Pink Floyd - More
|
List Price: Our Price: $9.93 You Save: $8.05 (45%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Music CD See more new music releases 
|
|---|
Buy this Music CD at online store in your country
Canadian Music Store
Canadian Music Store
Free Music Notes for More
Free Music Review: An overlooked and very experimental Pink Floyd album
Hit: 4 Stars
Based on what I have read, Pink Floyd did this album because they wanted to start making movie scores. Released in 1969, this soundtrack to the counterculture melodrama More (directed by Barbet Schroeder) really is a very nice listen. From the pastoral serenity of the opening track, through the thunderous Nile Song and Ibiza Bar, and into the spacey and experimental instrumental passages, this is a great album that indicates (somewhat) the direction that Pink Floyd would take as they entered the 1970s. I guess it is worth mentioning that Pink Floyd would take the experimental approach of More to an even greater extent on the follow up Ummagumma (1969).
The instrumental pieces are balanced by the vocal pieces on this, the Floyd's third album, and although some have commented that Dave's vocals sound "feeble" I actually think he sounds great (even on Green is the Colour). Dave's spacey guitar playing is also right on track and he uses a great mix of electric and acoustic textures. With respect to the instrumental tracks there are some pieces that reflect Rick Wright's interest in avant-garde composers (like Stockhausen) especially Up the Khyber, which features a "tribal" drum part by Nick Mason (who co-wrote the piece), some atonal playing on the organ and piano, and electronic effects. Other interesting pieces include the completely "out there" track Quicksilver, which is the most experimental and at 7 minutes the longest track on the whole album, along with the short piece Party Sequence, which features some great percussion parts. At the other end of the spectrum is the softer piece Green is the Colour, which features acoustic guitar, acoustic piano, along with a very soft bass part by Roger and a tiny bit of organ by Rick. Another piece in the acoustic vein is the Spanish Piece, which features some excellent flamenco-ish acoustic guitar playing by Dave.
The Floyd even take on the blues with More Blues, although it is the blues as only Pink Floyd could play it - very psychedelic and spacey. The fact that Nick Mason does not play his drum kit all the way through, but rather in "fits and starts" also gives the piece a vaguely experimental feel.
Unfortunately, albums like More, along with all of their pre-Dark Side of the Moon (1973) output and even Animals (1977) tend to fall through the cracks. This really is too bad given that the 1967-1972 timeframe was a very creative period in their career. Not to diminish the significant achievement of Dark Side of the Moon however, which brought progressive rock to an even wider audience and was an extremely significant work, it is just that I love Pink Floyd's late 1960's/early 1970s material. As such More is highly recommended along with Atom Heart Mother (1970), Meddle (1971); and Obscured by Clouds (1972). Although from 1977, Animals is also very highly recommended too.
Free Music Review: Could have given me a bit more
Hit: 4 Stars
This CD is not the best PF has done, but there are very good reasons why. This CD is the soundtrack for the movie by the same name (directed by Barbet Schroder), and is therefore constrained to the subject of the movie. Apparently, Schroder made them get rid of several songs they thought were really good. Also, they wrote and recorded this entire CD in eight days. The quality for that amount of time is very amazing.
The album opens with Cirrus Minor, a very good song, though the opening is slightly longer than it should be, and the ending instrumental bit, while very powerful, is a tad too long. Still, the song earns 4.5/5
Following this is The Nile Song. This song is awful, except for the fact that must be taken into account, which is that Pink Floyd is impersonating heavy metal, and they do it better than most heavy metalists. That is surely enough for a 4/5
After this comes the Crying Song, another very strong effort. This song contains, if I'm not mistaken, PF's first reference to the "stone" (a recurring theme from Meddle onwards). 4-4.5/5
Up the Khyber is a throwaway instrumental, but it's not bad. 3/5
Green is the Colour is one of the best tracks on the CD. Pink Floyd succeeds yet again in showing up stupid, poppish, shallow love songs that are put out these days. 4.5/5
Cymbaline is the standout track on the CD. The lyrics and the music are simply haunting, and the song would earn five stars if it weren't for the overly long instrumental portion to end. Still, 4.5/5
The second half is composed of mostly instrumentals, which are generally fairly good. However, there is one non-instrumental song, Ibiza Bar, which is the sister rocker to The Nile Song. I personally prefer this version, but both are good. 4/5
One instrumental to take note of is Quicksilver. It is full of interesting sounds, and is worth a listen. I'm not quite sure how to rate it, but it definitely deserves one listen at the least. A tentative 4/5.
