One of Brain Damage’s regular correspondents is Heather Fenton, a frequent visitor to the site. She had the opportunity over the Christmas period to watch three of the biggest releases that came out during 2020 – the Roger Waters Us + Them live recording, the Restored.Re-edited.Remixed version of Pink Floyd’s Delicate Sound of Thunder, and Nick Mason’s Saucerful Of Secrets Live At The Roundhouse. Here, she compares and contrasts these markedly different releases. Which one comes out as her favourite? Read on to find out… I finally got round to watching and listening to all the CDs/DVDs and this is what I thought. Going back first to October, and Roger Waters Us + Them (https://www.brain-damage.co.uk/latest/roger-waters-us-them-2cd-3lp-dvd-and-blu-ray-announced.html). Having been to the live show at Manchester which was fantastic, then seeing the cinema showing in 2019 which left us feeling depressed, I said I would not get the DVD but of course I did. With Roger the live show is a spectacle and the atmosphere lifts the audience, but when its just you and the screen it lacks the lightness. Don’t get me wrong, it was still very good but even revisiting Dark Side and all he is now very removed from Pink Floyd, which is what he wanted. The interpretation is all his but even a lot of the old favourites are more of a cover version (not tribute band) and come across hard especially when interspersed with his own more recent compositions. You would not want to play this every night! Pink Floyd’s Delicate Sound of Thunder (https://www.brain-damage.co.uk/latest/the-restored.-re-edited.-remixed.-delicate-sound-of-thunder-being-rel.html) though was everything we have come to expect. The sound quality was greatly enhanced and as for the visual definition, it’s now so sharp and the colours very vivid – almost iridescent – in Time. A joy to watch and an excellent worthy addition to the collection, and maybe one day Venice will follow suit. But although Delicate Sound Of Thunder was excellent, a higher accolade would have to go to Nick Mason’s Saucerful Of Secrets Live At The Roundhouse (https://www.brain-damage.co.uk/latest/nick-masons-saucerful-of-secrets-live-at-the-roundhouse-2lp-2cd-dvd-blu-ray-ci-2.html). This leaves you with a real “feel-good factor”. Light hearted, beautifully put together, lovely interviews throughout with the band members, and fascinating how they all got together. The songs and music are perfectly executed. Bet Gary Kemp never though he would perform Vegetable Man, and the split of Atom Heart Mother was inspiring. This is the one you can play over and over again and although there’s not the visual spectacle of the other two, it allows you just to watch the action and really enjoy the performances. Well done Nick and the band! Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Heather! We always welcome contributions from our visitors – if you’ve got anything you want to share with the wider community, please get in touch!
