ANIMALS

This is the one Pink Floyd album I would take with me on the famous isolated island. When I bought it some twenty years ago I couldn't dig what a big achievement this release was. Especially DOGS was too long and too strange - but now I think different about the whole album. I usually don't spend much time with the acoustic PIGS ON THE WING PT. 1 + 2, being in- and outdoor to the main tracks. The three important tracks (DOGS; PIGS; SHEEP) carry on for 40 minutes and are highly inventive and pleasant to hear - once you got used to them. The musical ideas are far from obvious, but they are top notch. Alas, the lyrics put an uncomfortable edge to the masterpieces. The whole record is much darker than WYWH and foreshadows the tristesse of The Wall - without the latter's self-pity. The only critical point I have to make is that Waters' voice often sounds nasal, as if he had cold at the time of recording. Even if one considers the last mentioned things to be shortcomings - this is still 5 stars.