Animals - the unloving grind of capitalism
When to Listen: When you want some introspection on life
Accesability: Accessible
TLDR: A story of the woes of capitalism with a glimpse of hope, with amazing guitar.
Pink Floyd is a band that could very likely dominate this site. A mixture of prog rock, acid rock and everything in-between Pink Floyd has always gravitated toward creating albums that tell stories and have amazing musical style. Most people would assume "The Wall", "Dark-side of the Moon" or "Wish You Where Here" - would be my inaugural Floydian post - however Pink Floyd Animals takes my heart as one of their best full albums. Perhaps it is the nostalgia of listing to this on my old Sony CD player as I flew back to Texas to visit my father, or the more down to earth - punk inspired music, or the story of grinding day in and day out of the corporate slog, but Animals is an album that has always had a unique place in my heart. I think what is most impressive about this album is that 40 years later - its harrowing message still applies in a way that feels accessible and modern.
The album concept is rather straight forward - its an album about capitalism following heavy (and obvious) inspiration from the book Animal Farm by George Orwell. The album is booked end by two mirror songs "Pigs on the Wing (1/2)" - with the first song (part 1) setting up the cynicism to follow of being caught in the race of life and dying alone - and the last song meeting the grand conclusion - life is better when you reject that. Following the short 90 seconds of "Pigs on the Wing Part 1" we enter "Dogs"
"Dogs" in its own right could be entire album. The song clocks in at an insane 17 minutes, but in that time you get both the amazing story of the dogs (cogs in the corporate machine) and the epic guitar of David Gilmour. The song volleys between an older dog and a younger dog debating the merits of their world and existence. The cynical view of the world is well summarized by the older dog:
You have to be trusted by the people that you lie to
So that when they turn their backs on you,
You'll get the chance to put the knife in
Its a cut throat dog eat dog world. And that is what the dogs are expected to do and be as they fulfill the wishes of the "pigs". The younger dog questions this
I gotta admit that I'm a little bit confused.
Sometimes it seems to me as if I'm just being used.
But in the end he succumbs to the reality of the corporate , pig controlled world, ultimatly pushing for success and trying to "always be the winner" ends with no fulfillment or meaning and ultimate you dieing alone being "dragged down by the stone."
Immediately following "Dogs" is "Pigs (Three Different Ones)" - which shifts from a story - to a criticism of three pigs (politicians) of the time. The then Prime Minister, James Callaghan; Margret Thatcher and Mary Whitehouse. It stands as a sharp criticism to 'the elite' only trying to serve there interest and destroying lives in the process. The song ends with possibly the best guitar solo by Gilmour - a wailing cry of pain that slowly fades out in the sounds of a field of sheep
And with that we enter the next song - "Sheep". The final triad of the Sheep - Dog - Pig ecosystem of modern capitalistic societies. The sheep represent the people - the people who just blindly follow oblivious to the realities of the world, controlled by the dogs and the pigs. The song hits the point that blindly following ideology is bad in the reprieve - where they take the Lords Prayer, and change it to represent sheep being lead to slaughter. The sheep blindly sing the hymn while they get murdered. Can't really mix that message.
Wrapping the album is where we came in - with Pigs on a Wing - however there is a noticeable shift - from the dark cynicism of the first song, there is now a tone of hope. It alludes to a dog who found love and realized it was not worth it - and in that found someone to find shelter from the pigs, rather then be afraid of them. This is a theme you find a lot with Floyd - the idea that where things end, is where they begin - its all a cycle.
And that I think is what is so amazing and horrifying about this album. 40 years later it all holds true. Every theme, idea and message is just as - if not more - applicable today as it was in the 70's. Perhaps in the end we all need to stop being so tied to the rat race of life, try and find love and ultimately find someone to "find shelter from pigs on the wing".