Why 'Animals' Became Pink Floyd's Most Underrated Masterpiece (and Why It Divided Fans at Release)

The paradox is right there in the question: Animals is both a critical favorite and routinely called underrated. That usually happens when an album earns deep respect from critics but never matched its predecessor’s commercial or cultural footprint. Animals came out in 1977, sandwiched between Wish You Were Here and The Wall, and it simply didn’t sell like those two. Fans who do dig into it often feel like they’ve discovered a secret masterpiece that the wider world overlooked.

The political themes weren’t subtle. Roger Waters based the album on George Orwell’s Animal Farm, mapping dogs, pigs, and sheep onto 1970s British society. At the time, punk was already doing angry political commentary, but Pink Floyd’s audience was used to existential space-rock, not literal class warfare. Some listeners felt preached at, especially with Waters’ bitter tone on tracks like “Pigs (Three Different Ones).” Others loved the bite, but the divide was real—it wasn’t the psychedelic escape they wanted, and that split the fanbase on release. Today, that same anger is exactly why it’s revered.