“The thing to do would be to have an AI situation where David and Roger become friends again” Nick Mason has indicated a desire to employ AI to generate new Pink Floyd tunes. The drummer recently spoke with The Sunday Mirror (via Music News) on the possibility of reuniting Pink Floyd using artificial intelligence. David Gilmour confirmed the band’s demise in 2015, claiming that the legendary prog-rock band had “run its course.” “It would be fascinating to see what AI could do with new music,” Mason explained to The Sunday Mirror. “If you attempted to run it as a sort of ‘Where did Pink Floyd go after?’
“The thing to do would be to have an AI situation where David and Roger become friends again,” he said. He added: “We could be like ABBA by the time we’ve finished with it.” He also discussed the conflict between David Gilmour and Roger Waters, expressing dismay that it had dominated the band. “Over the course of my 55-year career, I had a lot of fun. We were extremely fortunate to be in a popular band, tour the world, and interact with such interesting individuals. It’s a gold card to meet all of your favorite athletes and actors.”
Mason, who presently performs some of Pink Floyd’s older music as Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets with Spandau Ballet’s Gary Kemp and bassist Guy Pratt, also spoke about continuing to perform Pink Floyd tunes. “The best thing about keeping the thing going is for our benefit,” he told me. “It makes sense to keep it running rather than shutting it down. I also like it because as time passes, you can see it with a rosier sparkle. Gilmour has explored the potential of an ABBA-style Pink Floyd event, saying he would consent to it if “a series of very, very difficult and onerous conditions” were met.
When asked about his experience viewing ‘Voyage’, he remarked, “If you were a dedicated ABBA fan, you may appreciate it. “I felt the photographs of them were kind of okay, but they were never going to convince me it was real. If you’re down at the mosh pit end of the thing and everything is going on, it’s probably wonderful. The finest moment for me was when the live band performed ‘Does Your Mother Know’ on their own.”
When asked if a Pink Floyd hologram event would ever happen, he replied: “If someone came up with all the money and all the brilliant ideas – and then once we’ve agreed to a series of very, very difficult and onerous conditions – I’d say, ‘Yeah, OK.'”
