PROG REVIEW 783 - A Momentary Lapse of Reason Remixed & Updated - Pink Floyd (2019)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 15 ก.ย. 2024
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#pinkfloyd #davidgilmour #classicrock
I had to laugh when I saw "Learning to Fly (2019 Remix; 2021 Edit)" on Spotify the other day. I don't think they've done enough personally. Call me when we've got A Momentary Lapse of Reason (2019 Remix; 2021 Edit; 2023 Remaster; 2025 Pro Tooled to Buggery Edition) box set, but only if it costs me £150.
It's amazing how much work Pink Floyd were investing in creating those album covers. While these days you just do it on a computer. But the fact those beds were real and all that is what makes these covers timeless.
Well it was Storm Thorgerson and Hipgnosis who were invested in it (as money was involved). The band just signed the cheque!
I’m not the biggest fan of AMLOR but if I were to put a top 5 tracks:
5: Signs Of Life
4: Terminal Frost
3: Sorrow
2: On The Turning Away
1: Learning To Fly
I've always had a soft spot for this album, and I find myself choosing it more and more often when selecting some Floyd to play. Like you, I was just discovering them as a 17 year old when this was released, and I think that's where part of it's appeal stems from. I actually think this is a vast improvement, simply because of the enhanced sound quality and not necessarily the parts they've changed - although I do prefer them. Looks like I'll be buying this album AGAIN.
Bought this from Woolworths on its release and played it many times in my car after passing the driving test..Never played it again for decades.But I will say that Davids voice is special to me.
Ultimately, it's the fact that Mason and Wright are definitely in this one that makes me like it more, despite the quibbling over whether the de-80's-ing was worth it.
But I respect the opposing opinion. It's good that both are allowed to exist, unlike something like Star Wars where Lucas tried to snuff out the original from existance.
Edit: apparently Nick Mason didn't do much drumming on the album because he was depressed. Gilmour credits it to Waters being really harsh on him during The Final Cut, and I think Nick said it was due to his marriage breaking up.
Being a “Fan Boy”, I was never a great lover of the original AMLOR. Have to say musically this new version is much better, by getting rid of that “80’s” electro vibe. Fits much better now as a Pink Floyd album
😂😂😂
I dont know… some guitars do sound clearer but overall the Album has lost it‘s Magic I think… the original 87 mix is a bit crafted but it is just the Sound of the time and the Synthesizers back then… the Remix is just A bit too much of George Lucas for me
Should be called "Lapse of QUALITY"
I bought the download of the Later Years from Amazon, which included the Momentry Lapse of Reason (2019 Remix) and the Delicate Sound of Thunder (2019 Remix) all for £29.99. It'll do for me, thank you very much! PS I do still have the vinyl I bought on the day of release way back then !
I love the instrumental 'A Terminal Frost'. Seen it a couple of times performed by Brit Floyd, was brilliant
Great track!!!
Two of my favorite Floyd albums. Dsot and dsotm👍
I saw them in concert when they were touring this album and it was glorious. My personal favorite on this album is Dogs of War.
A great review. I especially liked your invention of the concept 'nowhere in time' which describes perfectly the tendency to somehow neglect the fact that is nothing wrong that the cultural artefacts (such as this recording) are the product of the history, its technology, distinct processeses. The age in which are we living right now, or better the most important people with access to the new technology who define this particular age are behaving very strange. Somehow they are afraid of the past. They see it exclusively as a period of time of imperfection. I think that it is really not important to change something, because it simply impossible to change. These people ( Gillmour, Waters) by remixing their respective work are only contributing to the creation of even greater illusion that we can observe today. Why push us to live in artificial world of virtual reality? Where is true reality? What is actually real? Really nothing?
Brilliant review, Darren - insightful, well-informed, heartfelt and entertaining! Please keep 'em coming.
I enjoyed it -the booklet is very good -and the vinyl sounds excellent
Personally I enjoy the remix a lot. I’m not against the original mix either as it was a product of it’s time like you said.
For me the appeal of this album (discovered when I was probably about 15) was always it's feeling of being a totally isolated, futuristic, depersonalized, existentially despairing, machine-like music, which both the technology of the time and the reality of Dave's isolated and uncertain period of recording it made possible. I always thought Dogs of War stunk, regardless of the mix haha, but everything else was and still is gold to me, and the sometimes inappropriately punching drum sounds, squealing "dentist" guitar, and expansive reverb almost to parody levels somehow all work together to give a feeling of, what felt to me at the time and still kind of does, like Sartre-in-sound. Which, was completely my headspace as a teenager, and I can still kind of fall back into.
