Magazine collection

I was flicking through my magazines the other day and thought they'd make an interesting thing to share as I've been collecting them for years! I didn't even realise how many I had until I piled them all up like this. I usually keep some in a magazine rack, some stacked up behind the magazine rack, some on the book shelf and some underneath the bookshelf, so they're usually all over the place! Some of these date back as far as 2001. I don't collect every magazine with Pink Floyd in it, just ones that catch my eye or have a significant article.


These are some of my oldest copies, the Uncut issues are from 2001 and the Classic Rock magazine from 2002. I wish there was a way I could share more of these magazines other than just the covers, I thought of scanning them in for Tumblr but I don't want to risk ruining the spines.


Mojo - October 2011; Classic Rock - October 2005; Mojo - November 2001


I mostly prefer issues with Syd in them ♥ They're occasionally full of the journalist's speculation, but they're more objective than a lot of the books published about him and I like that they usually include bits with people who actually knew him, as well as the other members of Pink Floyd themselves.


Getting into some of my more recent ones, the Uncut magazine was from last summer I think? The Shindig and Prog were from 2016. I'm posting them in the wrong order, but this Shindig included part 2 of a massive article about Syd, I really recommend getting both issues if you don't have them already.


Music Milestones I got a few years ago but I'm pretty sure it's still sold in WH Smith, it's more like a mook and goes through the bands history album by album. I think I got all three of these magazines in 2016 too, the issue of Prog was to mark the 10th anniversary of Syd's passing.


These were all from 2017, I could barely keep up that year as so many magazines were being released full of their early year stuff as the box set hadn't long been released and Their Mortal Remains was opening. The Mojo '60s was a Pink Floyd special, and the Shindig was Part 1 of the Syd article I mentioned earlier.


Inside the Mojo '60s


This Mojo is from March 2010, and the Pink Floyd guide is another mook, Uncut release a lot of these of various bands. I've had this one a long time, I'm not sure when it was released but I really recommend seeking out a copy! It's full of articles from various different publications throughout the time since the band started, I love reading stuff like this and seeing what they were saying about the band then compared to what we know now. I guess the Drum Heroes is kind of a cheat, although I consider it part of my collection. It's a mook by Rhythm magazine, as you can probably guess all about drummers! It's got a good interview with Nick in it.



This box was sold at WH Smith, I think they sell these kind of things on a lot of various topics. I've also seen an actual book in HMV with this exact same cover, so I don't know if it's the same thing in a slightly different format. Planet Rock was my most recent buy last week, it's got a little article in it with Nick about his Soucerful of Secrets project. And the Mojo magazine was from July 2016 to mark 10 years since Syd's passing.


And these are the final three, and the ones that always make me so sad to look at! They're all from 2006, and were the tribute issues to Syd after he died :( I took a photo from each:

The Pink Floyd

I finished my final uni project last week! I don't have my grade yet as I'm still waiting on my dissertation to be marked and there's still the final degree show, but I've officially done all of my work and will have an illustration degree with honours!

For my final project I designed a series of psychedelic music posters, which of course included Pink Floyd which I thought I'd share here. It's on A3 paper, and is entirely copic markers with India ink for the black background. I'm pretty pleased with how it came out!



I also created this gif version which I posted on Tumblr and Instagram. It doesn't loop as well as I'd like, but it was due to the file size having to remain a certain size. I think it helps just make the image a little more eye catching and something slightly different.

Wet Dream

I went to a record fair at the weekend, and was stoked to find Rick's solo album Wet Dream. It's not something I ever expected to find in the flesh and assumed I'd have to buy online, I'd actually been watching a few copies on eBay but hadn't bought yet as they were quite expensive. So you can imagine how excited I was to find a promo copy for half of what the regular ones were selling for!

I really like Rick's solo work, he's albums are probably my favourites after Syd's, yet it's a shame how few people bother with them.




It's in really nice condition and looks as if it's never even been played. I own a few promo LPs from various bands, but I've never had one of these "suggested cuts" labels before.

Syd

'Crazy Diamond' would of been the obvious title for this post, but I kind of hate how Syd gets referred to by this honestly, it's really reductive. But it is the name of this box set I won on eBay a few weeks ago. I already own the EP, but as I don't really collect CDs I never really bothered with this. But I saw it going for cheap on eBay and couldn't resist!

