Alternate post-90's Rush...what would it have been like?

[ALifeson85]

Something that I have thought about (and I'm sure lots of here have, as well), is: I wonder what direction Rush's music would have gone in, had the band NOT taken a 5-year hiatus, due to Neil losing his family?? What would the subsequent TOURS have been like? It's interesting to think about, because obviously, the frame-of-mind that the band was in, both musically and mentally, was MUCH different after the hiatus, as opposed to before the hiatus. Of course, I'm very pleased and fortunate that the band DID come back in 2002 - stronger than ever, and between Vapor Trails and the R40 tour, they gave us way more than we could have ever asked for...considering the circumstances. Still makes you wonder...how different the Rush of TODAY would have been, if things turned out entirely different after the Test For Echo tour...