drbirdsong

I tend to agree that the story was more suited for comics. The best novels are not assigned or dictated to. If Kevin Anderson was inspired that is one thing, but the made-to order-nature of the book is juvenile. I think the fact that Neil agreed to the version of the book that was published makes him a grade A sellout. Not that there is anything really wrong with merchandising, but the cheese whiz in that book is a little insulting to anyone over the age of 9. I would have to liken the book to a poster. If you like that sort of thing then hang it on your wall. In depth life lessons are not to be found here.

I'm one of those weird Christians. You know the kind. I wake up and I see God's miracle unfolding before my eyes almost everyday. Yes, there are those days when I don't see it because I'm stuck in a skin suit like the rest of you and it weighs me down at times, but for the most part I firmly believe that every particle in the Universe is at God's command. Rush is part of that plan and my don't they know how to make a pleasant noise. I don't think I have gone more than a week without hearing them since 1979. Time is time, as Jon Anderson said so you probably shouldn't waste too much time worrying over what Neil's opinions are. Now that bog of his... Dammit I'm gonna smack him over some of that stuff...

Yup. My crazy wife went out Christmas shopping tonight so I blasted the CD and when Headlong Flight came on I cranked it to 11. I love the new CD and Blu Ray. Don't like it -- don't listen. :haz:

You know I'm just certain that during Grand Designs I saw Geddy trying to be cool while passing gas. Why won't they let us hear that? And not ONCE have they ever let us hear Neil crack his knuckles. Dammit that's it, no more Rush for me!

I have a feeling the bad old Guv will be back next week. His new family that have adopted him are in danger after meeting up with his old crew. I am glad they humanized him, but I suspect darkness is on the horizon. What will happen to bring the Governor back to the prison? I doubt he came back to apologize.

Totem and Virtuality suffer from the same problem. Both have great music and lyrics that needed a serious rewrite. The more I hear T4E the more I think that it wasn't a bad album or a misstep along the way, it's just weak lyrically. You can't get it right every time and Neil's focus had been on relearning the drums at that point. It is also the least thematic album since the early days. Sometimes I think we as Rush fans are far too lucky. We have a huge catalog to choose from and the band is still going strong. Even with the "lost" years after Neil's tragedies there are plenty of albums and eras of good stuff so we have to seek out the weakest bits to gnaw at. (Hmmmmm, "gnaw at" that makes the term "rabid fan" take on a whole new meaning.)

The 2.0 sound is fantastic, especially under the Sennheisers. Can't say anything about the 5.1 mix cause I didn't have a surround system. Others having the same problems as bruno? I have to agree that the 2.0 mix is better. I was comparing the two mixes last night and the 5.1 is a little too gimicky for me (hey, look what I can do kind of stuff). There is nothing wrong with a good stereo mix and honestly you can hear all the atmospheric bits of Clockwork Angels much better in the 2.0 mix. The Clockwork Angels songs in general are a real highlight. I noticed last night that they are all of Disc 2 on the CD version. I hope that gets here today. I may have that one in the car for the foreseeable future. This morning I started the disc at Caravan while I went about my waking routine and I know its new, but I may prefer the live versions for quite a while.

He's going home in a box.

If you could see me now my hair is blown back by the awesome experience I just had. My blu ray came a day early (YES!) and I settled in on the couch and cranked the volume up to concert levels and went for it. It starts out well enough and then they kick it up a notch when the jam starts in Force Ten. Holy cow. The string of 80s songs that follow are performed so well and I think they show just how right their choices were on this tour. You can hate the setlist, but the playing is outstanding. Geddy is on point with his playing like I have rarely seen before in their video releases. Voice wise he is the 60ish Geddy, but in better voice than several of the recent releases. His singing on this beats Time Machine easily. Neil is his usual rock solid self. He can often be seen grinning or goofing off in some of the other concert films, but this time he seems more at peace with the whole thing and just enjoying the experience. Guys like that just need to quit thinking so much all the time. One of these days other guitar gods are going to have to acknowledge Alex. He has always been one of my favorites, but now that he and Neil have both loosened a bit with age and groove a little more I think they have moved to another level. I think that is what comes across so well... the whole band is a well oiled machine that is relaxed into the songs and playing like masters. The Clockwork Angels songs are amazing because even though I saw several shows on this tour and heard way too many boots I never heard the strings as good as they are here. I'll have to watch it again to give it a real critique. Right now I'm really happy, happy, happy with it and I haven't even watched the extras yet. I'll drive my wife crazy with those tonight.

Gentlemen, I think we are losing our edge.

Let the Gay Olympics begin.

Wow, now we know why they call him the boy wonder...

Part one was the last time I saw a movie in the theater besides going to a couple of Riff Trax live events. I have the 3-D blu ray and was going to watch it before the second one came out, but they just released an extended version. I'm starting to think I may wait until the 75hr version of all six movies is available to watch it again.

In other Rush news, I just heard Alex is joining Three Dog Night for a few dates. Source? Same as the OP.

This one was almost too close to call, but this sharp-witted entry wins the day.

Where did you buy it? I ordered it online and it cost me a bit of scratch. God help me, but I have no recall of the memory. That means I probably got excited and pulled out the plastic late one night under the influence of the grape. Look online and you can find one. Just be prepared to pay a bit more for it than the one you can get in your hometown. It has a lot of nice bonus tracks on it too.

The command of English in these reviews hath made me plotz.

Clockwork Angels and Vapor Trails wrestle for the top spot. The rest fall into my favorite catalog of albums by my favorite band. On any given day I'm happy to hear anything by Their Rushness.

Time does things to the albums you get when they are new. I remember Grace Under Pressure when it first came out and it sounded different compared to a lot of music released around the same time. The early 80s were saturated with far too much reverb , but then Rush dropped this arid beast on us. I remember my girlfriend at the time saying, with a memory of the band that was at best a couple of years old, that Rush had been fun, but now they were like prophets descending from the mountain with dire proclamations. I recall focusing on that dry sound most of all. So to make a long story long... Yeah it's a bit dry sounding.

My wife had to go to Georgia for work so I had the house to myself and I blasted it at high volume. I haven't enjoyed Close To The Edge so much since the time I listened to it on acid. Wow, it's almost a religious experience. Steven Wilson wins the debate.

Maybe I just blanked out on the bad moments of the first Wolverine. It does have its fair share of stink now that I think about it. I haven't seen the second one. First Class seems to be an attempt to right the wrongs and make the X-Men movies better and perhaps Days Of Future Past will reconcile the continuity problems in the series. I sure hope so because the whole thing could have been done so much better (*cough* Avengers *cough*).

Geddy for sure. Alex would just get them too riled up and they would come back out of control. Neil would bum them out and they would come back depressed. Seriously though, Geddy seems like a gentle soul and I'm just betting kids love him.

I clicked the link and it is playing now. It started during The Wreckers. Looks and sounds pretty darn good. I'll wait for the blu ray to watch the whole thing. BTW, there was a headline in the crawl below the video that said Roger Waters is working on his first new album in 20 years so it was worth it to get that story.

Thanks. Next... http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z437/drbirdsong/Dancers.jpg

34. Some of the faces looked familiar, but I probably killed too many brain cells in the 90s.