The Wall Live

[Thirsty Boy]

How in hell is the wall "anti stadium rock" ?

Floyd was always, from day one, about production, art, staging, lighting and theatre fused with music - the wall and the way it is currently produced is simply exactly what Syd Barret and co set about to achieve when they formed the band.

Stock standard stadium rock concerts might not be the "pure floyd ethic" and that might be what "Pink Floyd" has tended towards in more recent times - but self indulgent, over involved, over the top rock theatre... As big and bold as you can make it?? Thats what pink floyd was always about and Roger at least seems to remember that.

Floor seats in the middle.

 

[manticle]

A long time ago I read an interview with Roger in which he described the wall as just that. He found it grating that Gilmour led floyd were playing songs from the wall at their fantastic but somewhat grotesque concerts. His words, not mine.

I would suggest that's an oversimplification - but bits of it point at the pomposity and absurdity of the business. The transformation of rockstar into fascist leader is a bit of an obvious dig at it all don't you think?

Anyway love the music but the re-enactment/nostalgia ain't for me.

@BD: Not hanging **** on anyone who wants to go. At least you know the music will be great and there'll be a spectacular stage show. It's just not for me, despite still being a fan of the music and that album in particular. I still watch the movie from time to time.

 

[Thirsty Boy]

I dont understand how its a re-enactment or nostalgia any more than someone deciding to do a production of the ring cycle or a Jesus christ superstar is. Its just putting on a show - the wall was a show, not an albumn or a movie - it was a show and he's just putting on the show again and feeding back into the production of the show some of the motifs that grew out of the show when it became a movie and an albumn, plus giving it the scale and quality that years of fame and fortune and $400 dollar tickets now allow.

The wall was never great philosophy - it was a tantrum. The thing to remember, is that while a fantastic artist and musician - roger waters is plainly a self indulgent, autocratic, narcissistic whack job of the type who would always, not just now he's old and in the filthy lucre stage of his career, have happily done and called brilliance, exactly the same thing that 10minutes before he had pilloried someone else for trying to do. The difference between grotesque parody and art, being primarily that it was him doing it.

It'll be a fantastic show by the amazing artist that wrote it - but thats all it ever was, so its not somehow less original or authentic that it would have been if you saw it 35 years ago.

 

[manticle]

I'm talking as much about my relationship to the music and to the idea as anyone else's, including Roger.

I don't think you can suggest it's not a re-enactment or that nostalgia doesn't play a part though. Yes on one level it's just a show or performance. It can still have nostalgic appeal and considering the album itself is over 30 years old and apart from the Berlin performance (which was close to 20 years ago from memory), the album hasn't been performed live in its entirety for a similar time.

Perhaps it's an unfair judgement, but I'm just not that into rock stars/musicians who were a great influence during my childhood/teen years recovering the same old ground. It's simply why I won't buy tickets though - not any suggestion of why someone else shouldn't or why it shouldn't happen. My relationship to the wall and my thoughts on the matter are fairly insignificant really.

If the birthday party reformed (difficult since half of them are dead) to play the entirety of Prayers on Fire at Rod Laver I'd probably feel the same way.

Roger did resist putting on extra big stadium affairs during the Wall tour, despite them being lucrative due to what I was talking about earlier.

Not articulating brilliantly but I'll try again later.

 

[Silo Ted]

the wall was a show, not an albumn or a movie - it was a show and he's just putting on the show again and feeding back into the production of the show some of the motifs that grew out of the show when it became a movie and an albumn, plus giving it the scale and quality that years of fame and fortune and $400 dollar tickets now allow.

The album was released in 1979, and was followed by a tour in 1980/81

 

[yardy]

don't you mean albumn :lol:

 

[Thirsty Boy]

The album was released in 1979, and was followed by a tour in 1980/81

You're right and I was wrong. Thanks for the correction.

But the albumn was always intended to be performed as a show and the shows were intended to be part of the movie and only a few were ever performed... so it was all in general supposed to be a part of the same big arsed diversified performance piece.

