Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd

Best Tracks: Speak to Me/Breathe, Money, Brain Damage/Eclipse
Genre: Rock, Psychedelia
Year: 1973

Dark Side of the Moon was, for a very long time, the best album I had ever heard. But even though I consider it perfect, it is not without its lowlights. Grand, conceptual themes come at the cost of having weaker moments: the annoying transition into “Time”, the repetitiveness of “Us and Them”. Pink Floyd could have focused on making each track equally as strong as the last, but that would have deprived the album of its dynamics and its incredible ending.

Dark Side of the Moon is one of those albums that is greater than the sum of its parts. “Eclipse” feels like such a triumphant, cathartic closer because of everything that came before. Similarly, “Breathe” works as such a soothing opener because of the short collage piece that precedes it. Dark Side of the Moon is a masterclass in album sequencing, even factoring in the moment of silence the listener will take to flip the record.

On top of this, the production and mixing is probably the best I’ve ever heard. The way the keyboard and rhythm guitar are juxtaposed on opposite sides of the stereo calls attention to the subtlest details of the band’s performance. Dark Side of the Moon also doesn’t shy away from bold post-production effects, adding an extra layer to the album for me to appreciate. And unlike psychedelic rock proper, these effects are used sparingly and only when it serves the performance.

There are countless more factors that make Dark Side of the Moon what it is, but those are the ones I appreciate the most. Dark Side is one of the most picked-apart pieces of music in human history, and one could spend hours describing the meaning behind every lyric, and the intricacies of every solo. This album has something for everyone, and for me, that’s its sequencing, production, and ambition.