Pink Floyd and Mongolia - this word combination has something similar to, say, Prog and Genghis Khan. In the seventies and eighties, the discos of the same name ("Hey Leute, ho Leute") delivered the opposite of filigree or even psychedelic music. Which is fitting in so far as the Mongolians themselves present their legendary world ruler eight hundred years after his work as an unfiligree appearance. At least in the central square of his homeland. The colossal monument to Genghis Khan on Sukhbaatar Square in the capital, Ulan-Bator, is a massive one. Of course it can't amaze us as much as an advertising poster on the roadside around the corner. The most famous prism in the world shines from afar on a black background: the announcement of a Pink Floyd Tribute Show.
First thought: The Australian Pink Floyd Show here in Ulan Bator? Is it worth it for the band? Of course not, which is why they are not the Floyd rerunners of Down Under, but a project of the band Shar Airag. A Mongolian top band, as the locals quickly enlighten us. Okay. (laughs) But: A Pink Floyd concert in Mongolia, played by Mongolians, does one really have to see that? Answer: Absolutely! Especially as the joker hammers in the back of the head: "That sounds weird, we just have to go there! There are still remaining tickets, beginning of concert 19 o'clock in the central culture palace. It impresses with functional architecture that was en vogue in the West when Pink Floyd had already left her psychedelic phase behind.
Introduction to Psychedelic Rock
Because the audience doesn't seem to know much about psychedelic music in general and the artistic phases of Pink Floyd in particular, they are introduced to the topic for half an hour before the show. And that's from the boss of the band that's about to perform in person. The man's name is Gankhuu and he sits alone in front of the suspended stage. Next to him, the heads of the real Floyd musicians look into the hall from a painting. Gankhuu talks about the history of the group and psychedelic rock. In Mongolian, of course.
Thanks to the interspersed scraps of English, the red thread of the little lesson and quiz can be followed roughly even by visitors who are not proficient in this language: What was the name of the first Pink Floyd formation? A shout: The Pink Floyd Sound. Then the names Syd Barrett, David Gilmour and Roger Waters, but also Queen (after the mention of "We Will Rock You" there's applause) and Michael Jackson fall. It is possible that the term psychedelic rock is used more broadly in a country where people get drunk on fermented mare's milk and where the horse's head violin is the most important instrument.