Overall, it is amazing that PF could put out something of this quality in just eight days, even with all of the constraints that they had. This album is not for beginners, but once you get past the golden era (Meddle, Dark Side of the Moon, Animals, Wish You Were Here, The Wall), and get started on the early stuff (Piper at the Gates of Dawn, Atom Heart Mother), give this album several shots. It takes a long time to get into. Have patience, and you will find a hidden gem.
Free Music Review: Strange, scary, thrilling music
Hit: 4 Stars
I gave this about 3 stars some time ago, but I realized that it wasn't right. I've relistened to this album and have decided that this album is more than the sum of its parts. I believe the best songs here are 'Cirrus Minor', 'Crying Song', 'Green Is the Colour', 'Main Theme', 'Cymbaline', 'More Blues', and the closing track. Alot of this is gentle music and a departure from the style of 'A Saucerful of Secrets', which put more emphasis on the space-rock side of the band (BTW, 'Saucerful...' is the only Floyd album that can really be classified as 'space-rock' anyways). There are a few here I'm not crazy about, but the thing here that really wins me over is that there seems to be an underlying fear beneath the surface of this album. So, I'd give it about an 8.1/10.Free Music Review: Underrated
Hit: 4 Stars
"More" was the first of a few soundtrack albums made by Pink Floyd, this one is for Barbet Schroeder's movie about hippies of the same name, which basically no-one has seen although I believe it may have come out on DVD recently. This album is made of roughly half vocal, half instrumental numbers and we see the band trying out a few different things here, on the first album made completely without Syd. Half of the tracks here are written by Roger, taking up the responsibility after Syd's departure. You must undertand that some of the tracks are just mood pieces made for the movie and not as stand alone pieces as such, but this is still probably one of the most underrated albums in the Floyd catalogue. The album begins with "Cirrus Minor", a very lovely song which starts as folk song, kind of a precursor to "Grantchester Meadows" and develops into a celestial passage reminiscant of the last part of "A Saucerful of Secrets". Next we have "The Nile Song" which could have been silly had it not been quite good, one of the few times that they have recorded a "throwaway" rock & roll song, have a listen to the sample and you'll understand. "Crying Song" is next, an enjoyable ballad delivered by David, with one of the first lyrical references to "the stone" representing the burden, or weight carried throughout life, referred to quite often later on. "Up the Khyber" is the first instrumental, a showcase for the keyboards and drums, probably quickly forgotten. The next two songs, "Green is the Colour" and "Cymbaline" were stage favourites for years, the only two songs here really that were performed live for any length of time, they are probably the two highlights of the album, Green is another ballad from Roger, a rare love song, while "Cymbaline", sung well by David, might well be the best track on here.
What follows on was side 2 on the old vinyl, is mostly taken up with instrumentals of different moods and generally, isn't as strong as side 1. "Party Sequence" is an odd little track, only a minute long and one gets the feeling from the title that it was made to sequence with a particular "sequence" from the film. "Main Theme" on the other hand is a lengthy instrumental clearly created out of a jam session, it is quite enjoyable and relaxing with a few nice hooks. "Ibiza Bar" marks a return to the feedback-soaked sound of "The Nile Song", and the track sounds equally as strong as its brother. "More Blues" is just what it sounds, an instrumental blues-jam which showcases the talents of David. "Quicksilver" is the longest song on the album at over 7 minutes, although this instrumental is enjoyable once you "get it", it is a very moody piece allowing Rick to use his Hammond to great effect, though it doesn't have the hooks of "Main Theme" to catch you right away. "A Spanish Piece" is the first song that David got solo credit for in the band, and maybe one he would rather forget, although the guitar work is enjoyable the voice over the foreground ruins it somewhat. Finally we have "Dramatic Theme", another instrumental to close the album. Remember that the album is a "soundtrack" and not a proper album and you'll be in the right mood to enjoy this, it is a quite good album and deserves a listen.
Free Music Review: pink floyd rmore
Hit: 5 Stars
I bought the original albulm but it's a little worn out and is one of my favorites. Thank you so much.