Social commentary had been a firm fixture of Pink Floyd songs by the time they released Pigs (Three Different Ones). Crucial to any artist commenting on the world around them is not just their perspective but their nuance and subtlety. Pigs (Three Different Ones), the Animals single which would feature knocks at business practice and Margaret Thatcher, is as on the nose as it gets. Gone are the sharper, poisonous thrills of The Dark Side of the Moon and the introspective damnation of a band as a unit for more than profit on Wish You Were Here. If you pair those with Animals, a quick listen back to back to back, you can hear founding member Roger Waters slowly but surely losing his cool. He doesn’t lose it because of the lack of reaction, but because despite his best efforts in writing, nothing has changed. Pigs (Three Different Ones) is as on the nose as it gets for the band, up until The Wall, that is.
It only adds to a credible single from Animals, though. A delightful piece of work from the band who at this point were hardly on the best of terms with one another. Pigs (Three Different Ones) would be elongated from its four-minute single to a staggering, eleven-and-a-half-minute album feature. It is one of the best songs Pink Floyd ever managed to write. On the nose it may be, it’s an ambitious piece of work which hears the band still engaging with new recording structures and studio innovations. They could have been forgiven for easing off after The Dark Side of the Moon but their best, the instrumental swell which lends itself to everything from glam rock to hard blues motivation, is better. Progressive rock fundamentals are expanded on for some very-best work from Pink Floyd. That should be no surprise, and yet it remains an amazing experience.
Pig squeals cemented next to some incredible, essential guitar work from David Gilmour, it’s innovations like this which kept the band fresh. It would be this sharper focus on the troubling times which would begin undoing the band. Not because it wasn’t correct, they were on the money here as they were with Have a Cigar on Wish You Were Here, but because the hyper fixations would begin overwhelming the musical output. It hit its breaking point on The Final Cut, but for a long while these rages against the machine were an integral part of the Pink Floyd sound. That can be heard on Pigs (Three Different Ones), a gutting commentary on the get-rich-quick horrors of the country at the time. Like any good song critiquing the cultural mood, this Animals track remains relevant now.
Battersea Power Station and the flying pig are just as synonymous with the album as the harsher details of Pigs (Three Different Ones). Overlapping vocal performances, a touch of blues piano and a cowbell, of all instruments, brings the song together. About as on the nose as the band would get while also maintaining a biting, out-there sound. Progressive rock at its very best. Few bands at the time managed to keep that freshness alive in their complex rock and roll style. Nobody quite managed to make it sound as strong as it did for as long as Pink Floyd. Animals remains a masterclass of political critique and instrumentally intense experiences. Pigs (Three Different Ones) remains a cool and collected song from the band, brimming with an emotional intensity which would begin overwhelming the best parts of their work on the releases to follow.
Yes indeed, they definitely were on point with Animals, which is a progressive master class. A stand alone political commentary on the times at hand, and the ones to come. Even though it covers the past so well. My favorite ‘Floyd album, stands the test of time and space.
You didn’t mention the bass guitar, which was actually played by David Gilmour, as Roger Waters struggled with playing it. The melodic intro bass line is incredible & when the bass rhythm comes in on the verse, it really makes the song shine. This is actually my favourite Pink Floyd track (although it’s a tight call with so many other great tracks from The Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You were Here & The Wall)!