THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON

Ah, yes. Dark Side of the Moon. A classic from Pink Floyd and one of the greatest records possibly ever produced by the talented hands of Alan Parsons. Even after listening to it for so long, it's still a sensation to the ears and mind; with its interesting theme about the major problems with humanity and the worries of the thoughts. Pink Floyd was not only musical but thoughtful as well, by releasing such a record that shaped the life of art.

Starting off with Speak To Me, you get the feeling of something big coming as the sound of gears and voices enters in until the ululation of Clare Torry appears and the transition into another reality is made.

Breathe comes in like a breath of fresh air, and it seems to express someone walking down a lonely road in a desert with the moon hanging over their head while they walk a lonely path. David's voice comes in an almost hypnotic quality, asking for the person to breathe and not be afraid of the fears with them. To leave but keep memories of the past and keep making more impressions on the world. And it finishes with the message of youth, to race to see who'll go first.

On the Run further explores the message of the race of life... as being on the run is a symbol for life, I believe that this song is the best one for the job, with the projects of someone running for their lives before they're late on the next plane or bus. Travel is shown as one of the themes.

Time, one of the greatest songs on the album, comes in slowly with the enchanting ring of clocks; almost as if the person was dreaming and this was the real reality. The first two minutes and thirty seconds explore the morning and the rise of the sun, until Dave's voice comes in to tell of the worrier's worry of time itself. With a beautiful feel of harmony, you can hear the worries and elegance of this song with the back up singers and the amazing guitar solo by Gilmour.

Ah, a reprise of Breathe comes to the mind... almost as if the person on the go starts to remember some of his/her dream and thinks of how entrancing it was.

The Great Gig in the Sky develops out of the blue with one note from the organ and into the piano. A very relaxing scene indeed, the person seems to be in good thought now after worrying about the day that's ahead of them; until Clare Torry comes in with the voice of an angel and a mad lass, shrieking in parts while others are shown with a beautiful landscape of sound and melody. The sound decreases while Torry goes on with Wright playing and ends off with on almost a note of question, as if the an event of tragic proportions has impacted the worrier and has made him/her feel sad and yet in a questioning state of mind as to how it has happened. (The event to me would be suicide. The song name not only describes it, but the music itself to the last note almost feels like it as well, even if the theme is more generalized than that.)

The most commercialized song emerges now, Money as it may seem is the new topic in the worrier's head. As the lyrics continue to express the mind of someone who's been made sick from the evil clenches of money, it goes into a motif of a chase scene. Like cops chasing bank robbers; it continues on until the lryics become complete with the talk of currency's evils. Voices flood in; they sound like the voices of people being questioned about the robbery.

Us and Them appears to be the battle of the robbers against authorities. While very mellow, the song goes into the futility of war. Almost as if the robbers were battling and in the end they finally gave up, even if death occurred. (The old man died.)

Any colour you like goes into the theme of themes... yet only a jam session, it symbolizes the many colours of humans themselves... whether it to be the worrier, the criminal, or the old man.

Brain Damage comes in with a sudden flash, the lyrics seemingly talk about lunatics and insanity... one guesses this at a first glance but only realizes after many listens that insanity is only a secondary theme to it. Since the robbers have been arrested, the news had to come somewhere to get the full picture, and that's expressed here. The lunacy of the spread of communication, the news. Imprinting the major events of the day in your head and much else too. The worrier must be watching after all... he's the only who could call it a lunatic.

And Eclipse... It isn't the end of the day as we all realize because life itself doesn't really have an ending. All of the emotion and thoughts are wrapped up into a bow and put on the present in this piece, as it explains the philosophy about life and how it all happens under the same glare... with a twist. The ending doesn't come... but the moon does. The moon symbolizes what this ending truly is... when the glare of the sun becomes blocked by the moon; it can only mean that the worrier's gone bonkers in his thoughts. The colour of red can be seen and the Dark Side of the Moon fully comes into view. The insanity is shown and all becomes clear. It ends with the realistic view, that there is no dark side because it was all dark in the first place. For me, this was when the worrier went to sleep... for the new world he came to was one that no light existed and therefore, the ending message would make sense... and of course, the heartbeat symbolizes the fading pulse of life. Reality slips away.

Too many words describe this album, whether it be a work of genius or just plain weird. All in all, it's life described in forty minutes. Amazing really. Then again, it's up to you to decide that.