Pink Floyd reunites in support of Ukraine

The legendary British rock band Pink Floyd reunited in 28 years to support Ukraine. According to The Guardian and The Associated Press, Floyd founding members David Gilmour and Nick Mason released the band’s new single, “Hey Hey Rise Up” on Thursday (local time). The two members were joined by the band’s long-time bassist since the 2000s, producer Guy Pratt, songwriter Nitin Sawhney, and Gala, the daughter of the late Floyd member Rick Wrigh.

The new song sampled a Ukrainian folk song that Andriy Khlyvnyuk, leader of Ukrainian rock band BoomBox, had posted on his Instagram account immediately after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Khlyvnyuk, who performed with Gilmore in London in 2015, recently sang a folk song in front of Kyiv’s St. Sofia Cathedral to honor the Ukrainian forces. Pink Floyd plans to donate the proceeds from the new single to support Ukraine.

In an interview with The Guardian, Gilmore said he thought he could do something with it after seeing the video of Khlyvnyuk. “It’s a really difficult and frustrating thing to see this extraordinarily crazy, unjust attack by a major power on an independent, peaceful, democratic nation,” Gilmore said, adding his grandchildren are half-Ukrainian as his daughter-in-law is Ukrainian.

Formed in London in 1965, Pink Floyd has built a dedicated fandom through social messaging and unique songs using various instruments. The band has been praised for pioneering the era of “progressive rock” in the 1960s and 1970s.


Ji-Hoon Lee easyhoon@donga.com