Yeah I agree, what’s the point of this . It does take away that 86-87 time capsule sound & leaves it sounding kinda lifeless in a way .
I love this whole album 💿 Gilmour at his best. But he’s always at his best!
I love the OG most.
I almost always prefer updated remixes of old albums (like with The Beatles) but I much much prefer the original mix of A Momentary Lapse Of Reason, it’s got way more punch, new mix lacks the charm of the original too and just feels like a cheap retcon
For me the appeal of this album (discovered when I was probably about 15) was always it's feeling of being a totally isolated, futuristic, depersonalized, existentially despairing, machine-like music, which both the technology of the time and the reality of Dave's isolated and uncertain period of recording it made possible. I always thought Dogs of War stunk, regardless of the mix haha, but everything else was and still is gold to me, and the sometimes inappropriately punching drum sounds, squealing "dentist" guitar, and expansive reverb almost to parody levels somehow all work together to give a feeling of, what felt to me at the time and still kind of does, like Sartre-in-sound. Which, was completely my headspace as a teenager, and I can still kind of fall back into.
Now Roger should de-eightyfi Radio K.A.O.S
That would be a pretty hard job to pull off...
@@TheDarrenLock Indeed, but it would be very interesting. Especially the song Who Needs Information
Too much sequencing probably, but I enjoyed it back in the day. By today's standards it sounds very dated. Great concept but the hacking angle is still valid.
Remix KAOS and expand it to a double album. That was the original plan, so who knows, maybe there's sufficient recorded material. Gatefold and poster too!
Well, at least it's not as 80s sounding as Radio KAOS.
I've always thought Press to Play could use some de80sfying.
Generally I agree with you, but to my ears the new one sounds better and less "80's". Season's Greetings from Athens, Greece! 🌲
I understood 50% of the words you uttered
It’s not my fault you’re stupid…sorry… 🙄
Darren don't delete the steve willson vid. It is your Channel and your Opinion. Stick with it and stand for it. Don't crack in for one of those shitstorms. ❤
This sounds like how the late Edgar Froese ruined a bundle of his solo albums. I bought (stupidly) Aqua, Epsilon in Malaysian Pale, and Macula Transfer which were remixed under the name Edgar W Froese. Edgar put these through a blender adding God knows what to the originals - completely ruining the sound and the atmosphere of the originals. Luckily, I still have the original versions to enjoy. Thanks for the warning re this version of this album that I only have on CD from the original release. All this re-jigging of originals ( aside from Steven Wilson's remixes) does my head in.
I like to think of A Momentary Lapse of Reason as Pink Floyd being viewed through the lens of the 1980's. I like 80's music, and I quite like it this album... but for very different reasons than I like The Wall or Wish You Were Here. I have both versions on vinyl, and they're both a fine listen.
For me the appeal of this album (discovered when I was probably about 15) was always it's feeling of being a totally isolated, futuristic, depersonalized, existentially despairing, machine-like music, which both the technology of the time and the reality of Dave's isolated and uncertain period of recording it made possible. I always thought Dogs of War stunk, regardless of the mix haha, but everything else was and still is gold to me, and the sometimes inappropriately punching drum sounds, squealing "dentist" guitar, and expansive reverb almost to parody levels somehow all work together to give a feeling of, what felt to me at the time and still kind of does, like Sartre-in-sound. Which, was completely my headspace as a teenager, and I can still kind of fall back into.
I was 13 when it came out. It’s my least favorite PF album but I still like it. I wasn’t sure if I want the new remix version cause I wasn’t sure if it was that much different?
Thanks for the review, much appreciated
I completely agree with your points. I was listening to it (because I thought I had started the original ... possibly remastered ... whatever) on Spotify, and I thought somthing was off. It sounded like som ekind of live version. Indeed one the things I noticed the most was Gilmour adding a note at the end of a phrase from time to time as he tend to do, that is not there in the original.
One thing is the "authentic" 80's sound you speak of, but another thing is that people listen to the originals and get used to them. It's a bit like seeing Mona Lisa with her hairdo slightly changed. Why?! I simply don't need these remixes. It might from some kind of "technincal" point be "better", or the prefered one for someone who haven't heard the album before, but for me it's just annoying to listen too. It's not like it really change anything from an artistic point of view.
The only thing I get from playing this version is the feeling of it being weird or somewhat off. I don't see the value in that.
