, that’s probably the main reason why this album is considered unfavorable by so many fans. They were so underwhelmed by the fact that this is nothing compared to the band’s stronger efforts that it was deemed as just “bad” by a lot of fans. I may be a Pink Floyd and David Gilmour fan, but I am being completely unbiased when I say that I liked this album. Nostalgia isn’t even a factor, either. I just like the sound of the 80s production working in favor (well, mostly) of the band’s technique. The production, at times, may have sabotaged the band’s efforts to create something vast and majestic only to make it seem dated and pretentious, but when it works, it’s a joy to listen to. I like this album, and I’m not ashamed to admit it. It’s no Dark Side, but it’s a nice return to the idea that music can tell its own story, even without strong lyrics. Boys, it’s good to have you back..sort of.
4/5
Key tracks: “Learning to Fly”, “The Dogs of War”, “On the Turning Away”, “Terminal Frost”, “Sorrow”
