What Led to the 1994 'Pulse' Tour and How It Compared to Pink Floyd’s Earlier Shows

The 1994 Pulse tour wasn’t just another Pink Floyd outing—it was the band’s first and only tour without Roger Waters, and the first time they’d played live since the 1987-89 A Momentary Lapse of Reason tour. The immediate trigger was the 1994 album The Division Bell, the last studio album with all three living members (Gilmour, Mason, Wright). David Gilmour has said he wanted to go out on a high note, and the tour became a massive victory lap, culminating in a live album and video recorded at Earls Court in London. The famous blinking-eye laser show and the precise digital staging made it a landmark in concert production.

Compared to earlier tours, Pulse was far more technically refined but less emotionally raw. The 1970s tours for Dark Side of the Moon and Wish You Were Here were leaner, with quadraphonic sound and simple lighting that felt experimental. The Wall tour (1980-81) was a full-blown theatrical spectacle with a literal wall, puppets, and Waters’ bitter narrative. Pulse ditched the narrative in favor of pure sensory overload—a giant circular screen, moving lights, and a full performance of Dark Side as a tribute to that album’s enduring legacy. It wasn’