I get what you are saying. From my perspective, I never listened to this album much in the past and now I want to get familiar with it… I will definetly listen to the new version, I listened a bit of both, this remix makes me want to listen to AMLOR, the original album 80’s sound always made me turn it off.
This is the problem for some people. The 80s production is part of the whole artistic statement whether you like it or not. Imagine if they replaced the VCS3 synthesiser with a Yamaha DX7 on DSOTM because they thought it sounded dated? 🤔
@@TheDarrenLock For me the appeal of this album (discovered when I was probably about 15) was always it's feeling of being a totally isolated, futuristic, depersonalized, existentially despairing, machine-like music, which both the technology of the time and the reality of Dave's isolated and uncertain period of recording it made possible. I always thought Dogs of War stunk, regardless of the mix haha, but everything else was and still is gold to me, and the sometimes inappropriately punching drum sounds, squealing "dentist" guitar, and expansive reverb almost to parody levels somehow all work together to give a feeling of, what felt to me at the time and still kind of does, like Sartre-in-sound. Which, was completely my headspace as a teenager, and I can still kind of fall back into.
I don't hope the 2019 version will be the definate version for the future. And the prises are a shame for a miserable remix in my Opinion.
Get the original version. Sounds a lot better and originaler than that 2019 remix.
Top review Darren 👍... Curiosity may get the better of me .. but I do like the original version ..
I bought it the day it was released (being 16 at that time), enjoyed One Slip and Learning to Fly, not too keen on the rest, though. There you go. Greetings from Germany
I think I will stick with the 2019 remix. I grew up and am a fan of this album MLOR because it was the first album I heard.
I like it! Both! I also didnt know any better in 1987
Yes, a complete waste of time. Totally agree, it was an album of the eighties and that's part of it's charm shall we say. These remix things are always a waste, everybody will always play the original more in the end, even the fan boys.
I got the cd and found it a fascinating listen
Not a fan of the remix. Personally there is nothing wrong with the 80s production sound as it was quite literally a product of its time.
I highly disagree. I love the new mix.
Good for you!
Had an ad for the new Porcupine Tree nonsense at the start which was a nice touch of irony i thought! As to Punk Floyd... Yawn zzzzzzz (the LP not the review) :)
Yeah, I don't always agree with some of your reviews, but your spot on here. I've bought the album for my collection but I prefer the 1987 version....
Funnily enough, to me, all my reviews are spot on!
@@TheDarrenLock no
Well seeing as they’re my reviews and I know me better than you, I am correct (as usual) in this instance. Don't worry, one day you will come around to my way of thinking, toots.
@@TheDarrenLock really...you are basing all your reviews on your opinions...we all have opinions...do they not count?
Nope, because for the last eleven years all I’ve had is people tell me my opinions don’t count. 😘
I've got it in the box set and only played it once..would rather stick to the Original and play Delicate Sound for the Rick Wright,Nick Mason live parts.
Exactly! 👍
Being a child of 1970 I have the exact same recollection/experience as Darren in that this is the first Floyd album that I remember coming out new. So I have a soft spot for it. My one gripe through the decades has always been the 'dated' sounds, as Darren explains. So when the Later Years came out I was eager to hear this 'updating' as I thought it might rectify me gripes as it were. But... alas... nope! I find myself hankering for the original! I know... no pleasing some folks eh?
I have to agree with Darren. It just doesn't work.
I can however sort of get why they've done this. Afterall the '87 original was a Gilmour solo album in all but name. As Mr Waters liked to deride anyone listening with that fact. The other two's contributions were very spartan. Wright wasn't even fully in the band again until the Division Bell days and its been well documented that the toll of the Waters court case was so draining on Mason he could not drum to 'studio level' proficiency. In fact an ex-colleague who used to work for a certain company very close to PF with a 'B' and an 'R' in their title told me once: The only contribution Mason really had on the recorded '87 was some spoken words. So with time on their hands (like semi-retired multi-millionaire rock stars often have... funnily) and Rick's passing they wanted to 'rectify' things. The same ex-colleague confirmed the well documented story that Gilmour and producer Bob Ezrin feared it sounded way too much like a 'Dave' album so hired all these extras to make it sound it more "Floydy". I know.... you just cannot make it up! Hence a very irked Roger's infamous - and to be fair very accurate - barb ""I think it's very facile, but a quite clever forgery".