This set was released in 1993, and features all of Syd's albums: The Madcap Laughs, Barrett, and Opel which is a rarities and outtakes collection originally released in the late '80s. It also comes with a little booklet of information about Syd and the songs on the albums, I haven't had a chance to read it yet so I'll have to see if it's any good but I can't imagine it'd be that bad on an official release.

I imagine this would be awesome for anyone new to Syd's solo work as it's all right there for you. And a nice set to have for a collector like myself for sure! I have it next to my other CD box sets, I've amassed quite a collection for someone who doesn't really like CDs much! It's kind of tempting me to start collecting them properly.

Record Store Day

I've never taken part in Record Store Day before today, it generally doesn't hold any interest for me. I visit record stores regularly regardless of which day it is, and I generally find the releases to be overpriced and full of gimmicks. I've learnt that the record stores themselves do earn a lot of money from this day which helps them to stay afloat, many couldn't survive without it and I respect it for that aspect. But I think a lot of the meaning behind the day is lost when it's a race against eBay resellers to see who can get to the record store first, it's not a record store day when you have to arrive before it opens and most of the good stuff is gone an hour after opening, you know? Plus I don't hold a very high opinion of repressings, it's digital music pressed onto an analogue format, just get an original which is often cheaper and will sound so much better.

Saying that, Pink Floyd got me to participate this year! As soon as I heard they were releasing a special limited edition set of Piper At The Gates of Dawn, I knew I wanted it. Although I own an original mono pressing of this album, I don't play it very often at all as I worry about wear and also I'm a bit of a klutz and am scared of dropping the needle on it or something. I know, I know, what's the point in owning it if you're not going to listen to it, right? But it means so much to me and I saved so hard for it that I'd be so upset if anything happened.



So I'm pleased to own a mono copy I can play as regularly as I like now, and the collector in me needed it anyway for it's special sleeve! I've just listened to it, and it sounds sublime, as good as the original for sure. Definitely a good alternative if you can't afford the crazy prices the first pressing sells for!

I knew I'd have to partake in the full RSD experience if I wanted this album, and it took some work. I got up to queue at 5.30am and I had to drive several towns over to get to a record store that was taking part in the day. It was worth it though, and despite everything I can see why people get addicted and go every year. There's a great atmosphere, and although you're queuing for hours it goes by much quicker than that. And it's a wonderful feeling to finally get your hands on what you wanted so much! I also got the three records Tom Waits released for the Orphans set, something I probably wouldn't of bought had I not been there in person to buy them and I'm so glad I have them! I've wanted the Orphans boxset since it was released but it usually goes for upwards of £500 which is completely out of reach to me. I know it's not Pink Floyd related, but it just highlights that I'd of missed out had I not attended!

I also filmed a vlog of the experience, I'm going to be editing it tonight so I'll be sure to link to it when it's uploaded!

Shelf Tour Part 1

I went home from uni over Easter and one of my favourite things about going back is how many vintage things that are so freely available, it's a bit scarce where I am now. One thing I picked up was this cassette holder which I was really excited about as I thought it would hold all of my Pink Floyd tapes really nicely and I could include them in my little Pink Floyd display shelf.




These are all of the tapes I own, a good mixture of Pink Floyd and the members solo stuff. There's not a lot, but it's something I only collect quite casually as and when I see them for a good deal. About a year ago I saw Roger's three albums (Pros and Cons/Radio KAOS/Amused to Death) for sale as a little bundle and I didn't get them as I didn't have any change and they were gone when I went back, I'm still gutted about that! I like collecting tapes as they remind me of my childhood as they were all I played when I was young. They were cheaper than CDs so I could buy more of them with my pocket money, I was permanently attached to my Walkman and preferred that it didn't skip like a Discman was prone to do, and I loved making mix tapes and recording songs from the radio. I don't play my tapes much now, but I love having them for the nostalgia.



I thought I'd give you a little tour of the shelf while I was at it! I have two, I'll save the other one for a separate post. I used to have all of my Floyd stuff dotted around, but was inspired to put it all together in a display and I really love how it looks and it's my favourite part of my room now.



