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Subdivisions


barney_rebel

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Discuss.

 

This has got to be one of my favourite songs. The synth is superb in it (I always thought it kind of sounded like 'Jump by Van Halen').

 

The video has to be one of the best Rush has ever put out.

 

Contrary to what people say about who does the vocals on the chorus where he says "Subdivisions", it's Mark Dayley from City TV. It is NOT Neil or Alex, or Geddy.

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I've always loved the keyboard solo in Subdivisions. On R30 in vegas Geddy announced it as, "Signals from our Subdivisions album." Then he came back and said, "Subdivisions, Signals album." http://www.therushforum.net/html/emoticons/doh.gif http://www.therushforum.net/html/emoticons/laugh.gif
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Very strong song, then and now. It may had been nearly 20 years old when I first heard the song, but after hearing the lyrics it definatly touched me in a way nothing else had before then. The keyboard sound on this song (and for the entire album for that matter) was perfectly placed. That is the correct balance of traditional instruments and keyboards for my Rush tastes. I am especially fond of the little bass solos that are placed right before each chorus and the more energetic one that goes on during the guitar solo portion.

 

When I bought Signals, it was during a summer in which I stayed in CA for a couple months (I lived in MD at the time) and had virtually no contact at all with anyone by my choice except for a few family members. I really got into during my plane ride back to MD, and at the time I felt like I didnt belong in either place. The music really had a deeper connection to me during that time, and every time I listen to that song, I think of that plane ride back to MD.

 

One of my absolute favorite Rush songs on my favorite Rush album.

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QUOTE (Moonraker @ Dec 19 2004, 02:00 AM)
Very strong song, then and now.  It may had been nearly 20 years old when I first heard the song, but after hearing the lyrics it definatly touched me in a way nothing else had before then.  The keyboard sound on this song (and for the entire album for that matter) was perfectly placed.  That is the correct balance of traditional instruments and keyboards for my Rush tastes.  I am especially fond of the little bass solos that are placed right before each chorus and the more energetic one that goes on during the guitar solo portion.

When I bought Signals, it was during a summer in which I stayed in CA for a couple months (I lived in MD at the time) and had virtually no contact at all with anyone by my choice except for a few family members.  I really got into during my plane ride back to MD, and at the time I felt like I didnt belong in either place.  The music really had a deeper connection to me during that time, and every time I listen to that song, I think of that plane ride back to MD.

One of my absolute favorite Rush songs on my favorite Rush album.

http://www.therushforum.net/html/emoticons/goodpost.gif Signals is my fav too....Subdivisions (as well as whole album actually) is also a great headphones song. I highly recommend it if u haven't listen to it yet thru headphones.

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There is some great bass in this song http://www.therushforum.net/html/emoticons/yes.gif http://www.therushforum.net/html/emoticons/trink39.gif
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I love "Subdivisions". It was the song that made want Signals, my first Rush album, back in 1982, after which I became a "hard core" fan.

 

I saw the video world premiere on MTV, something unheard of today for any worthy band.

 

The song does have good synths and the long lasting synth at the end of the song sounds like an older Macintosh computer as it turns on.

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I still remember the first time I heard this song.

 

I was in my 1973 Chevelle and the DJ said here is the new RUSH> To frame the situation, I was already a HUGE RUSH fan had been for 6+ years ... 6 years of bass guitar and drums, (with keys as filler) AND had just come off MP which was phenominal, (remember, this was before ANY of the 80s albums came out so the whole synth phase had not happened yet) SO .... again ... the DJ says, here is the new RUSH and I am PUMPED ... then the opening ..."duh duh duh da duh duh ... and all the synth chords, and Geddy singing in a lower voice ... I was dissapointed. I was like "what is it with all this synth stuff? .... Man! This isn't RUSH!!!!

 

SO ... I gave it a chance ... got the album on the release date, read the lyrics, (I was still in high school) and immediately loved the lyrics. Then, the song grew on me and I accepted the progression to more keys. (although I still wish that TAK was the first song released) http://www.therushforum.net/html/emoticons/smile.gif

 

Now, it is one of my favs, for many reasons. memories, the lyrics, the music, the RUSH.

 

 

 

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QUOTE (barney_rebel @ Dec 18 2004, 10:57 PM)
Discuss.

This has got to be one of my favourite songs. The synth is superb in it (I always thought it kind of sounded like 'Jump by Van Halen').

The video has to be one of the best Rush has ever put out.

Contrary to what people say about who does the vocals on the chorus where he says "Subdivisions", it's Mark Dayley from City TV. It is NOT Neil or Alex, or Geddy.

Sweet, I didn't know who did that part at first but now I now its Mark Dayley. thanks! http://www.therushforum.net/html/emoticons/trink36.gif

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I must admit that the first time I heard Subdivisions it passed me by. Then again, it was at Wembley Arena when I saw them for the first time on the ESL tour and I was too overawed to take in a lot of the details (it was also one of the first major gigs I ever went too).

