There are a lot of Pink Floyd tributes touring the UK right now, which shows the enduring legacy of their great albums from the 1970s, in particular Dark Side Of The Moon and Wish You Were Here – both of which were played in their entirety by Darkside this evening. It is also a testament to the spectacle that was a Pink Floyd show that any tribute band has to live up to those high standards and provide a spectacle, usually with a big light show, lasers and projections. A lot to live up to.
I have seen around 10 Pink Floyd tributes over the years, as well as David Gilmore and Roger Waters live shows. Darkside lived up to the highest standards of musicianship and concentrated on playing not just those 2 great albums but also some choice songs from Animals and The Wall and mercifully few from the period after Rogers Waters left the band and the songwriting quality declined.
The show had a clear, well balanced sound and strong visuals. The vocals were strong and the Gilmore solos were played beautifully. The female singer sang Great Gig In The Sky with great fluidity and soulfulness, she also played the bass guitar on one song and acoustic guitar. There were 2 keyboard players, one of which played saxophone on a few songs. The show lasted around 2.5 hours with a break, providing great value for money.
One of the things that stood out for me was the willingness to extend some of the songs (which Pink Floyd would have done in the 1970s) and add some improvisation and extra dynamics. Darkside were able to add their own character to the songs more than any of the other PF tributes I have seen, which was refreshing and very welcome. The love of the music and passion to perform those great songs came through in abundance.
Overall a highly recommended tribute act, with great musicianship and lighting, with some added improvisations and great song choices.
