1-0-0-1-0-0-1

1 minute ago, treeduck said:

I'll vote for Lifeson just because the first three votes have gone to Page, just to keep things from getting out of hand. 

 

Disingenuous! 

I'm going to vote Page in this one, but for one specific reason. When you're listening to a riff in a Rush song, it could have been written by Alex or Geddy. In fact, I'd estimate that Geddy was more the riff guy and Alex was the chord guy, especially all those beautiful and inventive arpeggios.

 

The more I think about it, I might have voted for Page anyway.

On 3/24/2024 at 5:24 AM, Tony R said:

Beauty is subjective, ability isn’t. 
Lifeson at his best, in my opinion, was far more imaginative than EVH could ever be. Technique wise it’s a no brainer. There’s a level above Lifeson in terms of technique that he could never reach and there’s a few electric guitarists that inhabit that space; EVH, Vai, Satriani, Guthrie Govan for starters. However, ALL these pale in comparison to the likes of Segovia and other legendary classical guitarists. 

 

Agreed, though EVH had his moments with some of his songwriting. Songs like Light Up The Sky and A.F.U. had some adventurous ideas, and overall he had a rhythmic sensibility that was anything but basic. There was a lot of syncopation in his tunes, and due credit to Alex and Michael for effectively navigating that.

I'm writing this as I listen.

 

1. Edge of Life

Solid opener! My only gripe is in the solo section. That section is awesome, love how it goes into the double time feel, but all of those crash cymbals get in the way of a very good guitar solo. There are two bars where it's just ride cymbal and in that one spot the guitar is allowed to shine.

 

2. Invisible Hand

The very top of the intro reminded me of Aerosmith's Sweet Emotion, but not for long. That moody intro took its time, in fact the whole song took its time, and it worked. I didn't realize this song was over 8 minutes long until after it was over, which is always a good thing. Some nice surprise chord changes.

 

3. Ready Player One

Rush's post-synth era had it's share of bad songs, and also some good ones. This reminds me of the good ones. Nice arrangement, and the guitar sound under the vocals is perfect. Very nice solo at the end.

 

4. Shoulder

That intro is kinda creepy, love it. There's a sinister undertone going on throughout, very effective. My favorite track up till this point. If I had to gripe about something, the drum patterns didn't quite sell some of the time changes. Also, I thought the ending faded too soon -- that bass drum and guitar pattern sounded cool and could have been allowed to establish itself a little more with a few more bars and a slower fadeout. Just my opinion, it certainly isn't a mistake.

 

5. Hearts

Great guitar riff! The organ in the background is the perfect choice for this one. That first solo -- what am I hearing there? It's well played and melodic but it sounds a little out of tune, at least to my ears. The guitar solo makes up for it, though. It's an absolute banger.

 

6. Spades

Another good guitar riff, and tone for days too. Nice contrast to a cleaner tone for the verses. The bridge into the solo section was a very nice change of feel. The best drum programming so far. Second favorite track as of now.

 

7. Clubs.

I could be wrong, but I sense a theme in these last three song titles. I also sense that these three tunes have great guitar riffs. Coincidence? Probably not. That middle section is goddamn awesome.

 

8. Diamonds

Yep, I was right, another card title, another  cool riff. Sounds like you hired Les Claypool for the verse vocals, and it works! Nice breakdown after the middle section. And there's a cool bass bit towards the end -- Les would approve!

 

9. Sometimes it Does

Nice song, very melodic. Has a nice flow. The feel change for the middle section was very effective, but for me the edgy note choices in the beginning of the guitar solo don't quite fit the mood of the song. Just my opinion -- it just felt funny for that one bar. Once you're past that, however, that solo is on point and it rips. Perfect tone and playing. One minor point about the fadeout, and it's the same point made earlier -- the ending here was good and I thought it faded too early. Maybe let it go for at least four bars before starting the fade?

 

10. Variable, This is Knife

An 8-1/2-minute song with a title that references Clear And Present Danger? Cool! "Do we have a gig, over?" However, while there are some nice ideas here, and the bass work is excellent, it feels like a long buildup without a payoff. I know I sounded like music critic there, sorry about that. Just like that scene in the movie, I was waiting for the "impact with high-order detonation" and it never came.

 

11. Words that Hurt to Hear

The '80s! Nothing but smiles during this one. Good example of edgy note choices that work well and serve the song. The ending was maybe a little abrupt but this is a fun and well-executed track.

 

12. Sarajevo Rose

That transition at 1:55 is one that perks your ears up. This is right up there with Spades as my second/third favorite. Nice songwriting and arrangement, and a solid album closer.

 

 

 

10 hours ago, Maverick said:

Well, I did a thing:

 

Kiesel California Carved Top in Crimson Red

 

You absolutely did do a thing! She's a beaut! 

 

The extra mini toggle switch -- did you opt for piezo bridge saddles?

Looked for an official Black Sabbath thread, and this is what I found.

 

Came across this concert just now. I really liked the Dio-Sabbath stuff back in the day, and this show sounds great. On the opening track Mob Rules, I'm hearing a rhythm guitar behind Tony's solos. Anyone here know what the deal is with that, because I don't see another guitar player on stage.

 

 

 

56 minutes ago, goose said:

Happy birthday!  Now for the spanking...

 

 

Usually Ducky pays double for that kind of action. Even on his birthday. Happy birthday Ducky!

 

21 hours ago, BastillePark said:

Wendy's now says they won't be doing the surge pricing. Whew, what a relief. 

 

20 hours ago, Principled Man said:

Back in the day, it took weeks of boycotts and thousands of strongly-worded paper letters mailed to the Company to get them to change their minds.... 

