Well, this is one that many have been waiting for. With the release of The Early Years, things looked inevitable and logical for The Later Years to happen, although as with anything, nothing is certain until it happens! Many people have questioned why the Floyd have missed The Middle Years, although one could argue that broadly speaking, much of that ground has been covered by the Immersion sets. There’s also a certain inevitability that there was a lot less material that the band could call on – the beginnings of the band saw them appear on countless TV and radio stations, something that dried up as time went on. They were also a band who in the later years would keep working on an idea through to fruition, rather than have endless abandoned ideas and early versions. We’ve covered the contents elsewhere; suffice it to say, with over 13 hours of unreleased audio and audiovisual material, there’s plenty of new stuff to explore, along with material which has been readdressed and given a 2019 polish. First impressions as you face the box are very strong. A fine job has been done with the presentation of this set – the box and the inner housing reek of quality. Easing the front lid to the side (it is attached, so opens like a very large book) reveals the first of the contents: the three reproduction tour programmes (1987-88, 1989 and 1994) along with a lyric book, all banded together. Under that is the large format, hardback covered photo book which covers the era in question, then there is the memorabilia pouch, which is in something akin to a vinyl album sleeve. In here are repro posters, tickets, passes, and the two 7 vinyl singles – one with Lost For Words (PULSE tour rehearsal edit) and the other, Arnold Layne recorded at the Barrett tribute held at London’s Barbican in 2007. Once these have all been removed, you are down to the final layer – the hardback covered CD/Credits Book which houses the five CDs in the set (numbered 1-5), the six Blu-rays (6-11) and five DVDs (12-16) all housed in individually designed cardboard sleeves. Each of the discs in cardboard sleeves sits in thin plastic sleeves, to protect them from any damage when sliding them in or out of the card. A nice, simple touch but could make a difference in the long term.
