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The Endless River will be "spacey", maybe not what you expect

Posted by madhack on Jul 28, 2014

As reported in several places, a source has revealed to The Sun that the upcoming new album The Endless River will be "spacey" and may not be what fans are expecting. It's noted that fans should expect long instrumental jams—and the source may have implied that only one song will have vocals (or at least vocals by David Gilmour). Also confirmed, again, is that there will unfortunately be no tour; by all appearances, this truly is the band's swan song.

Confirmation of "The Endless River"

Posted by madhack on Jul 7, 2014

Via The Associated Press, Pink Floyd spokesman Doug Wright has confirmed the October release of The Endless River, containing "mainly ambient and instrumental music" from the The Division Bell sessions. Wright also confirms that Roger Waters is not involved.

The latest on the new album

Posted by madhack on Jul 6, 2014

The Independent has a wrap up of the currently known details about the new Floyd album set for an October release, The Endless River. In short, long-time backup singer Durga McBroom-Hudson has confirmed that the album is an expansion of an instrumental concept David, Rick, and Nick worked on during the 1994 sessions for The Division Bell, with at least some vocals recorded. Sources indicated to UK's The Sun that Roger Waters is definitely not involved and a band spokesperson confirms that there is no tour planned.

By all appearances, this album will represent, to borrow Polly Samson's words, not only Rick's swan song but the band's as well.

New album coming in October?

Posted by madhack on Jul 5, 2014

A Twitter account claiming to belong to Polly Samson, David Gilmour's long-time wife, has just noted the October release a new Pink Floyd album featuring 1994 sessions with Rick Wright:



It is worth noting that this isn't a verified Twitter account, but that is fairly common in the case of people who aren't well-connected to other "celebrities". Based on the history of the account, the idea that it truly belongs to Ms. Samson is very plausible—backed up by the post apparently being re-Tweeted by long-time Floyd backup singer Durga McBroom.

It's also worth acknowledging that there are rumors of involvement from Roger Waters and of a potential future tour, but we have found no sources to confirm. We'll be treating them as rumors but will obviously post more as it emerges.

"Amused to Death" to finally see SACD release and LP reissue

Posted by madhack on Apr 8, 2014

According to the blog Super Deluxe Edition, Roger Waters's Amused to Death will finally see its long-awaited SACD release—and in 5.1, to boot. Obviously, the SACD format hasn't taken off as many expected, with many listeners putting more emphasis on mobile convenience than fidelity, but this should be great news for those who have invested in the necessary tech.

Roger Waters responds to accusations of anti-Semitism

Posted by madhack on Aug 1, 2013

Roger Waters has responded to recent accusations of anti-Semitism in an open letter on the official Facebook page for The Wall tour which have resulted in a flurry of news stories and opinion pieces.

Designer Mark Fisher passes away

Posted by madhack on Jun 27, 2013

Mark Fisher, the stage designer and architect who helped create effects and stages for the Animals, The Wall, and The Division Bell tours, has passed away at age 66. The band's official site has posted a statement, and Roger Waters has shared his feelings on his official Facebook page.

Mr. Fisher also worked with a number of other talented artists, and has clearly made a huge impact on the experiences of music fans all over the world.

Pink Floyd takes on Pandora

Posted by madhack on Jun 27, 2013

The remaining members of Pink Floyd have written an op-ed for the USA Today on their problems with the Pandora music streaming service, specifically mentioning Pandora's lobbying to change how royalties are calculated for online streaming. While a cynic might wonder if it has anything to do with their recent addition on Spotify, it's worth noting that their opposition actually began in November. If there's any relationship, it seems more likely that their Pandora opinions led them towards Spotify than anything else.

In the interest of fairness, we'll also link to Pandora's response at their corporate blog disputing the band's claims and numbers. musicFIRST has more details on how they arrived at the 85% figure, and it's clear that the debate isn't going away just yet.

Pink Floyd catalog coming to Spotify -- with your help

Posted by madhack on Jun 14, 2013

Via the official Pink Floyd Twitter account, the band's catalog will be coming to the music streaming service Spotify. There's a catch, though: as part of the promotional campaign, the catalog will only be unlocked if 1 million people stream Wish You Were Here at the service. We're sure they'll have no trouble reaching that goal, but if you'd like to do your part, you can do so here.

Storm Thorgerson passes away at 69

Posted by madhack on Apr 18, 2013

Storm Thorgerson, the legendary designer responsible for numerous albums' artwork, has passed away at the age of 69. He is, of course, almost certainly best-known for the iconic cover of Dark Side of the Moon, but created the art for 15 of Pink Floyd's albums in total, not counting special editions and re-releases.

His family released the following statement:
"Yes, Storm has died. He passed away, on Thursday 18th April in the afternoon. His ending was peaceful and he was surrounded by family and friends. He had been ill for some time with cancer though he had made a remarkable recovery from his stroke in 2003. He was in his 70th year."

"He is survived by his mother Vanji, his son Bill, his wife Barbie Antonis and her two children Adam and Georgia."

David Gilmour has shared thoughts and memories of his own on his official site, and the official Pink Floyd site echoes his statements. We'll follow up as the remaining surviving members of the band post their own thoughts.

To quote my own father, who introduced me to Pink Floyd: "A diamond just stopped shining."

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