Re: Rock - what are you listening to?
Posted: Mon May 02, 2011 10:39 pm
Just seeing this now. Nice to read a bit about the effects used, given the limited gear available at the time. Thanks Dermot!cybot wrote:Was going to use this as an occasional classic album revisited thing but fearing that the response would be too much I decided not to ;-)
There's also a story behind the review below but you wouldn't want to know to tell the truth....
Incidentally I don't agree with Mark's assertion that Interstellar Overdrive is incredibly dated. Having said that, IMO, the very first demo session is far superior and sounds absolutely amazing in Mono. Anyway this one's for you Johnny....
Classic albums : The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn - Pink Floyd
"Listening to Pink Floyd's debut album The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn, one is assailed by every kind of sound effect treatment Abbey Road Studios had to offer in 1967. The sound of the record is dominated by prepared pianos, whooshing vocals, cuckoos, geese, celeste, cowbells, maracas and cleverly panned percussion and guitars. If the spatial effects and good sound are down to the visionary production of Norman Smith, the overall feeling of childhood whimsy coupled with a deep love of rural heritage was that Floyd's leader, the late Roger 'Syd' Barrett.
The album was described by Smith as a "mood creation in sound" and from the opener, Astronomy Domine, we are in the land of sound painting as distorted voice, rippling Telecaster guitar, phased double - Premier drums, a Farfisa Duo organ and Roger Water's bass throb, all swirl to convey a feeling of the cosmos. There is a spatial quality to the sound, in that you can actually pick out each instrument very clearly as layer upon layer of overdub is added. The secret to this comes from EMI's then customised mixing boards. Whereas most pop bands would go for the board's 'Pop' EQ, the Floyd insisted on the 'Classical' EQ settings. This produced a wider frequency spectrum and could accommodate all the timbres that Syd and the Floyd's imagination could muster.
Another aspect of Piper is the swirling quality that dominates throughout. Both Syd Barrett and Rick Wright utilised a gizmo called a Binson Echorec to 'psychedelicise' the sound. This was an Italian device that not only controlled the length, tone and volume of notes fed into it but also had delays, repeats, reverb and even a little mixer. The prismatic sound one hears throughout Piper is because of this little box with it's blinking green light.
Official sessions for Piper ran from March 1967 through to the end of June 1967 at EMI Studio 3. Next door in Studio 2, the Beatles were recording Sgt. Pepper and late one evening in March, during sessions for Pow R. Toc H, Pink Floyd were invited into the Beatles' sanctum as they were finishing Lovely Rita. The Beatles' massive overdub policy obviously rubbed off on the Floyd. Astronomy Dominie was dubbed down from four hours of sessions, Lucifer Sam took seven different sessions to get right and the final track Bike required twelve takes and three different overdubs.
Given the primitive four- track equipment of the time, it's a wonder Piper sounds good at all. Barretts's accented fairytale English was accentuated by ADT (Automatic Double Tracking), a new device then. This can be heard all over such wondrous creations as Matilda Mother and Flaming. The latter is definitely Barrett's most successful voyage into English psychedelia - a true effervescence of nostalgic childhood/pastoral heritage. Recorded in one take, Flaming shimmers with Binson, bells, percussion, tape echo and celeste. Its bicycle bell ending and brevity make it a standout.
Instersteller Overdrive, at this time a live favourite, sounds incredibly dated. Amazingly, the track was Syd's version of Love's Little Red Book. Today it is Barrett's rich lyrical vision and eclectic musical taste that makes the album so unique. It's final two tracks are peerless in the world of 1960's psychedelia. The 12 string acoustic guitar at 1.31 on Scarecrow remains a wonder and the bewitching clockwork effects at 1.57 on Bike (bookended by the sound of flying geese) still have the power to tantalize, even after all these years."
Mark Prendergast '07
