If you made any promises to be kept “when pigs fly”—you’re in trouble. Roger Waters is bringing his theatrical explosion of a concert, including the flying inflatable pig from Pink Floyd’s 1977 album, “Animals” on a 15-show addition to his tour.
The former Floyd frontman has already performed dozens of sold-out shows throughout the United States. The tour, initially supposed to end this October after a series of shows in Canada, is being brought to six more dates in Germany and Austria and nine more in Australia and New Zealand.
Waters is no stranger to performing overseas, having famously played his rock-opera magnum opus, “The Wall” in Berlin on November 8, 1989, the night that the Berlin Wall fell. This tour, however, is already proving more divisive than Pink Floyd and Roger Waters’ earlier work. Waters, who vehemently criticizes conservatism in his 1981 album, “The Final Cut,” has most recently come into the spotlight for his extreme protest of President Donald Trump as well as the Israeli government.
In past shows, Waters has drawn adoration and hatred alike with his insulting depictions of Trump during the 12 minute song, “Pigs: Three Different Ones,” a raucous and angry track from “Animals” famous for its criticism of capitalism and wealth inequality. While the fading guitar solo and the message displayed proudly on the screen, “Trump is a pig,” drew cheers from many fans frustrated and saddened by the first few months of Trump’s presidency, many sat sullen in their seats, waiting for the second act to reach the more general territory of “Comfortably Numb” or “Eclipse.” Waters has also brought many new songs from his most recent album, “Is This The Life We Really Want?,” including “Déjà Vu,” which discusses drone violence, and the pro-Palestinian acoustic piece, “The Last Refugee,” accompanied by an on-screen narrative of a nameless woman and her child, living among a warzone.
Despite the divisive nature of the show, Waters consistently ends the night with a unifying performance of “The Dark Side of the Moon’s” “Eclipse,” before reminding the audience that “there’s a lot of love all over this country” and encouraging them to let it “rise to the surface.”
With the range of public opinion of Trump and Israel elsewhere in the world, it is unclear how the show will be received in the upcoming European and Australian legs of the tour. Regardless of fans’ political views, the concert stands out as one of the most visually and musically stunning experiences in recent years.
Brendan Lordan is a first-year student majoring in English writings. He can be reached at BL895080@wcupa.edu.