{"id":328798,"date":"2025-12-21T22:13:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-21T22:13:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/328798\/"},"modified":"2025-12-21T22:13:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-21T22:13:08","slug":"the-complicated-pink-floyd-song-nick-mason-thinks-is-undervalued","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/328798\/","title":{"rendered":"The “complicated” Pink Floyd song Nick Mason thinks is undervalued"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Nick<\/p>\n

(Credits: Far Out \/ Press)<\/p>\n

Sun 21 December 2025 20:45, UK <\/p>\n

The success of Pink Floyd<\/a> is a difficult one to wager with, given that the largest extent of their acclaim was borne out of the tragic mystique of Syd Barrett. <\/p>\n

Of course, the major facets of the band\u2019s legacy arrived much later on, in the 1970s, when their distinct brand of prog-rock<\/a> seemed to storm every possible corner of the world. But in doing so, this almost does a disservice to the psychedelic 1960s Syd Barrett era, depicting the frontman as some sort of mystical unicorn whose struggles and strife were neatly cut out of the picture.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The main reason that Barrett tends to receive such a romantic stereotyping is naturally because of his stratospheric songwriting ability. Whimsical by its very kind but also acerbic and intelligent, it is perhaps this latter aspect which gets lost more within the web of storytelling and beguilement that casts audiences under its spell. <\/p>\n

With the rest of Pink Floyd left to not just pick up the pieces but also reflect and dissect every second<\/a> they could have missed from their elusive frontman, they realise more than anyone just how intricate and layered Barrett\u2019s efforts could really be. There was nothing better to exemplify this than the case of the track \u2018Astronomy Domine\u2019 from The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, something that Nick Mason never felt went fully understood. <\/p>\n

To try to explain the full folklore behind \u2018Astronomy Domine\u2019 would almost be like attempting to explain the theory of relativity, because it\u2019s just so multifaceted and complex. But in Mason\u2019s eyes, this is where most people seem to give up before they\u2019ve even begun, between its references to Shakespeare, science fiction comics, classical suites, and Morse code. It\u2019s head-spinning, to say the least. <\/p>\n

Yet for Mason, there were far more interesting things that he, as a drummer, could sink his teeth into than the audience may ever have appreciated. \u201cThis is such a great drum track in an interesting time signature. It\u2019s a fantastic bit of \u201960s philosophy mixed with a sort of psychedelic lyric,\u201d he later said, explaining how its oddball charm had wormed its way into his heart. <\/p>\n

This is why \u2018Astronomy Domine\u2019 has become one of his favourite tunes to play live. \u201cThis is enormous fun to play, lots of tom-toms, lots of double-bass-drum pounding,\u201d he told Uncut. \u201cI love the vocal harmonies, like a Gregorian choir. People think of it as a freakout, but it\u2019s deceptively complicated with lots of very unusual chord changes.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s hardly that Pink Floyd were some kind of prodigal symphonic masters, but if you were to assimilate a rock band as closely to the warbling classical canon as possible, then you may well find them there. That\u2019s the true gift of a song like \u2018Astronomy Domine\u2019 \u2013 there are just so many layers to unwrap. <\/p>\n

Barrett\u2019s story can often be mired through a lens of tragedy and pain. This is not wholly unjustified, but it almost forgets the legacy of a man who was an Einstein of the recording studio, a master of the perfect mix. He may not have coped with all the rest of everything that came with this level of genius, but he certainly did leave some gemstones behind.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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