Love them, hate them or just be non-plus about them, you can’t ignore their contribution to the British music industry and the pleasure they have given to millions.
Their Mortal Remains is a condense slice of their lives, showing memorabilia, interviews and above all the evolution of their music.
I have been listening to Pink Floyd since Ummagamma and Atom Heart Mother due to a bunch wonderful friends I had at school. First concert I went to was in 1974 and the last concert 20.
Not only does this exhibition lead you through their musical lives it also makes you think about your own life running in parallel. When I looked at the dated footage on the screens, I remember the highs and lows of my existence at that time.
The exhibition can get a little crowded at times, part of the problem is due to the really good headphones they supply. They are activated by hotspots within the rooms as you walk around. When you hit on something you find interesting (and for me there were a lot), you tend to stop with a number of other people to listen. The first real moment of emotion for me was the dark room. Three black walls and on the fourth a recording of the 1073/74 Dark Side of the Moon tour. The room is black, no lights, just the film and sounds vibrating through your ears. What makes it so emotional, listening to music in a dark room with a bunch of strangers? It’s the same chords, words as you hear in your car or at home, but sitting down in the dark, took me back to 74, on the floor of Earls Court with Rob, Keith and Barbara, lights sweeping the arena, showing columns of smoke emanating from red tipped joints. The music, my friends, my life. When it gets to ‘breathe, breathe in the air’ I’m lost.
I have most albums both vinyl and CD’s versions, the one main LP I knew I didn’t have was Animals. There is a great section on this album, about the floating pig etc. Then I remembered why I didn’t have it or ever listened to it. I just didn’t like the title or the title of the songs. I just couldn’t conceive that any song that had sheep or pigs in the title could be any good. After the exhibition I bought the CD. Word of advice, don’t buy these in the V&A shop, they cost £11, they are a lot cheaper elsewhere. Now I have listened to it, I don’t think I have missed much. it won’t creep into my top ten of Pink Floyd albums.
One of the gismo’s that I liked in the exhibition was a sound board you could play around with. You listened to Money and you can alter the singing, bass, lead guitar etc. I didn’t realise just how much Walters bass was playing throughout the song (I never confessed that I was musically minded).
The last room was a large square shape and high on all four walls the 2005 concert plays. It’s just magical.
Unlike other exhibitions, cameras were allowed, so take one and get lots of memories.
I got the impression that even if nobody liked what they did, they would still have don’t it just to please themselves.
What would be brilliant, if they did a late evening showing, added seating in the last room and show a concert. Also allowing drinks, just so we could drift back through the years and to relive old times/ memories. Ok you might get more than 100 seated, but as long as I was one of the 100, who cares.
I will go back.