For me the appeal of this album (discovered when I was probably about 15) was always it's feeling of being a totally isolated, futuristic, depersonalized, existentially despairing, machine-like music, which both the technology of the time and the reality of Dave's isolated and uncertain period of recording it made possible. I always thought Dogs of War stunk, regardless of the mix haha, but everything else was and still is gold to me, and the sometimes inappropriately punching drum sounds, squealing "dentist" guitar, and expansive reverb almost to parody levels somehow all work together to give a feeling of, what felt to me at the time and still kind of does, like Sartre-in-sound. Which, was completely my headspace as a teenager, and I can still kind of fall back into.
"The Final Cut" is basically a solo album by Roger Waters, with the rest of the Pink Floyd members as backing musicians.
"A Momentary Lapse of Reason" is basically a solo album by David Gilmour, with the rest of the Pink Floyd members as backing musicians (and a bunch of session players).
Of the two albums, I'll stick with "A Momentary ..."
I WAS thinking about buying this but for the reasons you mentioned I'm going to pass. There have been so many remasters of classic albums it is really just a money grab IMO.
I much prefer the originals mainly because that's the sound I came to love, I compare these remasters to what George Lucas did to the original "Star Wars".it's sad that the original will never be seen again...same can be said for remastered music many times they just crank up the volume here and there and many think it's improved somehow, if it get's remastered it's never going to have the same sound I grew to enjoy from the beginning.
This is remixed and parts re-recorded, rather than remastered. 👍
@@TheDarrenLock ...aha, that's even worse, so very much like Star Wars where they removed scenes added others changed the original. So many people have never seen the original and never will, years from now probably will never be able to hear the original Momentary Lapse Of Reason.
Yes, they re-recorded the drums and changed some of the synth sounds, so yes, they went a bit “George Lucas” on it! 😬
80s album sounds 80s shocker! Floyd fans....sorry no marbles were included :(
Hi Darren nice explanation I think the album is good but my beef with them is how they overinflate importance of their music by hurting their fans in the wallet I agree this remix doesn't do much to my ears from what I have heard
Can't comment. Never listened to it.
I heard Learning To Fly. Quite catchy.
It still sounds 80s ish. I'm mixed on the drums. They re recorded the drums, but they are too far back in the mix. They have no snap. Imo the album sounds almost the same. That being said AMLOR is one of my favorite PF albums. Now, I think this remix sounds great on the 45 vinyl, but kind of cluttered on the CD. The remix seems unnecessary in the big picture of things. I was super excited but the excitement has worn off.
Interesting that there's a perceived difference between the LP and CD...
What else is there to talk about? Songs for Drella!
Ooooook….
AMLOR was a stinker. You cannot polish a turd or spray it with gold paint.
What if you roll it in glitter?
@@TheDarrenLock It will still be a smelly POS.I agree with your review. The record is a stuck in the 80's Solo record by Gilmour and session musicians. Trying to make it sound like something else makes it worse!. Roger Waters remixed "Amused to Death" for a vinyl re release which was good ,but I can see why he steers clear of " Radio Kaos". It is so 80's ,it is badly dated.
The majority of remixes are a waste of time.
@@TheDarrenLock If Roger Waters performed Radio KAOS live with his present touring band then that would make that record better but in the end you make a recording and it sums up the moment and you move on. "The Endless River" was also drivel. I got ripped off buying that dud record too. TBQH it was all over after THE FINAL CUT.
Wouldn't go so far as to say it's a turd and i haven't heard the reissue, but I gave up with Floyd after Roger Waters' departure.
I think they lost much of their musical edge as well as lyrical depth.
No. Waters didn’t make Floyd all 4 did. Yes he writes good lyrics but the music is all of them.
@@ricksantos9849 I agree that all 4 definitely contributed to the overall sound.All I'm saying is that , for me anyway, they became less interesting without Waters contributing, mainly because he gave the group a darker, more cynical edge, particularly lyrically that was very compelling.
Or, as we referred to it upon arrival in 1987, Momentary Lapse of Talent. It's like a Pink Floyd cover band that got Gilmour and Mason to guest star. Richard who? Oh yeah, that guy. We'll relegate him to session status and won't even include him in the inner cover photo, but claim he was a crucial part of the band throughout its history the next time we do a naked cash-grab (The Endless Peestream). MLoR had couple of okay tunes - it would have been one of the better Gilmour solo LPs. But then it wouldn't have approached the numbers that the Pink Floyd brand-name hauls in (regardless of content) would it?
