Roger Waters to tear down The Wall

By Jacob Zinn
[contributor]

Who needs a Pink Floyd reunion when Roger Waters is still touring on The Wall?

The progressive rock group’s bassist and principal songwriter is bringing his production of the band’s 1979 concept album back to Vancouver on Saturday.

The 68-year-old Englishman will perform all four sides of the double-album in their entirety, from the opener “In the Flesh?” through “Outside the Wall”.

Furthermore, it’s the first concert at the newly renovated B.C. Place – and the arena might require some more renovations when Waters is through.

The live spectacle made its way to Vancouver in December 2010, performing for a sold-out crowd at Rogers Arena for more than two hours.

The show – estimated to have cost $60 million to stage – is currently winding up the west coast on its fifth leg. After Vancouver, the show heads east, set to end in Philadelphia in mid-July.

The 29-song set will include such Floyd faves as “Mother”, “Goodbye Blue Sky”, “Hey You”, “Comfortably Numb” and all three parts of “Another Brick in the Wall”.

Visually, The Wall Live delivers a sensory attack, using lights and theatrics backed by the band’s legendary music to tell the story of Pink, a man who ends up isolating himself behind a wall.

The live show is as captivating now as the album was in 1979. Waters regains the kinetic energy first heard on the vinyl double-LP, bringing back waves of nostalgia from the older members of the crowd.

If you missed out on this show last time, don’t let it pass by again. You’ll want to get on stage and take down the wall brick by brick yourself.

Roger Waters runs like hell to B.C. Place on Saturday, May. 26. Tickets are on sale through Ticketmaster and range from $40.50 to $271.25.