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hem

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Everything posted by hem

  1. The world of music will carry on regardless of us, with each new generation finding its own heroes that will inspire them, awe them, and speak to them. These things never change. What changes is us.
  2. They should have fired Geddy when they had the chance, and replaced him with David Hasselhoff.
  3. It all depends on how you like your Rush. On the plus side, it has more energy than a group of guys that old should be able to muster up. They are really hammering at it and it has a looser vibe, mainly because of Neil's more improvisational approach. There are a half a dozen very good songs, some cracking riffs, and the whole thing is pretty heavy except for the obvious ballads. On the minus, the production is as bad as people suggest. Brick-walled mastering might suit some styles of music, but not Rush. As mighty as their sound has always been, it has always had room to breath. It doesn't get that here.Some of the arrangements are too cluttered. Sometimes it works, as on 'Headlong Flight', but most often not. It is a long album, and I think they could have cut a few tracks and just kept the cream. I've been a Rush fan since the early eighties, and have found my interest in them wane since the late eighties, with progressively less brilliant albums. I listen to everything up to and including Power Windows pretty regularly, but after that the albums get little attention from me. Clockwork Angels was definitely a return to form in some ways, but after my initial euphoria died down, it is not an album I go to much. In summary, a good album and better than the last few, but nowhere near the levels of excellence they achieved back in their prime. It happens.
  4. I stole a bowl of their magical tour soup, Neil's sense of humour, and a pair of Alex's socks. I did it because of Tai Shan.
  5. The one thing I got from this interview was a sense of sadness from the guys. Perhaps even a little anger at the ageing process. I've seen tough guys weep when they retire from a factory job. There is an inevitability about that word - retirement - that signals an ending. A step closer to death: counting down of a life. Imagine what they must be going through, even forgetting the physical issues. Forty years as a creative team, family in all but name, and then to call it a day. That must hurt. Very badly. I don't know any of them, but I hope they are all okay when the day comes. Looks like it's not so far off.
  6. I have to go with Grace under pressure. There is an anxiety about everything on that album that is very unsettling. One of the most dangerous times of the cold war, and I can feel that in the lyrics and the brutally cold production. For me, Alex's guitar solo at the beginning of Between the Wheels sounds unhinged, bordering on insanity. The sadness in the solo proper is just breathtaking. What a wonderful album it is.
  7. hem