1967-1983: (16 years)
5 musicians and writers (Barrett, Gilmour, Mason, Waters, Wright)
12 LPs of original material.
1 live disc (a 'bonus' that came with a full LP of new material)
1987-2021 (34 years)
20+ musicians and writers (Cairn, Ezrin, Gilmour, Laird-Clowes, Leonard, Manzana, Moore, Samson, Wright, etc., you know, ‘Pink Floyd’)
2.5 (at best) LPs of 'original' material
4 live LPs
Post-Waters, they basically took 4 years to make one LP of new material, toured and released a live album. Took another 7 years to make one more LP of new material, toured and released another live album. It's almost as if Waters had a point when he noted Pink Floyd was "a spent force musically and creatively" in 1983.
Everything they've done since has dollar signs attached to it. In the case of both MLoR and TDB, they sold tickets for the tour *before* releasing the new record, confident they would sell out stadiums on the strength of the name and back-catalog. The previous incarnations never did that. They'd release a record, then tour to support it, and weren't nakedly mercenary enough to release a live recording of every tour. These re-releases, re-packaging, remixes, re-remixes are an embarrassing exploitation of their fanbase. It makes me embarrassed for them.
I cringe inside every time I get another notification from Pink Floyd (Official). Ooooh, get excited! We’re re-re-releasing something you’ve owned for decades, only this time with a snippet of a track we didn’t think was good enough for the original issue! Bonus commentary from Polly Samson and some session guy no one’s heard of or cares about! Woo-hoo!
DEAD RIGHT. The party was over after THE FINAL CUT. Time to move on & find new artists to follow such as Kamasi Washington. PULSE stands for Please understand large sums ensue or Painful unlimited sodding Ennui etc..
Mister T aka Roger Waters mouthpiece fan boy bum sucker or whatever. Hate to break it to you but the party was long over before The Final Rut, probably by the time Wish You Were Here was brought out. The best of Animals was already laid down but I suppose Pigs was a pretty good effort but Roger was still trying to make a Pink Floyd record.
How many musicians were on The Wall? How many on The Final Rut? It truly was never the same after Animals. There are some great songs on the Wall and sounds a little like Pink Floyd because David was still allowed to sing, which he was far better than Roger. Even Rick was a better singer than Roger. Even Roger was a better singer on Animals, Wish, Dark Side and before than his strangulated excuse for vocals on The Wall and The Final Rut. Apart from Atom Heart Mother where the classical instruments complemented the band, there was no need for orchestras, that was the Moody Blues thing. The orchestration on The Wall drowns out any of what was left of the Pink Floyd magic, which largely came from Rick Wright, David Gilmour and Nick Mason, at least sonically.
Pink Floyd was a perfect marriage between Rogers conceptual skills and songwriting with the musicianship of the rest, who could each write a pretty good song themselves when allowed. Better together, the whole was far greater than the sum of their parts. The Wall was by far Rogers best work and all the great stuff came before that in the period between Atom Heart Mother and Animals inclusive. I would say that Richard Wright was of equal importance to Pink Floyd during that golden era as Roger Waters. It all fell apart there after. Richard Wright also was pivotal in keeping the band going after Sid left until Roger learned his craft which he mastered around the time of Meddle.
This notion of 3 albums in goodness knows how many years is absolute bullshit as well as you know. A Momentary Lapse of Reason was just that, aptly named. A reaction to Roger Waters attempt to disband Pink Floyd against the others collective will. Roger had no right to do that, he had no right to sack a fellow founding member and the courts proved that. Roger’s opinion was to stay or leave, so he left and more’s the pity.
I am pretty sure that the Division Bell was designed as a swan song to the band from David’s prospective. There was no Pink Floyd after that, and the Endless River was only released as a tribute to David’s friend made up from some of the stuff he and Richard cobbled together in the studio together, working as they did in the old days. I listen to that in sadness for the loss of Rick Wright for his life and for the loss of his enormous contributions to Pink Floyd before it all went wrong for him around 1976.
None of us know what went wrong and who was to blame after Wish You Were Here/Animals but they simply couldn’t work together anymore. They were all embarking on solo careers and I wish they all agreed to go there separate ways, keeping their legacy in tact without all the cobblers that followed.
As for the stuff they did after, I listen to the post Waters stuff more than The Wall, and The Final Cut I hardly listen to at all. Taste is a matter of opinion, and the only guide we have to which is best are the sales. A Momentary Lapse outsold The Final Cut by a long way, and The Division Bell outsold A momentary lapse. Enough said.
Hmm, how many times can one polish up a turd. Dreadful album, the instrumental bits were about the best part of it.
JUDGEMENT DAYS
Ah, the George Lucas version!
I like it!
Still can’t get through the album. As they say, you can’t polish a turd.