OBSCURED BY CLOUDS

Released in 1972, Pink Floyd's "Obscured by Clouds" finds itself nestling in between 1971's "Meddle" and the legendary "Dark Side of the Moon" from 1973. As such, it is often overshadowed, and easily the most overlooked album of their 1970s output.

Serving as a soundtrack to the French film "La Vallée", the album reflects many of the themes from the film, namely travel and exploration. The music is often a laid-back and relaxed affair, and lyrically there are few great moments. Nontheless there are some excellent songs to be found. "Free Four" is rather upbeat for a Waters' composition, although unusually, the lyrics deal with life and death. Making an upbeat song about death must be no easy task, but here it works quite well. "The Gold it's in the..." is another upbeat song with some excellent guitar work by Gilmour. Although short but sweet, it does evoke a great sense of exploration. On the other end of the scale, "Childhood's End" is a slower and more sombre song, creating a brilliant atmosphere. Gilmour provides the last lyrics he would write until after Waters' departure from the band. Another highlight; "Wot's.. Uh the Deal" is a nice and relaxed acoustic song has always been a favourite of mine, managing to sound melancholic while not being depressing.

While certainly not a masterpiece, this is a good solid effort from the Floyd, with hints at the directions they would be taking in future. One problem is that some songs can be rather forgettable, and the chanting at the end of "Absolutely Curtains" may start to grate after a while. Nevertheles there are some fine songs amongst the collection on this oft- forgotten album. Definitely worth picking up for Floyd fans, but for everyone else it's not so essential.