Doesn't really matter anyway, like Manticle said, its about the relationship you personally form with the performance. I'm less antipathetic towards performers repeating their old stuff... I think there is something to be said for recognizing that you might have reached your nadir at some time in the past and wanting to perform your best stuff rather than your newest stuff. So I am simply happy that I get to see the wall performed at all, because I wasn't around and in England in 1980 to see it fresh.. If I saw it the first time round, then maybe I would be less keen, but this is as close as I will come to getting to see pink floyd live now that Rick Wright is dead, so it'll do for me.

 

[Silo Ted]

Ultimately, it's the individual's perception of a gig that matters, if one wants to spend their hard-earned cash on a 40 year old concept, then enjoy yourselves. For me, I would have seen in excess of 300 bands and for my taste I haven't ever really enjoyed older bands doing their thing years after it was fresh, even if I enjoy their studio material. There has only been one exception. Personally I think a band that is still struggling, lives, breates and sleeps musicianship, and still has that unbridled fire in their belly and idealistic dreams in their heads, makes for a more exciting, tighter performance. I think that passion also deflated steadily after the second or third album, for the same reasons.

Some audiences prefer to see bands where they know the songs backwards and can sing along. Youthful nostalgic memories, or a being 'stuck' in their past tastes is very common. If people want to pay a lot of money to shed a tear, get a pang their heart and raise their lighters to the air, then that's fine.

 

[Thirsty Boy]

Fire in the belly is fantastic - but i can see that any saturday night at half a dozen pubs within walking distance. Mostly ****, sometimes amazing, fresh as a daisy.

But to be honest, these days i am becoming less and less concerned with originality and more concerned with musicianship. I dont necessarily need things to be new, but i absolutley do need them to be well done. Both of course being perfect.

So i go to see someone like leonard cohen, because it might be old stuff, but the musicians and the performance are absolute top of the line - the quality of songwriting and music itself is something i know in advance is brilliant and I know the players and back-up singers are worlds best - and thats what i want to see.

One of the best things i have seen in the last year was last week, a free concert, 4 young russians playing a Tsaichovsky string quartet. Stunning energy, musical brilliance. Absolute passion combined with technical excellence and nothing original about it except that which the musicians themselves were able to inject into what was after all, nothing more than a nostalgic re-enactment of a 120 year old chunk of musical history.

Thats what i am looking foward to with something like the wall - will the old guy be able to take great old music and make it fresh again? If he cant - well i paid $300+ to re-live a bit of my youth, sing along to some cool old songs and maybe catch a little glipse of past glories missed. If he manages it.... Well then thats something special I get to remember for the rest of my life. The potential for that is, in this instance for me, worth gambling a few hundred bucks.

Isn't that the best thing about music? Everybody gets to take out of it what floats their own boat - and not care two hoots what it does or doesn't do for the next person.

 

[manticle]

Just to illustrate what a hypocrite I am, I have this year seen Steve Ignorant perform old Crass songs (admittedly around $40 and at the Tote but that same odd sense of nostalgia and re-living the past made me feel odd) and the Swans (admittedly again at a pub and playing brand new material) so re-living the dream of past glory is not beyond me.

What you say makes sense TB and all this talk has made 'run like hell' do a loop inside my head.

 

[Silo Ted]

it might be old stuff, but the musicians and the performance are absolute top of the line

This cannot be said for most dinosaur resurrections. When the band members rarely pick up an instrument, and when they do it's to play songs that they have done a thousand times before, it's more often than not that it's going to be stale, sloppy, and lacking genuine passion. That hardly matters to the majority of the crowd, who pay for the nostalgic experience, not the technical ability.

Although with The Wall, I'm sure you'll be in for a treat. I assume the musicians are session guys, and Waters is strumming along with his guitar down on all but the most simple passages, and all he has to focus on is the vocals. Ultimately it's going to be the world's most applauded cover band of 2011, and you can be sure they are going to present a flawless aural display of sounds. They arent paid to be artistic, their profession is to contribute to a sonic soundscape without personal expression, and that's just what punters should expect. To see a 12-piece band execute a four-piece band song might cost you $20 in other circumstances. With special guest Roger Waters, the cover charge just got a whole lot higher.

 

[Thirsty Boy]

I know exactly what you are talking about... Paid good money to see the eagles even though i sort of expected it to be more or less the experience you describe - and my expectations were indeed met. A thoroughly dissapointing concert experience the only highlight of which was the guitar work of the session muso who wasn't actually part of the band and had to play someone elses solos... But still managed to inject some of himself and his obvioulsy outstanding ability into his performance.

