Pink Floyd
Dwell at Pompeii – MCMLXXII
In Cinemas Now & Amazon Prime
Pink Floyd at Pompeii, restored from the unique 35mm lower unfavorable which was present in ‘5 dubiously labelled cans in Pink Floyd’s personal archive’, in accordance with Lana Topham – Director of Restoration, has lastly been launched in 4K. The movie was launched in cinemas across the UK on the 24th of April in common and IMAX types.
The movie has all the time been considered one thing of a curate’s egg amongst Floyd aficionados; 4 lithe, younger English rock stars bashing out their biggest hits beneath the fierce Italian solar, towards the chilly monolithic backdrop of Pompeii’s amphitheatre.
These have been the times when bands transitioned by way of rising genres that will shine brightly for a number of months earlier than melting away. Pink Floyd, who began out as a bread-and-butter blues band rapidly fell into, and arguably pioneered, the psychedelic motion within the mid ‘60’s with their prolonged freak-outs at London’s notorious UFO membership, alongside Comfortable Machine and AMM. The ensuing album Piper at The Gates at Daybreak, named after a chapter from Wind in The Willows, was a landmark launch, a few years earlier than the band formally turned the bombastic behemoths they’re considered as we speak.
By the later sixties Pink Floyd continued to launch progressive and authentic experimental rock, and although they often launched singles (with diminishing success), it was the prolonged soundscapes that they have been well-known for. Let’s not overlook that they have been additionally adept at contributing to, (and writing) movie scores, by way of their work with Antonioni on Zabriskie Level, Tonight Let’s Make Love in London, Extra and later, Obscured by Clouds.
Dwell at Pompeii sees the band in 1971 simply after releasing Meddle, an album which constructed on the success of Atom Coronary heart Mom, (their first primary), launched the earlier yr. Each albums adopted a standard theme; one facet, quick tracks, pieced collectively from disparate genres – Fats ‘Ole Solar, Alan’s Psychedelic Breakfast, One in every of nowadays, Seamus, and the opposite facet, prolonged 20 minute progressive items, developed on from 1968’s Saucerful of Secrets and techniques and lots of the earlier freak outs.
Other than displaying full variations of Meddle’s Echoes, Cautious With The Axe Eugene, (a stay favorite) and One in every of These Days, the movie cuts away to dramatic photographs of Pompeii’s usually grimacing stone statues, Solfatara’s effervescent volcanic mud swimming pools, and the dying solar towards the amphitheatre’s structure. Adrian Maben’s route is harking back to the aforementioned Michelangelo Antonioni’s Zabriskie’s Level the place the hillside explosion is revealed in a sequence of photographs from completely different angles, repeated again and again.
The movie is lower with scenes of the band recording The Darkish Facet of The Moon at Abbey Street, in addition to discussing their gear and different features of the recording course of – Roger Waters – “Increasingly more now there are all form of digital goodies which can be found for individuals like us to make use of if we might be bothered”. David Gilmour “It’s all extensions of what’s popping out of our heads… it will be attention-grabbing to see precisely what 4 individuals might do if simply given the gear, we didn’t know something about it actually, and simply advised them to get with it and do one thing”.
Operating at an hour and thirty minutes Pink Floyd at Pompeii is a tremendous movie, a snapshot in time, which sees them on the cusp of mega stardom. Launched in September 1972, simply six month earlier than The Darkish Facet of The Moon can be launched, it’s very a lot the cool lull earlier than the storm.
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The premiere for the re-release of the movie came about within the modest Barnsley Parkway Cinema and featured the unique sound rig from the Pompeii movie together with a duplicate Allen & Heath sound desk, equivalent to the one proven within the movie. Each the rig and desk would kind a part of the Darkish Facet of The Moon excursions from 1973. The PA and desk are owned by Chris Hewitt from CH Classic Audio, who personal the most important assortment of authentic sound gear on the planet.
See The Movie
You may see the movie on normal launch in cinemas now, or stream from Amazon Prime.
Pink Floyd at Pompeii – MCMLXXII – The Dwell Album Out Now Out there on CD, Digital Audio & For The First Time On Dolby Atmos & Vinyl Right here
Acclaimed Movie Enters Prime Field Workplace Charts Round The World Tickets On Sale Right here
See The Tools
7th and eightth June 2025 – Pompeii mixing desk, cabs and reproduction touring Ford transit on show – Middlewick Home Open Day ( Nick Mason’s Home) –
21st and 22nd June 2025 – Pompeii full PA System & mixing desk working open air taking part in the brand new mixture of Dwell at Pompeii soundtrack – North West Hello Fi Present, Cranage Corridor Lodge, Holmes Chapel ,Cheshire
Phrases by Nigel Carr. Extra writing by Nigel on Louder Than Battle might be present in his Creator’s archive. You could find Nigel on Twitter and Fb. Nigel is the Co-Producer of New Daybreak Fades – A Play About Pleasure Division And Manchester which excursions this October. Barnsley pictures by Chris Hewitt.
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