Roger Waters will bring his immersive This Is Not A Drill tour to theaters worldwide with the premiere of a new concert film. Directed by the Pink Floyd co-founder and his longtime creative partner Sean Evans, This Is Not A Drill: Live From Prague – The Movie will screen on July 23rd and 27th ahead of a comprehensive home media release on August 1st.
Recorded on May 25th, 2023 at the O2 Arena in the Czech Republic, the film captures 20 Pink Floyd and Roger Waters solo songs, including “Comfortably Numb”, “Wish You Were Here”, “Us & Them”, “Is This The Life We Really Want?”, and his latest song, “The Bar”. Using an immersive 360° stage and overhead 12-surfaced, cross-shaped LED screen configuration, Waters pairs his signature compositions with engrossing, and sometimes enraging, visuals and messages to expand on the meanings of songs audiences have known by heart for decades. The show is equal parts condemnation of “corporate dystopia” and “a call to action to love,” per a press release.
Related: Roger Waters Wants You To F— Off To The Bar [Review/Photos/Videos]
For This Is Not A Drill—billed as his “first ever Farewell Tour”—Waters brought his extensive backing band of Robert Walter (Mike Gordon, Greyboy Allstars), Jonathon Wilson, Dave Kilminster, Jon Carin, Gus Seyffert, Joey Waronker (Atoms for Peace), Shanay Johnson, Amanda Belair, and Seamus Blake.
Along with the announcement, Waters shared a video of “Wish You Were Here”. Though David Gilmour originally sang it on the 1975 album of the same name, Waters’ gravelly baritone gives this version more depth as the rumination on loss takes on additional meaning when delivered by an 81-year-old man. Alongside the performance, a story about Waters’ early days with Pink Floyd co-founder (and Wish You Were Here inspiration) Syd Barrett appears on the LED screens, accompanied by images of the acid casualty.
In 1963, Syd and I went up to London to see a pop concert at the Gaumont State in Kilburn. Gene Vincent was the headliner, and the Rolling Stones were also on the bill. Going home to Cambridge on the train afterwards, Syd and I had it completely figured out. We made an agreement that when we were at college in London, we’d start a band.
We dreamed the dream. And, for a while, we lived it. The rest is history. After that, it all went a bit pear-shaped.
A few years later, in 1968, after a meeting at Capitol Records in Los Angeles, Syd and I stopped at the light at Hollywood and Vine. Syd grinned at me and said, “It’s nice here in Las Vegas, isn’t it?” Then his face darkened and he spat out one word – “People.” When you lose someone you love, it does serve to remind you This is not a drill.
This Is Not A Drill: Live from Prague will also arrive on 4LP, DVD, 2CD, Blu-Ray, and digital audio on August 1st [pre-order]. Sign up on Waters’ website for a full list of participating theaters and to access tickets when they go on sale June 12th. Watch Roger Waters perform “Wish You Were Here” from his upcoming concert film, This Is Not A Drill: Live From Prague – The Movie.
Roger Waters — “Wish You Were Here” — This Is Not A Drill: Live From Prague – The Movie
