Cover band honours legendary Pink Floyd
B.C. tribute act pays homage to the 1970s era of British rock band’s music
Pink Floyd isn’t a musical legend many cover outfits might be tempted to take on but Josh Szczepanowski and his band were undaunted by the challenge of its complex works.
The Victoria, B.C.-based musician, who plays the role of Pink Floyd band leader David Gilmour in PIGS: Canada’s Most Authetic Pink Floyd Tribute, and his band have made a successful career performing the challenging and diverse catalogue of the British prog rock legends.
The band plays the Empress Theatre in Fort Macleod on Monday. Tickets are $36.50 plus service charges at the Empress box office or online at
Pink Floyd got its start in 1960s England, formed by the brilliant and troubled Syd Barrett, along with Roger Waters, Richard Wright and Nick Mason.
Barrett left the band about three years after the group was founded, shortly after Gilmour joined in 1967.
Over the years, the band released such seminal albums as “The Dark Side of the Moon,” “Wish You Were Here,” “Animals,” “The Wall” and “The Division Bell,” among others before finally breaking up for good in 2014.
PIGS focuses on the band’s performances in the 1970s, specifically 1977 when “Animals” was released.
While other bands will perform work from the later “The Division Bell” era, Szczepanowski doesn’t know of any artists covering their work from the era PIGS focuses on.
“It’s been quite an undertaking over the years,” Szczepanowski said Wednesday.
Before the seven-member band formed in 2008, he’d seen other Pink Floyd tribute acts and thought forming one would be “an interesting idea.”
The band also includes Geoff Howe, Mike Quirke, Adam Basterfield, Jon Baglo, Amy Konowalyk and Sharon Driver.
Szczepanowski never actually heard a Pink Floyd album until he was 24 but the elementary school teacher by trade has made up for lost time.
“We’re about as knowledgeable of Pink Floyd as anybody except Pink Floyd,” he said.
The band has spent nearly a decade getting the sound and equipment right to create an authentic rendition of a 1970s Pink Floyd show.
The band plays “a bunch of songs we absolutely have to” but has the flexibility to throw in some that work for PIGS members.
“I still enjoy playing ‘Echoes;’ I love that song,” Szczepanowski says of the tune from the “Meddle” album, a song that lasts a whopping 23 minutes and 31 seconds.
Another Szczepanowski favourite is “Dogs” from “Animals.”
The audience on Monday can expect to hear a range of Pink Floyd classics from its ’70s recordings including “The Wall” and “Dark Side of the Moon” which “we’ve played from top to bottom,” says Szczepanowski.
They also perform one off “Division Bell” and one from “The Final Cut.” And they can be expected to perform solo efforts of Floyd members.
Each performer in PIGS represents an actual member of Pink Floyd. While the music is extremely complex, “we’ve got pretty talented people,” says Szczepanowski.
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