 

I then remember going into our town centre record shop (it was called Revolver at the time) nearly a year later with the intention of buying either 'Highway Song' by Blackfoot or 'The Cage' by the Tygers of Pan Tang when I heard a familiar voice issuing from the instore sound system. It was, of course, the Signals album which I bought on the spot. I can't think of many school afternoons that went so slowly and, upon arriving home, went up to my bedroom and slipped onto my record deck (it was the days of vinyl of course).

 

I don't think its much of an understatement to say that Subdivisions hit me like a tone of bricks - I was totally blown away by it (and for the rest of the album for that matter). Since then, I must confess, I've grown less and less enamoured by the album, generally due to what I feel is a less than sterling production. However, Subdivisions still remains one of my all time favourite Rush songs.

 

Lyrically, I think it captures the whole atmosphere of the suburbs and evokes some wondeful images. Musically, I find it to be, simultaneously, dense and sparse (a contradiction I know, but there you go). The sparseness comes from the overall sound which conjures, in my mind at least, the image of a spirit wanting to take flight. The denseness comes from the driving rhythm and pulsing synth which seems to wrap the listener in a cocoon as stifling and claustrophobic as suburban life can be.

 

Add to this the great bass riff Geddy plays before the chorus and one of the few times where Alex's guitar really cuts through and shines and you've got not only a Rush classic, but a classic period.

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What do I like about Subdivisions? Hmmm....... everything! http://www.therushforum.net/html/emoticons/biggrin.gif

 

PS: 1973 Chevelle? Rawwwwwk! http://www.therushforum.net/html/emoticons/1022.gif

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QUOTE (NeilPeartFan2112 @ Dec 19 2004, 04:17 PM)
QUOTE (daveyt @ Dec 19 2004, 03:58 PM)
i like the cool effect on geddy's voice. it makes him sound 2x as cool. the guitar solo is AWESOME. neil puts on a clinic.

I like how you said Neil puts on a clinic tongue.gif

 

I like the Clinic line too. laugh.gif I actually repeated it out loud after I read it. Awesome, and so true.

 

Note: Skip to the last line for a quick summary. Otherwise, read on.

 

There are four main instruments to this song. No longer was it Guitar, Bass, and Drums. Now the Keyboard was an "up-front" and lead instrument instead of an accompanying piece. Some embraced it - others rejected it. I'm a proud member of the Embracer's club.

 

The individual parts of this song are so succinct - more than in many other songs. They way each instrument repeats it's part with subtle changes is incredible. They lay down such a concrete sound in this song, yet play loose with it and bend it as they want to, to give us an extra measure of Adrenaline Surge!!!

 

A true musician's masterpiece that still plays strong after more than 2 decades.

 

Lyrically it strikes at the heart of the adolescent trying to fit in. Challenging their own values (at the smallest level) in order to gain acceptance. I think all of those 80's teenage flicks are built around the lyrics of this song. I always found the words to War Paint to be like Subdivisions Part II - although those lyrics in War Paint take me back to the 50's and 60's, and it's strictly because of the loose James Dean reference.

 

Anyway, Subdivisions was the first Rush tune I dissected once I truly became a fan. One of my favorite things to do with their songs is isolate each individual instrument and listen for every niche and detail. This was the first song I did that to. I get lost in it, happily.

 

In summary, Subdivisions is just f*cking awesome!!

653.gif 2.gif AlexFinal.gif NeilFinal.gif GeddyFinal.gif 2.gif 653.gif

 

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Definitely a great song. This is one of the first RUSH tunes I ever heard. The video was played at some sort of assembly when I was in High school (1983). I didn't know who they were at that point. The video grabbed me with "in the high schools halls" & then the deep Subdivisions. I totally related as I was kind of an outsider at my preppy school. I've been a hugh fan ever since.

 

My favorite part of the song is the drums at the beginning. The beat starts at 6 seconds & then at 18 seconds the beat doubles. It's so subtle, but just really gets me going.

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I sometimes associate the video with "Fast Times at Ridgemont High". They were "on" at the same time and Geddy even resembles "Jeff Spicoli" a bit in the video. And he's wearing the then-popular skinny tie.

 

Everytime I see a subdivision like the one in the video it usually is made up of lower income families.

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Having 'discovered' Rush in '81 and gone on a back catelogue buying splurge, Signals was the first new album I anticipated and bought as soon as it came out. Subdivisions was the first song on it. and I totally related to it, both lyrically and musically.

 

While the concept of 'malls' was foreign to me, the concept of the loner facing the conflict of on the one hand wanting to belong to the tribe while simultaneously recognising the shallowness of the tribe's rituals was nothing new. The song also reflected into the late teen angst I was going through at the time.

 

Musically, I had no difficulty with the synths - Any lingering doubts I might have had when Subdivsions came on were pushed aside by The Analog Kid, but that's another story.

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