OBSCURED BY CLOUDS

Obscured by Clouds is by far the best of the soundtrack albums done by the Floyd, despite its musical simplicity. It is not as experimental as More neither tough to listen as Zabriskie Point, but it contains amazing songs that would be very accessible to the mainstream audience and - surprisingly - would also probably appeal people who are also interested in more complex music who may want a break from the more crafted works. In a nutshell, it is an album "for everyone" to appreciate.

This is the most rock oriented FLOYDIAN work, which is shown mostly on songs like the upbeat "The Gold It's in the..." and "Childhood's End", which contains David Gilmour's arguably best lyrics - showing that the guy CAN write. The first two instrumentals, the title track and "When You're In" work as one unique song introducing the album. Both are awesome and the first has a really dark feel, while the other is heavier and more drum based. "Burning Bridges" and "Mudmen" are the two sisters that make this album even greater, with the same keyboard rhythm through them being the absence of vocals in the latter the main difference. On "Burning Bridges" we have one of the best harmonies found in both Dave's and Rick's vocals, they surely fit well together singing the same song. A great vocal work at the best song from the album. "Free Four" is my least favorite song from here, a typical Waters' number containing a very annoying "clap clap" fuzzy feel through it that just doesn't work for me. "Stay" is another great contribution from Mr. Wright, a nice ballad that leads to the grossly underrated "Absolutely Curtains", which in my humble opinion is one of their best instrumental tracks. The only real flaw here are the voices at the end, which are quite ridiculous comparing to the level of this song. "Wots uh the deal?" is a beautiful and simple song and one of the band's most unique gems.

This album is sometimes forgotten because it is an OST, but its brilliance is unquestionable. The FLOYD soon is reaching their most successful album in terms of sales DARK SIDE OF THE MOON, which has a similar feel as this one. Actually, OBC seems like an embryo of Dark Side, because both albums share many similarities between them.