THE ENDLESS RIVER

Yep, the irony of the title "The Endless River" (without Waters) is hard to escape. I am not sure as what to make of it, was it just the "slip of the tongue", or is there something more to it that my intellect can't decipher?

At first listen, I am left somewhat unimpressed. This work is pretty much in line with PF under Gilmour's direction, laid back, a bit tired with not much fire left to speak of. It's hardly a surprise that these pieces were left out of "The Division Bell", an otherwise quiet nice album.

Even more surprising is that released in memory of Richard Wright and featuring Wright along with a number of other keyboard players, there is very little action on the ebonies. Numerous, short soundscapes, yes, pieces that never evolve into proper tunes. The bulk of the work is meandering, instrumental tracks. Pleasant enough, but not very exciting. On the very few actual songs Gilmour plays with his trademark elegance, but these notes have been heard before.

So, why release an album like this? Money is not likely an issue as Gilmour is known as a generous philantrophist who donates massive amounts for worthwhile causes. This still leaves him with an estimated $100 million to play with.

On second listen, I find this album pleasant enough, but still boring, barely scraping into a 3 star rating. I would have much preferred to see the audio part (with narration edited out) of the video "La Carrera Panamericana" released instead. The soundtrack there is classic PF approach of strong tunes, but as is, spoiled by the running commentary.