The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn (studio album) by Pink Floyd

A strong early album from Pink Floyd that is full of potential but in terms of quality this isn't close to what they would go on to create in the future. It is a psychedelic release that feels like a unique listen and like we are seeing the beginning of something that would go on to become something sensational. The best demonstration of this is Interstellar Overdrive with the instrumentals on here sounding fantastic and they do capture a very psychedelic atmosphere. It does sound raw however and a little bit messy at times. They would refine this sound in the future and it would become one of the greatest bands of the 70's. This album always strengthens the fact that the split of Barrett and Floyd was the best thing that could have happened to them as both went on to make much higher quality records. This can also add to the enjoyment of this release for me as you can almost see the band fighting against each other with songs like The Gnome sounding distinctively Barrett and songs like Interstellar Overdrive sounding more like Pink Floyd as a group. Overall, this is an interesting start for one of the greatest bands of all time and it is fascinating to see their roots but this is no way near their best release.

Better than Sgt.Pepper to be honest. This actually sounds like a real band playing, is actually psychedelic and has melodies that can be favorably compared to those of the Big 4.

From lleon79 02/17/2023 17:19

I wasn't very fond of this record when I started listening to Pink Floyd, maybe because I didn't find it very similar to their later sound, but returning to it at this age I enjoy it quite a lot. It's a very great debut, and knowing they would later develop into other paths, this stands out from the rest in a good way. It's also been said many times, but without Syd, Pink Floyd just wouldn't exist as we know it, and his presence would be pretty strongly felt throughout the rest of their albums even though he started playing different tunes...

While 70s Pink Floyd was the best of the band, their debut album with Syd Barret is also quite solid. Very zany psychedelic rock!

From TheBert 07/17/2022 21:06

Truly a interesting listen, and a fantastic debut for Pink Floyd. It’s sad to think this would be the last of Syd Barrett having a driving creative force for PF music with catchy Melodie’s, and incredible spacey instrumentals, but otherwise a lasting mark in his short time. Truly a staple masterpiece in the late 60s psychedelic era, where Pink Floyd’s wild experimental tracks would slowly become a trait the band would continue to use throughout their career.

Top tracks:
Astronomy Domine
Matilda Mother
Flaming
Interstellar overdrive

Very different from everything else they did, almost like it is a very different band, but also their most accesible. Better than The Wall for sure, but I have to check their other classics more.

Good for a debut, sadly we never will know how the band could had evolve with Syd as the leader, but in the other hand progressive floyd is the best

Overrated on this site, it's the start of an awesome band but this record is mediocre. Sonetimes its great psychedelia, but somtimes it's just weird sh*t without any listening appeal.

It took a long while for me to listen to this - I love Floyd but their sweeping leads and fuller 70s sound. There is some genius on here and my fav are Astronomy Domine, Lucifer Sam and Interstellar Overdrive. Much of the album is poppy though - with sometimes a hint of psychedelics - but I didn't get blown away by it overall

No suelo adentrarme mucho en la época Barret.
Este disco está bien, pero es muy psicodélico para mi