How 'A Momentary Lapse of Reason' turned Pink Floyd into a prog-pop band

When Roger Waters left, David Gilmour basically rebuilt Pink Floyd in his own image — and that image was a lot slicker and more radio-friendly than anything Waters would’ve made. A Momentary Lapse of Reason is less a progressive rock album and more a polished 80s pop-rock record with some Floydian sound effects sprayed on top. Gilmour’s guitar playing, which had always been bluesy and melodic, took center stage while the long, textural buildups and elliptical lyrics got swapped for straightforward pop structures and clean production.

The biggest giveaway is the rhythm section. Bassist Tony Levin, fresh from King Crimson and Peter Gabriel sessions, brought a tight, melodic fingerstyle approach that had none of Waters’ ominous drone. He’s a phenomenal player, but his parts make the album sound more like a session musician’s showcase than a band pulling from the same dark well. Combined with drum machines and outside writers like Bob Ezrin and Jon Carin, the record feels like Gilmour directing a studio project rather than Pink Floyd following a shared vision. It’s prog-pop in the sense that it uses synths and spacey effects, but the heart is all adult-contemporary hooks.