discovering Pink Floyd's problem

I've been a fan of Pink Floyd for a long time.  When I first discovered them, I was near the end of elementary school, and at that time, they just struck me as trippy radio music...not that I really understood what "trippy" meant, but you get the point.

Later, as I entered high school, my hormones started to race, and I started to think about altering one's mind, Pink Floyd really clicked for me.  I listened to a lot, but I kept coming back to Wish You Were Here and The Wall.  I even bought one of those hi-fi gold cd sets of The Wall.  I don't know if it actually did sound better (having never done the comparison/contrast), but it was worth it for me as a symbol of my...I dunno...dedication, maybe?

When one is suffering through teen angst, one gains a certain affinity for angst-ridden music.  I did, at any rate.  I even went so far (at the suggestion of my brother) as to listen to The Wall on headphones as I fell asleep.  The results?  Let me tell you:  if you think side 3 is depressing, just try experiencing the nightmares it will induce.

Later, as I had more aspirations of being a "serious musician," I gravitated toward Animals.  It was more trippy (which I understood more fully, being a little bit trippy myself).  It was also a bit more literary, more metaphor-based. Plus, if I'm to be honest, I was mostly drawn to the awesome guitar solos in "Pigs" (which might just shred more than any other solo ever).

I haven't listened to Pink Floyd all that much lately.  Part of it was going to see the magnificent Polka Floyd Show...after seeing them, it's hard to hear the original without thinking something is missing.  But this is not the dominant reason.

When one is happy, what purpose do depressing words serve?  And when one is not happy, will they do anything other than make the situation worse?

Earlier, when my current depression fit hit (I'm beginning to understand they're never completely going to stop), I got a lyric from The Wall stuck in my head:  "Nobody Home"'s "I got a grand piano to prop up my mortal remains."  A cool line, to be sure, but it's from one of a depressing album's more depressing songs.  And as I become more and more aware of my own depression, I realize turbo-charging it with even more depression really isn't what I need.

I do fine with the gloom on my own, thank you.