    Every Album

    HYF was the cut off point for me too. I was really disappointed when I first heard it. I think if you took the best tracks from all the albums HYF onwards, you could maybe make two very good ones. That said, I could not imagine a world that didn't contain Permanent waves to Power Windows. Most bands are lucky if they put out two absolutely amazing albums. Rush did five, plus some other ones that were great.
  8. I think you may have inadvertently said somethng quite profound. "Their heart". Not "Hearts". Just the singular. Then again, maybe that is exactly what you meant.
  9. For someone who is as obviously uncomfortable with the whole concept of living a public life, I think that we have all been extremely blessed that he has done this for as long as he has. I spent some years of my twenties as a touring musician. It is physically, mentally, and also emotionally draining. It takes a lot out of you. I can't explain why or how, but anyone who has done this at any level will understand. For those comparing his road trips to touring, one thing should be blatantly obvious. He can call off a road trip at any time. He chooses where, when, for how long etc. Tours don't work that way. It is a huge committment. Can you imagine the uproar if he just turned round half way through and said "I'm done with this tour. That's enough." How do you cancel something that big, ignoring fans even, and just focusing on the people who rely on you for their wage cheque - you know, feeding their kids - and come out the other end feeling okay about yourself? You don't. At least, not a person as dignified and honest as he is. I hope they are done with the big tours. Hundreds of dates. Hours a night. I would love to see them relieve themselves of that pressure and do the odd week here and there, with as little travelling and time away from home as possible. It makes a lot more sense than piling on the days and then finally sayng - "No more. I can't do it anymore." We would get short bursts of energy and enthusiasm. More likely than not, it would be an itch that they had to scratch, or even frustrated wives just saying, "Stop banging the spoons on the table like a madman. You are driving me crazy. Go and play a week of gigs." I don't profess to know what goes through their minds, but as a fan of over thirty years, I know what I would prefer. To see them happy and healthy, making music when it suits them, hopefully recording another full album to their own timetable, and playing live when the urge compels them to. I have been given a lifetime of happiness by these guys. It has cost me only a couple of hundred euros to own, play, and endlessly replay their entire catalogue. I saw them live once in the late eighties. It is still one of the favourite nights of my musical life. They don't owe me, as the cliche goes. I would say that I owe them. (Breathes out)
  10. I hope that my rambling post about phases of a band's life was not too depressing. That was not my intention. Only tonight, I played "Rush" for the first time in a while and still found myself jigging along to "Take a friend" and then feeling profoundly affected by the intro of "Before and after". Then, what do you know, I was there chorusing to "The Wreckers" and shaking my thankfully still full, though now short, hair to "Headlong Flight". My point, I think, was about how some people are able to produce magic, but it does often only occur within a timeframe. I believe it is usually time-related, or age-related, but perhaps circumstance-related is a better catch-all. I am sure, on second thought. 1977 - 1982? If I were to judge Rush in terms of abilitý as musicians, I would start earlier and finish later. My 1979 - 1984 comment was simply to express what I believe to be their golden years where they married musicianship with musicality, and accessability without compromise or loss of integrity. Before that I reckon they were difficult to reach for many. After, they became a little too easy. I liked the middle bit. Bottom line? I fell in love with this band in about 1982 or so. I fell out of love with them by "Presto". I still buy their albums. I still listen to them every week. Very few bands have afforded me such long-lasting pleasure, and for that, I can never complain, though as a human being and paying customer, I feel I am allowed to have an opinion. I wish everyone a fantastic new year.
  11. Sadly, just no. We shouldn't blame Rush for this though. There seems to be a general arc to most bands who last a long time. It is generally in three stages. (Note the word 'generally') STAGE ONE - Hungry. Flat broke. Trying to get noticed. During stage one, most people are not masters of either their instruments or the art of songwriting/arranging. They get better, and with the good bands the curve is steep, but it takes a little time. Hopefully they get a minor hit or two which keeps the record company on their side. Moments of genius are exciting enough that bit by bit, they garner a good loyal following. STAGE TWO - Still hungry. Enough money to live on. Getting noticed and some acclaim. This is where the rewards for their efforts are in sight. They sell more records. Tours get bigger. Then something clicks and the record buying public catches on. The band is on fire now and becomes hungrier than ever. Their chops and songwriting hit a peak. This stage lasts five or so years. Everything they do, even if it doesn't quite work, has that feeling of "on a roll". They get serious money. STAGE THREE - Fat. Rich. Guaranteed audience. The band spend less time together, even when on tour. They practice their instruments less. They have hobbies and families. Maybe divorces and stints in rehab. Life exists outside the band now. They make more money than ever, but the fire is dwindling. Eventually, the band has become a business. Depending on their talent and chemistry, maybe they still have some of that old magic, but it is diminishing returns. You coud distill that and make an age judgement. 16 - 24 You'd die for your band. You sleep on each others' socks and don't complain.. 25 - 35 You'd die to help each other make the band the best it can be. 35+ You'd die to stop your wife leaving you, or be able to fit into your old jeans, but you still kind of like your band mates. Rush haven't exactly followed this format - they had a terrible interlude - but I remember reading things from interviews with the guys like - "I didn't pick up the guitar/bass the whole summer" "Am I prepared to spend all that time obsessively working out that drum part?." "I enjoy producing ..." "My latest passion is wine/motorbikes/baseball/cooking etc" When Rush released "Moving Pictures" they were at that pinnacle. They had got their chops to a frightening level and then, only the album before that, they had discovered mass appeal songwriting. They made a fortune, floated on that extraordinary wave of creative euphoria that must have brought, and then released another two (three) amazing albums. Then the slide began. They still make interesting music, and CA was a nice elevation that resembled former glory years, but it only resembled it. I like the album, much better than most things they have done in a long time, but they will never, not even if all their money, cars, homes, testicles, are taken from them, scale the heights that they reached from 1979 to 1984. Rant over. Dismiss as you wish, or add boiling water and leave for five minutes. Nom nom.
  12. I've always preferred Neil's work from the very late seventies up to mid eighties. Even knowing nothing about drums then, his work really excited me. Since Power Windows, I felt the whole band has been in gradual decline with moments of brilliance becoming less and less. The drums are a big part of that. I even remember hearing a new album when it came out and thinking that it sounded boring in the rhythm section. I was shocked.
  13. So many, but off the top of my head... The first chord of Afterimage. It's massive. The guitar solos from Limelight and Between the wheels. Second verse of Spirit of radio - "all this machinery.." Geddy's voice at its best In the End, where the electric guitars come in and Alex is playing the one note riff before a majestic slide down the strings A Passage to Bangkok - the rhythm underneath the lines starting at "Sweet Jamaican pipe dreams" Middletown Dreams - "Middle aged Madonna" verse. Always gives me the goose bumps. Drum intro to Tom Sawyer - Putting that bass hit right after the snare Baabaabaa - Keyboard intro to Subdivisions The whole band going nuts in the solo section of Freewill - especially the ending part where Alex alternates the rhythm and lead lines I'll stop there. I could do this all day.
  14. Any one of Rick Astley's hits could qualify.
  15. I've brought this up before, but I really think Van Halen gets a bad rap .. Eddie has always played for the song with his flash thrown in for good measure.. Not sure why everyone picks on him so much.. Guys like Vai and Satriani are more self indulgent, in your face style players than Eddie.. It's not Eddies fault a slew of guys ripped off his style and forgot how to write songs. I think you hit the nail on the head. So many people have copied Eddie's style that it's become a parody now. DOn't get me wrong. I like VH. My point was that he is the total driving force of the music and, at least not until the late 80s, did he ever sit back and let his playing breath in other players' spaces. It's his own style, which is cool, but I don't see him as a "listener" in any way. Maybe that's why he can't jam with other people. Plus, Alex is harder than Eddie.
  16. I've been playing guitar for thirty years now (gulp), and I can honestly say that the further I have gone into music, the more I appreciate Alex's playing. In my teens I wanted to play a million notes a second and be flash and stand out. Alex's biggest abiity is to write complex, emotive, and intellectual pieces for the guitar and position himself within the music, whether just to serve the song, to embolden another player's work, or to stand out and shine. Not many guitarists are able to move so well within the context of a piece of music. You can talk about Van Halen, great for sure, but his playing is always at one level - in your face. Same with so many others. Hendrix was master of the art of positioning himself. I believe that Alex is too, and, for anyone who disagrees, I would suggest they play some of his music themselves to really understand how extraordinary so many of his parts are even without any other backing, let alone with the other instrumentation. Plus, I will kick anyone's arse who says he's not good. Because I am very hard.
  17. The Stranglers - The Raven - The first album that got me truly hooked on music The Clash - London Calling - Just because it is so cool. Guns of Brixton inspired the creation of the word "swagger" Big Country - The Crossing - Whenever I listen to this I am a teenager again. Really takes me back. The saddest suicide in music. David Bowie - Scary Monsters - Side 1 (I'm old) is unbeatable.I remember seeing the video for Ashes to Ashes and not believing my eyes. David Bowie - Hunky Dory - Something about this album always made it feel like DB was in the room singing. Rush - Moving Pictures - Anyone else remember hearing the opening of Tom Sawyer for the first time? Van Halen - 1984 - Made me want to go widdly-widdly on the guitar. Lone Justice - Shelter - There was a girl involved. Haven't heard this one in years. Rush - Grace under Pressure - Me and a buddy used to waste hours just talking about and listening to this album. Michael Jackson - Thriller - I haven't heard this in forever, but anyone who was a teenager when this thing was released will tell you it was a landmark in music.I still remember going to school on a Monday after the first screening of the Thriller video the night before. It seemed like people were talking about nothing else. The Waterboys - A Pagan Place - A big influence on my songwriting at the time. Pearl Jam - Vs - I didn't like this at first, but it soon became my obsession. Good times drinking with friends with this as the soundtrack.
  18. The run up and down is pretty much straightforward picking. The repeating section is all pull offs. You can usually hear when Alex is picking because he tends to dig into the strings pretty hard with the plectrum. This is one of my favourite moments from this album, so thanks for posting it.
  19. Not to be pedantic, but I've never heard Alex sweeping, which is when the pick travels in the same direction (either up and down stoke) across the strings, that is,one hit per string. This is used almost exclusively for arpeggio playing, which Alex does not do much in his solos. People like Malmsteen use this technique a lot. Alex uses a lot of hammer ons and pull offs in his style, more left hand than right hand work. He's not the cleanest of alternate pickers, and outside of a few solos, he rarely employs this technique for more than a few notes if he is going at any speed. The big exception would be La Villa, and also Freewill, the latter being a little bit messy but exciting as hell.
  20. Loved Grace immediately, except, funnily enough, for Between the Wheels (which is now my favourite). I remember buying Power Windows the day of its release and being disappointed at first. By the end of the day and repeated listens, I got it. Yes, it sounds a little dated now, but there are some great songs on there - I defy anyone to listen to Middletown Dreams and not get chills. Hold your fire disappointed me right from the off, and though I got to find some things in it that I liked, I rarely listened to it after the first week or so. For me, that was the beginning of the end of the magic period. Something just went missing, and I think it took until Clockwork Angels for that to return, minus a good song here and there. From Permanent Waves to Power Windows is still my favourite era of Rush.
  21. Three way tie between "Limelight", "Freewill" and "Between the Wheels". Whatever I'm doing, when any of those come on, I stop and listen. They never get boring for me.
  22. hem

