Gentle Giant

QUOTE (AledLifebuoy @ May 30 2011, 09:55 AM) OK, so here's my two pennyworth: - yes I have registered just to make this post - yes I am aware that Rush themselves may not read this, but am hoping that maybe (a) they or someone close to them will get wind of it and/or ( someone else here can point me to a way of getting the news to them - for the record (in case it matters) I have been a Rush fan for 30 years (one day maybe I'll be able to say "50 odd years"...), so everything I say here is meant in the spirit not of radio but of genuine surprise, disappointment and constructive criticism... ...but the sound utterly sucked. I was in Block 106 (if the stage was 12 o'clock this would have been about 7 o'clock), maybe 25 rows up the elevation. From the beginning of "Spirit..." I knew something was amiss, I couldn't quite tell what it was but knew that the headache/sickness inducing subsonic standing wave was NOT in the Rush gameplan for the evening. Eventually I figured that it was Neil's kick drum which was just so loud/badly filtered that it was overwhelming everything at the bottom end anywhere its frequency range - Geddy's voice when it dropped into the low registers, Alex's guitar when he played at the bottom of the neck, and any percussion other than the snare or cymbals. The net of all this was that the first set was virtually unlistenable - I even went to have a word with the sound guy who claimed it was OK...or a "room issue". As someone who has either been to or had reports from friends who have been to everything from Metallica to Prince at the O2, I can confirm that plenty of bands can get the room spot on (Roger Water's The Wall the week before was like listening to the CD). In retrospect I didn't think I was alone - hardly anyone around me was reacting, muted applause, no cheers or whatever, I think mostly because they were all thinking "wtf?", rather than some dodgy set list choices. The second set was a little better, but by that time we had moved to some spare seats behind the sound desk, so we couldn't see much but at least could hear something. All in all a huge disappointment: having looked forward to this gig for around 6 months (and 6 years since the R30 tour at the toilet bowl that is Wembley Arena) I walked out feeling really flat. Guys - if you/your management are reading this, some response would be appreciated - there are enough people complaining here to be clear that it wasn't my imagination (or that of my mate who was there and said the same thing). Very well said...!...totally agree ( see first post)...those of us seated on the sides at the O2 on the 25th cant all be deaf.!!............still disappointed !

QUOTE (Loz @ May 26 2011, 07:30 AM) Afternoon all. Went to London gig last night and was as one would expect chuffed to see Rush at last (had to make do with 'Exit Stage Left' for the last 30 years!) Was sent on level 4 at the side and felt the sound was amongst the worst i had experienced in 30 years of going to concerts. Moved around to block 410 - roughly facing mid stage, for the second set. A bit of an improvement, but only a bit! I felt it was all very muddy sounding. The drums sounded somewhat 'boomy', lacking clarity. Hey i'm not expecting CD clarity but........ Any thoughts at all? By the way did the band choose the music before coming on stage? Totally agree about the sound at the02...absolutley ruined the gig for me, and having seen Rush 8 times since 1978 this was the worst..... they played there asses off...but the sound sucked ! see my post on o2 London - Disappointment.

As Rush fans for 34 years now and having seen them 8 times in the UK from 1978 ( Farewell to Kings), Myself and my best mate, together with his son, who play in our own band, were really looking forward to the 02 gig last night, and especially Moving Pictures in its entirety. However, both the vantage point (stage left mid way up) and acoustics made for a major disappointment!. Yes the band as ever were as technically brilliant as ever musically, although the rapport with the audience left something to be desired. However, the bass drum hum overpowered all the subtleties especially during the 1st half. Neal's drums fills and the Ged's vocals were drowned out, and the Ged's bass guitar sounded muffled. ! It only slightly picked up in the 2nd half. Having seen the band on the R30 show at wembley, the sound wasnt perfect but the atmosphere made up for it. Alex was the only one who could shine through the muddy mix last night. The 1st half set list was inconsistent and begged for older material. You could sense the ambivalence in the arena to the S&A songs. After playing 2112, and whipping thee crowd up, rather than keeping the momentum going, they slumped back into a track from the very average, S&A. I also felt the use of the back projections were inconsistent, with some songs featuring some or no back projections. With the quality of musician ship on show and having seen them in the '70's without the advance in technology we have today, where by the sound was brilliant....I felt cheated having to listent to such a poor sound in this day and age. Having seen Porcupine Tree at the Indigo a couple of years ago, the sound and dynamics was perfect. Such a great band as Rush and their sound engineers, should be able to adapt the sound for any venue, and surely it is not just me who was bitterly disappointed. ? I will always be a Rush fan, and I have never felt the need to be so negative after a gig, and I do admire the guys for their energy and dedication throughout difficult times in recent years, but when you pay god knows how much to see them and having watched the recnet DVD's your expectations are hightened in a venue such as the 02 In future I will stick to the DVD's !.. Disappointed from Kent !! Attached below are comments from my mate who also attended the 02 gig last night. 'Having been a fan of the band for 34 years and seen them live extensively over this period, the O2 gig was a massive dissapointment. This can be attributed to appalling sound management. The bass drum dominated everything and, together with the bass guitar caused a constant humming durge throughout almost the entire set. The second set was an improvemnt but for a band of this stature it's unacceptable. Geddy's vocals were lost most of the time and Neil's fills just failed to cut through. Alex was the only one who could be heard with any degree of clarity. The best quality of sound was when the movie played snippets of the songs! I was also dissapointed with the lack of audience rapport from Geddy. Come on man we've paid alot of money, show us some respect. Rush can't blame the acoustics of the venue, they have to be accountable. The set choice in the first half especially was perplexing. It's all very well for the band to play what they want but they must surely apply some judgement as to what works and what the audience wants. A Rush set normally builds momentum; it didn't work at all in this sense in my view. These views were shared by those folks around us and others we met on the way out. Sadly this is the last time I'll ever wish to see them live.'