The year is 1971; Pink Floyd has entered an experimental stage in the band's development with David Gilmore replacing Syd Barrett only three years prior. Gilmore’s artistry creates an undeniable influence on the band’s evolution, evidenced in the band's sixth album,

Meddle.

The majority of the album is an excellent amalgamation of rock and blues, which all work perfectly as singles, but lack the overarching stories usually told by a typical Floyd album. This all changes, however, when one flips the record to side B, and the journey begins. Taking up the entirety of the reverse side of the record is a massive 23-minute experience titled

Echoes

. It takes some guts to produce a song nearly the length of a typical television show and expect your audience to not lose interest halfway through, but Pink Floyd’s boldness pays off in what can only be described as one of the most bizarre yet beautiful musical compositions to date.  

The into is ominous, with a vague pinging in white noise as if the echoes of the artificial sound are signaling something far away, or deep below.  Instruments chime in and play off the ping until Gilmore’s guitar solo starts the transition into the first lyrics where harmony between Gilmore and Wright begin.  The song’s lyrics reflect the nature of change, how we are mere “echoes” of the creatures before us, which is why the song begins in the ocean until eventually progressing to modern life. The song’s lyrics perfectly reflect the theme of the song and are an absolute joy to pick apart and analyze after repeated listening’s. This, in my eyes, is one of the main appeals to the song; you walk away having a different perspective of the art afterward every time.

I stated the song is a journey and there is no better way of exemplifying that than by looking at the middle of the piece. The song transitions from a solid jam between all the instruments playing into an eerie background of (what seems to be) samples of crows and whale sounds with Gilmore's guitar going wild, producing the strangest of sounds reminiscent of howls. This section is almost out of a nightmare as it is the closest thing I have heard to orchestrated cacophony; the sounds are precise and deliberate, but frightening and sudden.  This mood is completely relieved however when the sound of a gentle organ playing strikes your ears. Soft and low, the organ allows the rest of the band to enter once again in a triumphant return. The juxtaposition of sound is extremely powerful and it makes the disturbing portion before it all the more worth the time spent listening. In this sense, the song progresses’ as if a voyage through sound as there are so many extremely emotional layers the listener is treated to throughout the experience.

Fans of the Lloyd Webber’s

The Phantom of The Opera

(1986) may also recognize something about the bass-line, in that it is the exact same riff as the primary tune played in the theatrical performance. Pink Floyd has spoken about this in the past but ultimately decided it is not worth the effort to try to fight legally, quoting the band’s bassist Roger Waters: “…

It probably is actionable. It really is! But I think that life's too long to bother with suing Andrew ****ing Lloyd Webber.

1

”

Ultimately, the music speaks for itself.

Pink Floyd may not be for everyone, especially the intensity that is

Echoes,

but from one music lover to another I cannot recommend listening to it (at least once) enough. I have briefly described some history and thoughts over this work of art, but what makes this song so brilliant is how absolutely indescribable it truly is, every time you will have a different feeling about it the more you listen. So when you got some time, sit down and unwind, to the brilliant noise of

Echoes.