    The Garden!

    You can see that this song is pretty special to all of the guys. From the breakdown and guitar solo onwards, it is very emotional. Geddy's vocals are bad during the first half of the song - no doubt about it. Still, they could always haave tweaked it in post, and the fact that they decided not to shows that they value the emotion over being pitch perfect. Great video.
  23. I never get people's lack of interest in this album. I guess I understand it more if they just hated the keyboard era entirely, but to love Signals, GUP and Power Windows and to dislike this album makes no sense to me. That said, I felt how you felt about Presto in terms of a limp effort after many years of killer albums. HYF, the last 2 songs notwithstanding, was an outstanding album. What can i say? I really enjoyed the keyboard era. There was just something missing for me on HYF. I think it all felt a little too "smooth" if that makes any sense. There was a sense of anger or frustration on those earlier albums that I thought was lacking on HYF. I like Rush with a little more urgency. That said, I don't think it's a bad album. Just disappointing.
  24. I remember buying this the first day it came out. Me and a good buddy put the vinyl on and stood by the speakers. Song by song we got less excited and by the end just looked at each other and shook our heads. I felt genuine disappointment. After the monstrosity of the run from Permanent Waves to Power Windows, this felt like a limp effort. I lasted two more albums after this before I gave up on Rush for quite a number of years. Glad I came back though. I listen to it from time to time, but my attention usually wavers after a few songs.
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