Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *
Us And Them, strangely even more prophetic in dark, unyielding times, than perhaps at any moment in the last fifty years; for the world hangs in the balance, a plaything for a few conceited, evil souls who are happy to destroy peace, place every citizen in poverty, and become strangers to each other if it means their billions lay undisturbed, that the camera adores them and they can spout their hateful rhetoric and dogma to the believers and the flagellating disciples to whom no wrong can be seen in their eyes.
Us and them, the question isn’t perhaps where you fall, but how imagine living with your conscious afterwards, the side of right against the control of might, and make no mistake might is a pretty convincing argument to those devoid of empathy, who fail to understand that compassion is not a weakness but an identification of humanity.
Us and them, a battle, a rage, and what that has grown with age since Roger Waters first brought the idea to the foreground for what would become arguably Pink Floyd’s most influential album; so much so that those three small words of defiance and separation have become in themselves the belief of many and the perfect title for what might be Roger Water’s final live recording.
Us And Them sees Roger Waters and his collected bandtake to the stage as part of what became a two year tour and a critically acclaimed film, and give arguably one of the finest performances of his career, even up against the live concert from Berlin in commemoration of when the Wall came down, or even the superb In The Flesh recording in 2000, for this is an album which sets firmly down that Roger is still angry, that the fire, at a time when most men have long since extinguished their own, or exchanged them for nights holding their grandchildren tightly, burns with ferocity that cannot be tamed or dampened.
Roger has a right to be furious, to take on the cause of the people of Palestine, of seeing the sheer evil that comes with a cartoon President, of the inequality, and for the regret of knowing that the subject matter behind songs such as Dogs, Pigs (Three Different Ones), Money, and Another Brick In The Wall remain unresolved, that the politics of hate and indifference still holds power.
Even if you weren’t fortunate enough to see the Us And Them tour, this live recording, which showcases for the first time several songs which were part of his studio album Is This The Life We Really Want, the sense of appreciation for the majesty on show is overwhelming, and as tracks such as Breathe, Welcome To The Machine, The Last Refuge, Picture That, Brain Damage, Wish You Were Here, and of course the devastatingly beautiful Us And Them fill your home and ears with the sensation of the reminder of the live arena, so to does the listener’s own anger take hold, that this is a time of Us and Them; you just have to pick a side to know how important a battle this actually is.
Haunting, sublime, passionate; a live album that isn’t about fuss, but of sheer honest quality. Us And Them is not for the fools, it is for the decent people with a conscious, who recognise empathy; and they will rewarded fully.
Ian D. Hall