Emma Claire Ambroziak / The Mossy Log
On Oct. 5, I ventured over to Revolution Hall in SE Portland with a fellow Pink Floyd fan and good friend of mine to see Pigs on the Wing, a Portland-based tribute band, ranked No. 5 in the Top 10 Best Pink Floyd Tribute Bands by ProTributeBands.com.
My dad first introduced me to “The Dark Side of the Moon” when I was in high school, unaware that it would culminate in a lifelong (up to this point) obsession with the band’s music, a slightly excessive collection of Pink Floyd t-shirts and ultimately, to my mom’s dismay, a triangular “Dark Side of the Moon” tattoo on my forearm.
I had been looking forward to this show for quite some time, and was curious to see how it would compare to other Pink Floyd-esque shows I had seen over the years.
I have had the pleasure of seeing Roger Waters (co-founder of Pink Floyd, bassist, composer, vocalist and the only remaining band member to still tour) twice — once in Portland and once in Madrid. His shows are more reminiscent of what I imagine seeing Pink Floyd was before they stopped performing in 2005. His performances are powerful, political and unforgettable. To this day, he floats either a giant inflatable pig or a giant inflatable sheep around the stadium during the album “Animals,” dresses in uniform for songs from “The Wall” and dedicates a good portion of the performance to sharing his political stances.
The first Pink Floyd tribute band I ever saw was at the world-famous Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre in Colorado. The scenery etherealized an already-impressive and energy-filled performance by Brit Floyd, an Australian band ranked No. 4 in the aforementioned Top 10 Best Pink Floyd Tribute Bands. As they played through a wide array of songs and albums, the air cooled and we watched the sun set behind the stage over the front range as the moon rose perfectly above the towering rusty-red sandstone cliffs. The highlights for me were Eve Avila’s vocals in “The Great Gig In The Sky” and saxophonist Ryan Saranich’s solos throughout Brit Floyd’s set.
One interesting twist on the psychedelic rock band’s legacy was the show “Candlelight: A Tribute to Pink Floyd,” where the Listeso String Quartet played a selection of Pink Floyd’s most popular songs in an intimate, candlelit venue at Portland’s World Forestry Center. The audience surrounded the quartet, who serenaded us from the center of the room with mesmerizing instrumental renditions of songs selected from various albums. The warm light, small audience and proximity to the musicians created an experience that was somber, intimate and moving, but nowhere near representative of all that Pink Floyd’s music encompasses.
Last spring, The Oregon Symphony played The Music of Pink Floyd at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, a venue which catered to the symphonic nature of the performance but not so much to the jeans-wearing, t-shirt-adorned middle-aged dads who filled up the majority of the seats in the audience. The variety of instruments led to a more comprehensive sound, and the inclusion of vocalists added energy and depth to the performance in a way that the quartet did not. The Oregon Symphony has 76 full-time musicians, though the number of musicians varies with each concert. The saxophonist, Eddie Williams, was fantastic — probably my favorite part of that show. The guest vocalist’s rendition of “The Great Gig of the Sky” was hauntingly beautiful, and made the show a memorable one.
I have also seen a smattering of cover bands at dive bars and live music nights play their renditions of Pink Floyd songs, which is always fun, but not always as impressive.
Needless to say, I am a bit of a Pink Floyd fan, and was excited to see what set Portland’s Pink Floyd tribute band apart from these other performances.
An hour before the show, Revolution Hall was filled with middle-aged dads clad in Pink Floyd t-shirts and jeans. The venue is decently sized — think Aladdin Theater, Crystal Ballroom, Wonder Ballroom — and was fairly packed.
The bars were busy pouring craft beer and mixed drinks, the halls were filled with people chatting and the venue was abuzz with Pink Floyd talk and tie-dye shirts, floral print button-downs, leather jackets and denim.
As we walked down the aisle to scout front-row-ish seats, my friend and I agreed that we were probably the youngest people there. By the way, the seats were comfy and cushioned, which was awesome. A few folks were up dancing at the front of the room, but we were mostly able to sit back and enjoy the show.
Pigs on the Wing started off strong with “In the Flesh” from “The Wall.” Their enthusiasm was contagious, and even though the venue was smaller, the crowd was energetic and ready to rock and roll.
From the get-go, vocals were varied, and different band members took the lead on different songs. They all had distinctly unique voices that were well-suited for different songs. Matt Jones, the pianist, was able to replicate Roger Waters’ gritty singing style, while Eric Welder, the bassist, took on some of David Gilmour’s smoother vocal solos.
The set list consisted mostly of hit songs from “The Wall” and “The Dark Side of the Moon,” but I appreciated the inclusion of some lesser-known songs, such as “Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun” from the album “A Saucerful of Secrets” and “Echoes” from the album “Meddle.”
At times, the saxophone solos and the vocals were strangely echoey, and I am not sure I enjoyed that effect. Overall, I was impressed by the performance’s resemblance to the original songs, and enjoyed the variety of vocals. As with just about every rendition of “The Great Gig in the Sky,” Holly Brooks’ vocal performance brought tears to my eyes.
Despite the concert taking place in a smaller venue, the show was made engaging by a fun variety of visuals. Pop art-esque livestreams of the artists from different angles were interspersed with clips of iconic animated imagery from the movie “The Wall” along with abstract, otherworldly, fantastical landscapes.
While the tribute band worked through the first part of their set list, the artists and their instruments were backdropped against a screen showcasing psychedelic imagery of landscapes expanding upon and retreating into themselves — mountain ranges, forests, deserts, planets and rock formations all swirled together in sync with the music.
During the latter half of the show, the visuals were grounded in Oregon’s scenery. Birds-eye shots of the city of bridges, of the Columbia River Gorge, of Haystack Rock on the Oregon coast and of plains, dunes and forests out east paid homage to the Portland-based band’s home state.
“Feels really good to be home,” Welder said near the end of the show.
Pigs on the Wing formed in 2006, is celebrating 18 years of playing music and is earning international recognition as a tribute band. The Echoes of Pink Floyd tour exemplified Portland’s diverse, talented music scene.
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