Canis Canem Edit.
Dogs is the second track on the album "Animals," song writer Roger Waters' Orwellian view of British society, in which he anthropomorphizes the classes into Dogs, Pigs, and Sheep, dedicating a song to each. It's a spin on Orwell's "Animal Farm," a criticism of the Soviet Union under Stalin. Here, Waters critices capitalism. The Pigs in Waters' eyes are the ruling class of British society, specifically Margaret Thatcher and Mary Whitehouse. Perhaps the most immediately striking aspect of Dogs off the bat is the song's length, which, for people unfamiliar with Pink Floyd's music, can be unexpected. The song sits at a playtime of 17 minutes. In fact, each song on the album is at least 10 minutes in length, with Dogs being by far the longest. The song is about the predatory opressors in society who exploit the working class (Sheep) but are hierarchally beneath the upper class (Pigs), who encourage the Dogs to be ever vigilant and paranoid, always looking for a "chance to put the knife in." The Dogs represent cut-throat and greedy businessmen, who lead lives of solitude because of their nature to distrust everyone around them. Eventually, the Dogs are destined to grow old, and die of cancer.
The first verse of the song establishes who the Dogs are, and what kind of people are attracted to the lifestyle. The Dogs are epitomised by the opening line, "you gotta be crazy, you gotta have a real need." demonstrating that in order to want to join this tumultuous rat race, you'd have to be absolutely out of your mind, totally consumed by a desire to scramble to the top, not settling for second place, despite the superiority being absolutely superficial, the Dogs feel as though they've triumphed, but it's never real, it's a submission to a self-destructive lifestyle. No matter how many people they topple, they exploited them to get there, and no matter how many they exploit, they're hopelessly "dragged down by the stone," i.e. a shackle to immovable forces, insurmountable powers that be, whether it's the Pigs above them, or the life they've led themselves. When you've destroyed all those who surround you, the only one left to destroy is yourself.
The Dogs' lifestyle is one of superficial authority and superiority, coming at the ultimate cost. Their exploitation of those below and equal to them perpetuates the chokehold that the Pigs have on society at large.
The first verse also establishes the tactics the Dogs use to feign superiority over the Sheep. After they've established themselves somewhat, they "work on points for style," don fancy clothes, conniving smirks, an inviting persona that lulls the vulnerable into a false sense of security, causes them to let their guard down, and opens them up for an easy strike. The Dogs are wolves in sheep's clothing.
After a biting and snarling guitar solo by David Gilmour, that builds tension, rising and rising, before plateauing (overdubbed by a phrase of manical laughter). Parallels the fate of the dogs. They rise and rise in the hierarchy, before growing old, losing their influence. They chase the sheep round and round, but eventually catch their own tail. Back where they started, they have nowhere else to go but down.
The lyrics resume with a commentary on the Dogs' lives:
"You've gotta keep one eye looking over your shoulder."
There's another instrumental section, dominated by the guitar licks of Gilmour, mellow synth tones, and accompanying acoustic guiar strums. The beat kicks into another piercing guitar phrase by Gilmour, which sounds almost like the Dogs trying to climb back up to their former greatness, only to be snuffed out by the passage of time. There's another verse, where the concept of "the stone" is established. The Dogs are far past their sell-by date. They have nothing and no one left. No influence over anyone, nothing left to connive. All they have left now is an immovable stone tied to their feet, and a depth of water to drown in. "So have a good drown, as you go down, all alone. Dragged down by the stone." I love this line. It's so cynical. The dogs are being wished off, packed up, and sent away forever. In the end, they were drowned by the very thing they spent their entire lives upholding. The verse echoes on "stone," and - as a fun bit of trivia - on the exact spot on the opposite side of the vinyl, on the song "Sheep" the same sound is heard. The motif being provided being that the stone has dragged the Dogs so far down that it's ripped right through the record and permeated through the grooves onto the other side. What follows is an extended atmospheric instrumental section. We hear the eering synths of Richard Wright, who subtly but surely comes into his own. His presence as a musician is especially heard on this track. In the background are overdubs of vocoded barking dogs, echoes and reverberations of their former glory. There's also whistles beckoning the dogs. My interpretation is that these whistles are emitting from the snouts (metaphorically) of the Pigs, who are ushering in a new era of Dogs to continue the cycle of manipulating society in such a way that affirms the Pigs' dominance.
There's one more verse to the song. I'd like to cover it in tomorrow's blog post, finishing off my analysis of Dogs' lyrics. Special shoutout today goes to Ian & Mia, who've helped me out building the website by giving input on the site's layout & aesthetic and also making sure it displays somewhat-alright on mobile devices. Thanks guys!