Before discussing the album, a brief history lesson is required to even understand what this really is. In Pink Floyd's first incarnation, they were led by Syd Barrett, whose work with the band is notable for it's ultra-colorful, deeply psychedelic, and subtly dark eccentricities. However, while completing Piper At The Gates Of Dawn, Barrett's mental state began rapidly deteriorating. The reason for this is not *precisely* known, but it's generally agreed that he had previously existing disorders, which both worsened on their own, and were most likely exacerbated by Barrett's use of increasingly intense drugs (LSD gets the most common blame here, and it probably didn't help, but it's worth noting that the majority of Barrett's mental deterioration occurred after he began really messing around with STP and Mandrax, which are, to be blunt, *largely*, much riskier). Soon enough, his behavior became erratic enough that he was incapable of remaining with Pink Floyd. Although, he still had interest in creating music, and went to some of his old record company contacts, who pretty much all enthusiastically accepted his proposal to make some new stuff, and tried to get some recordings out of him in a way that I can only really describe as exploitative (note that, with the information I have presently, I have no bitterness towards the *musicians* who tried to help Barrett out, including (later) Pink Floyd, who it really seem like just wanted to help their old friend. Whether or not enabling him to release an album was the best thing for him, I do not know, but it at least seems to have come from a good place). This took approximately a year, and produced inconsistently coherent takes of various songs, many of which got released decades later, if at all. During this time, all sorts of studio musicans got involved with the intent of realizing Barrett's vision, including the majority of the band Soft Machine. Pretty much everyone who worked with Barrett found the experience difficult (or impossible), with the notable exception of Soft Machine's Robert Wyatt, who happened to be the right type of deeply fascinating man to pretty much get "it" immediately, and, if he is to be believed, find the experience generally pleasant. This basically went on until Barrett approached Pink Floyd to help him out, and they approached the producer about taking over his role, an offer he accepted immediately, because he was getting tired of the experience, and EMI was running out of patience, and pretty much declared that Barrett needed to produce something releasable soon. So, Pink Floyd managed to get Barrett to finish the project up in *2* days, and this is what we have to show for it.
With that novella out of the way, I enjoyed The Madcap Laughs quite a bit, but it is genuinely upsetting on some level. The lyrics here are disjointed and *deeply* surreal in a way that can only really be read as sad within the context of Barrett's life. And the music itself is on some level similar to the stuff on Piper At The Gates. He is still a fascinating songwriter who manages to capture a lot of what made his earlier work interesting, granted through different methods. Aside from isolated moments, a lot of the brightness is gone, and the psychedelia here comes more from a shadowy place. The compositions are loose and unconventionally assembled. And his vocals sound, basically, strung out, you just have to hear them. It's also worth noting that the fraught sessions resulted a collection of songs with wildly variable levels of polish. Songs like Love You, Here I Go, and Golden Hair feel just a little off, but are still conventionally catchy and assembled the way music usually is. Terrapin, No Good Trying, and Octopus are a little more sour and offputting, but still structured and recorded in a way that is approximately familiar. But Dark Globe and If It's In You are borderline outsider art. Dark Globe is still pretty compelling, if performed in a way that is intense in a way that transcends the usual boundaries of performance in a slightly worrying way. But If It's In You is built around vocal runs and guitar work which are a tad bit rough to listen to, even for my tastes. Despite, or perhaps due in part to, the complications around this album, it *is* fascinating. It provides another chapter to Syd Barrett's story that really puts things in perspective. And even if it's existence is, perhaps, not entirely ethical, the musicians who helped on here helped Barrett's voice be heard, as rough as it may be, and I think that counts for something.
