fraroc

Recently, I've been thinking about KISS' supposed final tour (which I've seen, the show they're putting on this tour is just incredible), and the whole big controversy and the accusations of the band using backing tracks. I couldn't help but be reminded of the few times during the Synth era and afterwards where Rush had music playing in the background that wasn't them. Whenever Rush did Grand Designs, the keyboard intro was pre-recorded. Rush performing Mission on the HYF tour, when Ged just presses a key down on one of the four midi controllers to trigger the opening organ chords when he could have easily played it on his own...Another example is Rush performing Where's My Thing live where Ged just steps on his Taurus Pedal once to trigger the keyboard parts. Clearly those parts weren't being played live, however I've never really notice people say anything about it though. I'm not even talking about criticism, just people mentioning the fact that Rush used samples. So for me, that kinda begs the question of were they the only band that was able to get away with using samples and backing tracks for certain keyboard parts completely unscathed from criticism?

When I was a little kid, probably about 10 years old, I swore up and down that Cherry Pie was Def Leppard.

66 years young and doesn't look like he aged a year past 50 :)

Neil wrote something about how he had some kind of end of the road t-shirts printed up and passed them around. Alex got pissed off and threw his in the trash. Something like that. So yeah, Lerxst wasn't happy. I'd hate to say this, but sometimes it does seem that Alex (and to an extent Neil) felt some kind of resentment towards Ged as he's the one who really wanted this tour to just happen in the first place, let alone extend it (which never happened). Its kind of sad to think about this, but any sort of tour extention could have meant the permanent end of their friendship.

THAT was supposed to show how angry Lifeson was during that tour?! "Punch someone"?! Yeah, you're reading too much into it. Haven't you ever been so concentrated on something that you weren't smiling? Of course you've been there! We all have. One of the most enjoyable things to me is playing racquetball and tennis. Without a doubt, I'm certain I'm not smiling much of the time playing either sport. But no way am I angry or would I like to punch anyone no matter what the corners of my mouth look like. Come on, man. Think about it. Mostly, I'm basing my comparison on that clip of Jacobs Ladder and the R40 DVD with the Clockwork Angels live DVD. It just seemed like his overall demeanor was a different, and as sad as it is to say, kinda seemed like he lost his enjoyment of playing live. I know Alex doesn't smile 100% percent of the time, but he did a lot more on the CA tour than R40.

Nah I think Geddina looks the best

Well specifically, one of the clips I was talking about was Jacob's Ladder from Vegas. Neil was being normal stoic Neil so that's to be expected, but Alex on the other had such an angry, disgusted expression on his face at times that he looked like he was going to punch someone. Meanwhile, Ged was the polar opposite, having fun, smiling...

Now, I think it's rather clear that Neil was going to check out after R40. As someone who has disliked touring since the synth era, it really is surprising that he held out for that long. But four years later looking at R40 footage on Youtube, you could clearly tell that Alex did NOT look happy. In fact, it seemed like the Alex that was goofing around onstage during the Clockwork Angels tour, doing funny things to make the audience laugh while playing was gone, and he just looked angry and pissed off, like someone who punches walls. And really, the only one I saw having a genuinely good time onstage was Geddy. Maybe I'm reading too much into this.

I will say that the one problem I had with the modern bass tone was that it always sounded very weird when it came to the 80s songs. Listen to Clockwork Angels Live and you'll definitely hear what I mean The Lemmy tone+songs from Power Windows doesnt really go well

Honestly doesn't seem like it was that long ago

Well think of it this way. Is Moving Pictures a synth era Rush album or is it a prog era Rush album? For me, it's both and neither at the same time. It's in a league of its own and thats one of the things that made MP so great It was definitely stage one..or 0.9... and Vital Signs, last track, ushered in the full synth era imo. Personally I'd say The Camera Eye and Witch Hunt ushered in the synths more.