 

26 minutes ago, blackhawkrush said:

Well done, Principled Man!   

 

TRF will be celebrating its 20th birthday this August. This might be our proudest moment.

I'm taking a bit of a chance with this one, but it's funny and on-topic.

 

 

6 hours ago, 1-0-0-1-0-0-1 said:

 

Five Guys has gone up a lot since the pandemic. Here in NY, their normal two-patty burger, small fries and a bottle of water is now over $18. They're good burgers, and their fries are the best (and they don't skimp on them), but that's a lot.

 

McD's burgers are bottom-tier for fast food burgers and are nowhere near as good as Five Guys, so the thought of paying $18 for a Big Mac meal is as hard to stomach as the burgers themselves.

 

47 minutes ago, The Analog Cub said:

 

Five Guys is expensive, and my location started skimping on them (by their standards), in that they aren't dumping another scoop straight in the bag. Just enough to fill the little fry container. It's not NY prices making it $18, either, it's stupid high in Iowa, too.

 

I last went there about a month ago, but that was the first time in maybe eight months. I didn't notice a difference in the amount of fries (got the usual "extra" scoop in the bag) or in the food quality in general, but I did notice the price increase.

14 minutes ago, Principled Man said:

 

 

1980: My coworkers and I once marveled at our coworker, "Bill", who went next door to McDonalds and ate $8.00 worth of food.    

 

Five Guys has gone up a lot since the pandemic. Here in NY, their normal two-patty burger, small fries and a bottle of water is now over $18. They're good burgers, and their fries are the best (and they don't skimp on them), but that's a lot.

 

McD's burgers are bottom-tier for fast food burgers and are nowhere near as good as Five Guys, so the thought of paying $18 for a Big Mac meal is as hard to stomach as the burgers themselves.

Maybe McD's should try it.

 

 

Typical hyperbolic clickbait headline, but their prices have gone up a lot in the past few years.

On 2/22/2024 at 12:17 PM, treeduck said:

 

 

The only thing I don't like about this one is that it reminds me of this:

 

 

1 hour ago, Jack Aubrey said:

I've heard the song and there's nothing country about it.

 

To be fair, a lot of modern country is more pop-country. Four-chord pop music with autotuned vocals, with a bit of country twang. Beyonce's lyrics refer to boots, booze, hoedowns and Texas, with what sounds like a banjo in the background. These days that's pretty much all you need.

14 hours ago, 1-0-0-1-0-0-1 said:

 

 

 

4 hours ago, Nova Carmina said:

 

It's a fun gif, it is! But -- as a neutral -- there's something just a scooch off about using a (pretend) Nazi in a rebuttal to an implicit "racist ideologies" argument. I can't decide if it's genius trolling, a little too on the nose, or saying the quiet part out loud . . . 

 

I was going to respond with "Bingo!" but decided to go with a gif version. Christoph Waltz was brilliant in that movie and his delivery of the above line was funny. Nothing beyond that went into choosing that image.

 

I didn't even think of the  Nazi angle in the context of this thread. I wish I could claim it was "genius trolling," but nothing so clever, I'm afraid. Besides, you don't need a high level of cleverness when responding to Mith's childish race-baiting.

3 hours ago, 1-0-0-1-0-0-1 said:

This crowd? How would you describe this crowd?

 

1 hour ago, goose said:

Smarter than he anticipated?

 

5 hours ago, 1-0-0-1-0-0-1 said:

 

You're (rightly) catching shit because instead of starting a thread simply celebrating Beyonce's accomplishment, you saw it as an opportunity to do a little race-baiting. Totally immature and unnecessary, but on-brand for you

 

Oh and, Darius Rucker has been a popular mainstream country star for years now after crossing over from pop music, and country fans aren't getting bent about it.

 

 

 

3 hours ago, Mithrandir said:

Of course I race-baited it for this crowd.  Darius isn't a woman.  Las I checked.

 

This crowd? How would you describe this crowd?

50 minutes ago, Mithrandir said:

Huh? Bigotry towards whom?

 

Did i say everyone in the south?  I specifically said, "dem good ol boys".  And if you don't think there's a large number of Country music enthusiasts getting bent over this, you have your head in the sand.

 

You're (rightly) catching shit because instead of starting a thread simply celebrating Beyonce's accomplishment, you saw it as an opportunity to do a little race-baiting. Totally immature and unnecessary, but on-brand for you

 

Oh and, Darius Rucker has been a popular mainstream country star for years now after crossing over from pop music, and country fans aren't getting bent about it.

 

 

On 1/9/2024 at 2:46 PM, treeduck said:

 

 

I never got into the metal scene back in the '70s and '80s, and bands like  Priest and Saxon didn't interest me much (Iron Maiden is the exception), but this is a seriously good song.

I'm pondering:

 

Will the Yankees again become a contender, and will Juan Soto help them get there? And can the Texas Rangers repeat as champs? Nobody is picking them to win it again.

1 hour ago, goose said:

Does Butker deserve MVP?  I say yes

 

I turned it off. Did he get it? The script says give it to (an undeserving) Kelce so he can turn it into a marriage proposal.

12 minutes ago, blueschica said:

They kicked NOW?  Should have gone for it.

 

10 minutes ago, goose said:

 

Agreed, at that point they had to secure the tie.

15 hours ago, HemiBeers said:

not sure I agree with alex about the pickup switch on the horn. I prefer "pinky" switching close to the bridge. but what alex wants, alex gets.

 

The whole guitar, including the control layout, is modeled after the original Hentor Sportscaster. I don't like that switch location either, but guess Alex didn't want to change it from the original.