A lot of stuff in this image is from the V&A gift shop when I went to Their Mortal Remains. The square Piper cover is a pin, and I don't like to put my keyring on my keys as they tend to get bashed about a lot and damaged.

These are all of my Pink Floyd books, except for A Very Irregular Head which is on my Kindle. A lot of books are poorly researched or filled with the authors own opinions and assumptions rather than facts (especially regarding Syd) so I'm always a little distrustful of buying them, if you've got any recommendations for good ones I'm all ears! The only one on my wishlist currently is Psychedelic Renegades.



These are my postcards which are tucked in next to my books, I originally got them to put in my journal but I'm scared of 'ruining' them! They're mostly from Their Mortal Remains (I think I bought just about every postcard they sold, including a few duplicates as I went a few times and didn't remember which ones I had) The Gerald Scarfe ones are from when I went to see his exhibition at the House of Illustration, I know he's not Pink Floyd and technically shouldn't be here but they introduced me to his work and made him one of my favourite illustrators so it's relevant to me.



The two tour programmes I own currently, they're both originals. They're really nice inside, The Division Bell one in particular.




This one includes a really good trivia test, you can click the image to make it bigger if you want to take it and test yourself!



The Wall programme is a really nice mixture of live images alongside Scarfe's illustrations and artwork.




The white thing you can see to the left filling in that gap of the shelf unit is my vintage scarf which you can see in all it's glory below. It doesn't look very 'on display' from these angles, but you can see the full design from the other side so it's one of the first things you see as you walk into the room.




And that's my whole shelf! I'll be sure to share the second one soon!

Roger, Nick, and upcoming adventures

A few days ago my ticket arrived for one of the Roger Waters shows I'm going to over summer! I'm going to London and Birmingham, and it's the two days before my birthday so it felt like the perfect way to celebrate. I'm not sure why my ticket arrived so early, they don't usually get delivered until a week before but I did get it presale for attending BST Hyde Park last year when I saw The Killers so perhaps that's why. It was actually a really miserable experience last year and led to my first and only ever panic attack, I swore I'd never go back but I have to for Roger! I upgraded my ticket so hopefully I'll have a less claustrophobic time, plus the crowd will probably be a bit older.



These two dates will be my first time seeing Roger live despite being a fan for well over a decade. The draw back of being the only person in my circle (including family!) into older music is that it leaves me with no one to attend things with. I always thought one day I'd meet someone with the same interests as me, but when David Bowie died it was a sharp reminder that these people aren't immortal and waiting around until I met someone to go with was wasting time. Last year I began going to shows alone and I've never looked back! I'm never going to allow myself to miss out on things I want to do ever again.

I am however disappointed that I'm going to have to miss out on seeing Nick Mason performing next month! It was announced today and I was so gutted seeing the dates as I could literally go any other time. Nick is (along with Syd) my favourite band member, and the early years is my favourite period so I'm sure you can imagine how disappointed I am to have to miss this! I really hope demand pushes him to add an extra date or two.

The secret is now revealed... Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets will be playing early Pink Floyd at four intimate live shows across London, next month. The tickets go on sale from 10am today at https://t.co/aP1uA85fbV - #PinkFloyd #NickMasonDrums #SaucerfulOfSecrets pic.twitter.com/5KxXl6ILN6

— Nick Mason (@nickmasondrums) April 17, 2018

I do have a good reason to be missing it though; I'm off to Italy! I'm going to see Their Mortal Remains before it closes in Rome, I'm really excited as I saw it three times in London so it will be interesting to see any changes. I know they've added some things that are specific to the bands history with Italy. I almost didn't get to make it as I had to rearrange my trip to the end of May when I'd originally planned for the middle of the month, and I forgot the exhibition would of ended by then! The very last day of the exhibition is on my first day in Italy, so I've reconfigured my trip. I've changed my flight so I now go to Rome in the early hours of the morning, then I can stash my bags at Roma Termini while I spend the day at the MACRO. Then I'll catch the train to Naples to check into my hotel that night and begin my trip as originally intended. I'm mostly going to Naples so that I can visit Pompeii. There's so much Floyd history in Italy and I'm really looking forward to exploring it all. Also my dad is Italian and he died a long time ago now so I want to get to experience and understand his culture better. Now if only I can wrap my brain around the language basics before I go!