Rock Monsters Romania

Text by Eduard Istrate

If you haven’t read the first part, I strongly advise you to do so (here) before you continue.

Building the wall is a choice. While having the bricks at your disposal is something you have no control over, stacking them on top of each other is an active process. You cannot build the wall by being a bystander. But, after building it, being a bystander is the safest way to ensure you will stay trapped behind it.

And there always comes a time when you want to escape.

Hey You

After completely isolating himself behind the wall, Pink regrets his decision. He thinks people from outside the wall can help him escape. “Hey You” is a desperate cry for help. From an instrumental perspective, the guitar riff following the second verse closely resembles that of “Another Brick in the Wall, Pt.2.” Drawing the lines between the two songs is quite difficult, but I think it all comes back to the idea of being a helpless kid. Pink needs help.

“Together we stand, divided we fall”

Is There Anybody Out There?

This is what true loneliness sounds like. Pink wants to know if there is anyone outside the wall. Is there anyone left to help him? There is no response. Only a radio voice, which adds to the disturbing silence even more. While this song may feel like a filler to many, its function resembles that of a bookmark. This is the moment Pink’s drug trip starts. This will become important later on.
Pink starts reflecting upon his life.

Nobody Home

The lyrics of this song are pure genius. Roger Waters paints such a vivid picture of Pink’s life by listing some of the things that he possesses. These objects (or characteristics) show the miserable life Pink has fallen into. This is why he knows if he tries calling his ex-wife, nobody will pick up. In his eyes, the wall took his wife away from him. Just like war took away his father.

Vera

Vera Lynn was a very popular English singer during World War II. Her songs were mostly written for soldiers and their families. Pink references one of her songs, “We’ll Meet Again”. But he never met his father again. Vera is now just a symbol of grief. The loss of his father was the first brick in the wall.
They should have brought the soldiers home.

Bring The Boys Back Home

An epic fanfare starts playing. A whole choir starts calling for the war to end. But Pink is slowly losing this thought. He can hear an alarm in the background. Then, different memories haunt him from the past: his teacher from when he was young, the groupie he terrorized on “One of My Turns”, and the moment he found out his wife was cheating on him. On top of all this, there is someone constantly knocking and yelling, “Time to go.”
Remember when I told you about that bookmark?
“Is there anybody out there?”

Comfortably Numb

A doctor needs to interrupt Pink’s high in order for him to perform at a show. But why would Pink want that? He has found a feeling he does not want to let go of. He can barely hold on to the few years when he was truly happy. But those memories don’t make him happy. He is at peace. And nothing else can give him that feeling. Although his self-discovering journey gets interrupted, it also gets heightened. The doctor injects him, probably with some sort of stimulant, in order to make him functional again.
From an instrumental point of view, many think of this song as Pink Floyd’s masterpiece. If you go online and search for the best guitar solo ever, there is an amazingly high chance “Comfortably Numb” will be number one on every list you come across. This song contains two solos, both exceptional. But the second one steals the show. Being able to express this much emotion with an instrument should be every musician’s dream. But we must also note that a guitar solo is only as good as its backing track. This is truly a compositional masterpiece from every point of view.
The song fades out. Pink must get ready for the show.

The Show Must Go On

Pink is an artist. He must perform, no matter the circumstances. As he makes his way towards the stage, he cannot help but question his ability to perform. Coming down from a high is an excruciating experience, both mentally and physically. And his prior mental state contributes to his instability. This is bound to make for a show like no other.
We are back at the concert from the first song.

In The Flesh

This is the beginning of a very important theme for the album. Although the instrumental of this song closely resembles that of the first, the lyrics present a different person. Pink has reached the most despicable state possible. He makes it clear that he is not Pink anymore, this is a more aggressive persona of his. He becomes a fascist dictator. After he clarifies his position as an authoritarian figure, he starts calling for the persecution of Jewish, black and queer people. Many people think of this scene as one that takes place in Pink’s imagination, but I must admit I am not convinced of this. One of the most important messages of this album is expressed here: hurt people hurt people. From now on, I will be making the bold assumption that we all know fascism is bad. I feel no need to modify my writing in such a way that there is room for some other interpretation of this horrible ideology.

Run Like Hell

The protagonist has successfully manipulated his audience into a fascist mindset. He is now the leader of a terrorist movement. He takes the people to the streets so that they can cause havoc and eliminate any opposing views. In a very disturbing sense, he takes the form of the reason why his father died. He is now building bricks for other people.

Waiting for the Worms

Worms are a symbol of mental decay. They appear when something rots. In this case, Pink’s brain. The dictator calls for his followers to terrorize Brixton in an organized rally. This location is important, as it was one of the first places in Britain where multiculturalism was manifested. The exterior war only mimics the interior battle of Pink’s conscience.
But then, Pink comes back to his senses.

Stop

Pink wants to go home. He wants to escape this life of misery. But for this, he must pay a price. He must be judged for his actions. But this judgment cannot be an external one.
Pink puts himself on trial.

The Trial

The protagonist now stands trial. Here, various bricks from his wall come to testify. The schoolmaster and his wife want him to suffer for his actions. His overprotective mother wants to take him back home, perhaps a worse punishment than what his schoolmaster and wife would have suggested.
The judge finds him guilty. He has undeniably hurt the people around him, and he needs to pay for that. The worst punishment possible for Pink is to demolish the wall. To expose him to the world for who he truly is.
Tear down the wall!

Outside the Wall

“The ones who really love you / Walk up and down, outside the wall”
There is always somebody waiting for you outside the wall. While you may not see them, they are trying their hardest to free you. Building the wall is not only a crime against yourself, but also against the ones who care about you. While some may give up, you cannot blame them since it’s not easy…
“Banging your heart against some mad bugger’s wall”
Pink is finally free.

“Isn’t this … where we came in?”

This is where I must address the truth factor of this album. You may say the events of this album are not real because they didn’t literally happen. After all, there was no person named Pink Floyd who actually went through these experiences and documented them. But I think the album expresses a more profound sense of truth.

“The Wall” is not true in the sense that the events described literally happened. It is so true that those events are still happening and will continue to happen forever. If you play the first song immediately after the last, you will find that they perfectly match. This is because there is no end to this story. We are all constantly fighting our own walls as well as the walls of other people.

We MUST continue to tear down the walls separating us. We MUST try to break this wheel of misfortune. And we MUST stop so harshly judging the people struggling with their own walls. We must help. Help our close ones, help strangers, help ourselves. You have to keep fighting. We have to keep fighting.

I truly thank you for reading. Never stop tearing down the walls around you.