"We, like so many, have been feeling the fury and the frustration of this vile act of an independent, peaceful democratic country being invaded."
David Gilmour and Nick Mason have released their first song as Pink Floyd in over 28 years. The track, titled Hey, Hey Rise Up, will be raising funds for the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund.
The song marks the first original music from the band since the release of The Division Bell in 1994.
Gilmour and Mason wrote the track at the end of March, joined in the studio by bassist Guy Pratt and keyboardist Nitin Sawhney. Hey, Hey Rise Up samples Andriy Khlyvnyuk's (of the band Boombox) Instagram video in which he is singing the Ukrainian anthem in Kyiv earlier this year.
This is not the first time that Pink Floyd members have been rallying support for Ukraine. They've removed all their music from 1987 onwards from music services in Russia and Belarus. Gilmour also removed his solo catalogue from those territories.
“We, like so many, have been feeling the fury and the frustration of this vile act of an independent, peaceful democratic country being invaded and having its people murdered by one of the world's major powers," Gilmour said.
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"I hope it will receive wide support and publicity. We want to raise funds for humanitarian charities, and raise morale. We want express our support for Ukraine and in that way, show that most of the world thinks that it is totally wrong for a superpower to invade the independent democratic country that Ukraine has become.”
You can read the band's full statement below.
Tonight at midnight, Pink Floyd will release 'Hey Hey Rise Up', in support of the people of Ukraine. It sees David...
Posted by Pink Floyd on Thursday, April 7, 2022