Although I suck at playing (mostly because I'm too busy with IRL stuff to practice), I am a bit of gearhead ;)

Yeah, Geddy Lee was trying to match Lemmy’s bass tone. I know you're being sarcastic, but you can't deny how heavy Ged's bass tone got in those 2000s-2010s tours where he played nothing except his Jazz. It almost does sound Lemmy-esque at times. You can tell that was his favorite tone though, as he tried to replicate it on the various other basses he played on R40, such as the Thunderbird, the Les Paul bass, and even the Canora bass from the 60s.

For me personally, I think Geddy's bass playing style works good for both sounds. You can clearly indentify Geddy's stule in both tones. Either the poppy, clean Wal and Steinberger bass sound or the gritty, distorted, almost Lemmy Kilmeister-esque sound of the Ricky and the Fender Jazz. In terms of what I personally prefer, as I'm more partial to 80s Rush, I gotta go with the clean tone, especially with the Wal.

Well think of it this way. Is Moving Pictures a synth era Rush album or is it a prog era Rush album? For me, it's both and neither at the same time. It's in a league of its own and thats one of the things that made MP so great

Another era of Rush that's actually pretty awkward isn't really talked about as it's the band's literal apex. Moving Pictures. Again, it's another transitional period for the band. It wasn't quite the 70s prog Rush and it wasn't quite the 80s new wave Rush either. It was something kinda in the middle. While songs like Red Barchetta, Limelight, Tom Sawyer, and Vital Signs are very bass heavy with minimal keyboards, you also had songs like The Camera Eye and Witch Hunt which featured Geddy playing keyboards while singing and substituting bass guitar with synth bass which became a staple on the following four albums.

When you see how Rush evolved musically and visually througout the 70s into the 80s and then the 90s, I think that the most awkward era out of all of them would be the Presto era. The reason being was that Rush was in a transitory state, the 80s had come to a close and the 90s had come, the sound on Presto the album is reminiscent of Hold Your Fire and a bit of Power Windows, but with the bass guitar being brought back into the forefront and the keyboards becoming more background in nature, with Ged opting to use backing tracks for keyboard parts on Presto as opposed to playing them (Of course, with the exception of Show Don't Tell). Their live show and image was also in an awkward in-between state. Alex still had his 80s hairstyle, Geddy still had a ponytail,but didn't perm the top of his hair anymore and wore glasses after years of contacts, Ged reduced his keyboards from four to two live, and Neil still played double bass. So while Rush was slowly transforming their live show into something more modern and scaled back, some vintage elements still remained.

RUSH became a heavier version of what early Kansas and Styx were doing. Compare Kansas 1974 to RUSH 1974. Peart made the transition away from Zep-rock possible. I always thought that Kansas was more of an "Americana" version of Yes. Not that it's a bad thing :)

I honestly hope that one day, someone in Rush opens the vault, and some never before seen concert footage gets leaked onto the net.

According to wikipedia, "Dark wave or darkwave is a music genre that emerged from the new wave and post-punk movement of the late 1970s.[5][6] Dark wave compositions are largely based on minor key tonality and introspective lyrics, and have been perceived as being dark, romantic, and bleak, with an undertone of sorrow." Essentially synthpop with dark, depressing lyrics. Based on this definition alone, I think that Grace Under Pressure falls under this category. Every single track on this record showcases some kind of darkness, sadness, or unpleasantry about life. 1. Distant Early Warning: Cold War tensions and nuclear war 2. Afterimage: Loss of a loved one 3. Red Sector A: The Holocaust 4. The Enemy Within: Anxiety and the power of fear 5. The Body Electric: Technology taking over humanity 6. Kid Gloves: Bullying and hatred 7. Red Lenses: McCarthyism and The Red Scare 8. Between The Wheels: Living in times of war. What do you guys think?

Would Primus count? Their music is legitimately good, however it's not meant to be taken seriously at all.

I think that in the five years I've been here you all know what my choice is.... (spoiler alert, its Witch Hunt)

So basically, Rush Alive Forever?

Mystic Rhythms from New Jersey was able to sell out the Paramount Theatre in Long Island, NY which is a decent 1500 seat middle of the market venue.

I kinda feel the same way about Devin Townsend. Not a lot of people in the metal world take him seriously, but one cant deny he is very talented.