When Pink Floyd first stepped into the haunting ruins of Pompeii in 1971, they weren’t there to play for a crowd—they were there to make history. With no audience, just their instruments and the spirits of a Roman amphitheater, Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii became one of the most enigmatic and revered concert films ever made. Now, over five decades later, this anti-concert film has been reborn in jaw-dropping IMAX glory.
Pink Floyd at Pompeii – MCMLXXII launches globally starting April 24, courtesy of Sony Music Vision and Trafalgar Releasing. Unearthed from Pink Floyd’s own archives in five misleadingly labeled cans, the original 35mm film was thought to be lost forever. What followed was a labor of love: a meticulous frame-by-frame restoration effort led by Lana Topham, taking three years to complete. The result? A version of the film that looks as if it could have been shot yesterday.
But the magic doesn’t stop with the visuals. Steven Wilson, renowned for remixing legendary prog acts and for his own boundary-pushing music, took on the daunting task of remastering the audio. With only four original mono tracks—guitar, bass, keyboard, and drums—Wilson had to get creative. “It was a basic recording,” he told the UCR Podcast. “Most of the time, you’re just hearing four channels. But I wanted it to sound like you were there, under the sun in the middle of Pompeii.”
Wilson applied a “dry and upfront” mix style, stripping away tape hiss and distortion, resisting the urge to overly modernize. His goal? To retain the raw, atmospheric essence of Pink Floyd’s performance. “It’s very much a reflection of what I always imagined it would have sounded like if you’d been standing there,” he says.
Wilson, a longtime fan of Pompeii, brings his reverence and technical prowess full circle. Fresh off his new album The Overview—a two-track conceptual journey inspired by the view of Earth from space—he’s embarking on a global tour starting May 1 in Stockholm. The U.S. leg kicks off September 9 in San Francisco.
And if you want a taste of what’s to come, watch Pink Floyd’s “One of These Days,” freshly restored from the Pompeii sessions here:
Whether you’re a die-hard Floyd fan or new to their hypnotic world, Pink Floyd at Pompeii – MCMLXXII is a cinematic resurrection you don’t want to miss.