Always a risk... But when it pays off, it can pay off really well.

 

[yardy]

'snip'

Paid good money to see the eagles

I caught them at Wembley Stadium and thought they were pretty fcucking good, disappointed that Hotel California was first cab off the rank but awesome just the same.

I've got to admit that i wasn't expecting much, even thought at the time it was a bit rank to be seeing the Eagles, wasn't really my thing after Metallica headlined at Monsters of Rock at Donnington :icon_chickcheers: :super:
gotta love the UK for the shows..

cheers

 

[browndog]

Just got home from The Wall concert and have to say "best concert ever" The music was by and large true to the album with a new song or two thrown in and some extended versions of songs. The sound production was brilliant, the fireworks, planes, flying pigs, puppets and video were just mesmerising.

cheers

Browndog

 

[manticle]

Good to know it lived up to expectations BD. Despite my anti-enthusiasm for the tour itself, I have recently become re-obsessed with Pink floyd, buying up as much vinyl as I can (god bless discogs), watching the film again and ocassionially remininscing with the help of youtube.

 

[browndog]

Good to know it lived up to expectations BD. Despite my anti-enthusiasm for the tour itself, I have recently become re-obsessed with Pink floyd, buying up as much vinyl as I can (god bless discogs), watching the film again and ocassionially remininscing with the help of youtube.

Yes, it lived up to my expectations and more, when he did mother, there was a clip on the big circular screen of him singing mother from the 79 tour and his old vocals were mixed with the live one, the crowd went apeshit over that. I can't say I've been to a concert where I've had goosebumps before or where there were oldies sitting in the carpark with camping tables enjoying a preconcert wine or two.

 

[Cocko]

Went to the Melbourne show last night and it was amazing!

I am a big fan of the Album, movie and over all story of The Wall so I looking forward to seeing the show live... I had seen youtubed stuff recorded on camera phones etc of this tour and they in no way do justice to the experience of being there live. Even the Berlin show that was released on video, years ago now, does not give you a real sense of how awesome this show is.

The sound was immaculate. The projections onto the wall were incredible.... well, everything was just ******* amazing!

If you are a fan, do not miss this opportunity to see it.

Expensive, yes.
Worth it, YES!

:beerbang:

 

[Cocko]

BTW: Any Roger fans there is a pretty cool interview here:

http://soundcloud.com/rogerwaters/roger-wa...on-howard-stern

Goes for about an hour so great for a brew day back grounder!

Cheers!

 

[Wolfy]

As a 'live music concert' I was a little disappointed - everything (except maybe the encore) having been rehearsed to death and done exactly the same 100's of times over the last couple of years - and some of the (non-Roger) vocalists didn't float my boat.

But as a 'rock theater event' it was quite spectacular; immaculate production, art, staging and projection, clean precision music, everything in it's place and done exactly as choreographed, as big and bold and self indulgent as possible ... which is what made it a fantastic and thoroughly enjoyable event (and we had great seats - thanks to SWMBO).

 

[Thirsty Boy]

As a 'live music concert' I was a little disappointed - everything (except maybe the encore) having been rehearsed to death and done exactly the same 100's of times over the last couple of years - and some of the (non-Roger) vocalists didn't float my boat.

But as a 'rock theater event' it was quite spectacular; immaculate production, art, staging and projection, clean precision music, everything in it's place and done exactly as choreographed, as big and bold and self indulgent as possible ... which is what made it a fantastic and thoroughly enjoyable event (and we had great seats - thanks to SWMBO).

my thoughts exactly - An absolutely astounding experience, but to be honest, every time roger waters stepped out of character and tried to be a rock star... well he looked like a sad attention seeking old man in a black t'shirt that was kinda out of place.

His vocals, and the fact that they were indeed being performed live - were obviously integral to the experience. But in every other way the actual presence of Roger Waters was incidental to the show. It would actually have been "better" if his part were played by someone who could act, stayed in character and got out of the way when they weren't required.

The highlight was the projection art and the phenomenal way it was integrated with the construction of the wall and the awesome surround sound effects and music. The most ridiculously huge scale and impressive show I've ever been to, worth every penny!