Rock and roll has never been short of crazy conspiracy theories. From Paul McCartney being dead to whatever Led Zeppelin (allegedly) did with a mudshark, it’s easy to mythologise what musicians do in their spare time. But out of all the outlandish theories, the Pink Floyd conspiracy extended to the world of classic cinema.
Then again, it should be no surprise. After all, some of the best Floyd songs that ever came out had a cinematic flair to them, and since some of their greatest moments were immortalised with iconic iconography like the film The Wall or their performances in Pompeii, they were always willing to throw visuals into the mix. But no one needs anything else but that prism when listening to Dark Side of the Moon.
Across only 43 minutes, Roger Waters’s message about the human condition and how to approach everything from the passage of time to the need for money has only become more pertinent over the years. Everyone has to confront those problems, but everyone began shifting their focus to the land of Oz once people started noticing something strange happen when playing the album in sequence.
Years after the album came out, there was a rumour going around that Dark Side of the Moon provides the perfect alternative soundtrack to The Wizard of Oz. According to the theory, if the album starts playing after the MGM lion’s roar, the whole thing plays out perfectly, but is there really any credence to David Gilmour and Waters intentionally sequencing the album as a soundtrack?
Is Dark Side of the Rainbow actually true?
It’s not an unfounded theory since they had already done soundtrack albums like More and Obscured By Clouds, but Gilmour has refuted the claim numerous times. Although there might have been some kind of synchronicity in how both of the projects line up, the band was far more focused on making the best album after building off the momentum of ‘Echoes’. That being said, a few uncanny coincidences line up when playing the two projects side by side.
You aren’t going to find any direct influences in the lyrics by any stretch, but as Dorothy is transported into the land of Oz for the first time, the tornado does get all the more impressive when listening to Clare Torry’s wails on ‘Great Gig in the Sky’. Since the theory also has the album playing on a loop, the initial heartbeat that kicks off the record syncs up perfectly when Dorothy listens in to hear the Tin Man’s chest.
Then again, Waters has said that while the theory is ridiculous, he’s not above looking into the cosmic commonalities between them, either, saying, “it may [work] if you do what they say; but it has nothing to do with us. Any of us. Nothing to do with anyone in Pink Floyd or anyone who wrote or recorded any of the music. It’s something that somebody thinks – it’s a coincidence. … Maybe it’s cosmic coincidence!”
The album might definitely have a strange otherworldly vibe that doesn’t feel out of place in the land of Oz, but this kind of theory only comes from someone who might have toked up a little too much and got caught in the middle of a movie marathon while listening to the album. It’s absolutely not intentional on the band’s part, but having a rumour like this to your name is practically something every rock band must go through at least once in their career.
