News

The Dark Side LP eclipse has finally lifted. In other words, Pink Floyd’s truly seminal March 1973 album The Dark Side of the Moon is finally getting a standalone 50th anniversary 180g 1LP release on October 13 via Pink Floyd Records/Columbia across the balance of the globe, albeit via Warner Music in Europe.

As we initially reported here on AP way back on January 19, the initial 50th anniversary celebration of The Dark Side of the Moon came by way of a lavish, super deluxe box set that was released on March 24. Said box contained a nice pair of 180g LPs — one for the core Dark Side album, the other for the album as performed live in its entirety and duly dubbed The Dark Side of the Moon – Live at Wembley Empire Pool, London, 1974 — plus two replica 7-inch singles (“Money” b/w “Any Colour You Like” in a Harvest sleeve, and “Us and Them” b/w with “Time,” also in a Harvest sleeve), 2CDs, 2BDs, 1DVD, a 160-page hardback book with rare photos, a 76-page music book, and other related paraphernalia.

At the time of our initial Dark Side 50 post, I mused (quoting myself here now), “I wouldn’t be surprised in the least to see it [i.e., the LP] being released later in the year all on its own, given the staggered Pink Floyd release strategy that has been in effect for the past decade-plus” — and thus, here we are with the remastered standalone LP that will now arrive just shy of seven full months after the box set edition.

The October 13 release is the first time this new Dark Side remaster will be made available on its own. Besides the 180g 1LP edition, a standalone CD and a standalone Blu-ray — the latter containing Dolby Atmos, 5.1 surround, and remastered stereo mixes — will also be released on the same day.

The new Dark Side LP was mastered by James Guthrie along with Joel Plante at das boot recording. We’ve asked the Pink Floyd braintrust to clarify Bernie Grundman’s role in the overall process, as well as where the lacquers were cut, what the specific source material was, and where the vinyl is being pressed — and when we get those details confirmed, we will update this section of the story accordingly. [UPDATE: While we have yet to receive word about the source material as of Sept. 19, the Floyd team has confirmed with us directly that the LPs are being pressed at Record Industry in The Netherlands.]

As for the original Dark Side studio album, it was recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London between May 1972 and January 1973, and was produced by Pink Floyd, engineered by Alan Parsons with assistant Peter James, and the mixing was supervised by Chris Thomas.

The new Dark Side LP package comes with commemorative postcards, stickers with artwork courtesy George Hardie N.T.A., and a 24-page booklet. In terms of the new packaging, the 2023 creative director is Aubrey Powell/Hipgnosis, with design and art direction by Peter Curzon/StormStudios, and the overall 50th anniversary concept and design are courtesy of Pentagram. The SRP for the standalone Dark Side LP is $32.99.

Additionally, and according to the accompanying press release, the celebration of the 50th anniversary of Dark Side continues on by way of Pink Floyd having invited a new generation of animators to enter a competition to create animated music videos for any of the 10 songs on the core album. Animators can enter up to 10 videos, one per song on the album. A winner will be selected from a panel of experts that will include Pink Floyd co-founding drummer Nick Mason and Aubrey “Po” Powell, the band’s creative consultant. The deadline for submissions is November 30, 2023. To enter the competition and/or get more information about it, go here.

Also, everyone is welcome to join Aubrey “Po” Powell in conversation with some of the animators who have already created videos in promotion for the competition, during which time they will discuss their work and their respective creative processes. Taking part in this Q&A will be Sara Serna (“Us And Them”) @sara_serna_; Charlie Black (“Brain Damage”) @charlieblackart; and Kate Isobel Scott (“Money”) @kateisobelscott. This event will take place on September 6— as in, next week! — at 12:00pm ET (5:00pm UK time) on YouTube, and you can join the livestream here. (That link won’t be active until we get closer to the Q&A, of course.) Happy Moon hunting, everyone!

PINK FLOYD
THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON – 50TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION
180g 1LP (Pink Floyd Records/Columbia)

Side A
1. Speak To Me
2. Breathe
3. On The Run
4. Time
5. The Great Gig In The Sky

Side B
1. Money
2. Us And Them
3. Any Colour You Like
4. Brain Damage
5. Eclipse