Weatherman

It looks like a bad sci-fi book cover from 1983.

Funny takes here! I'll do top/bottom 3: TOP: 1. Roll the Bones -- I like the shading, and the water along the bottom 2. Moving Pictures -- a great visual pun 3. Vapor Trails -- the cover is far and away the best thing about the album, beautiful abstract expressionism BOTTOM: 1. Hemispheres -- Naked guy on a brain? Wasn't one naked guy enough? It's completely hideous 2. Signals -- It doesn't say a damn thing to me about anything, certainly not the concept of signals. Total misfire. I said what I said. 3./4. SnA/CA -- the final two albums had covers that were just too busy and muddled, much like the music

This is why GuP sounded so bad to me, in the 90s, when grunge ruled the airwaves. My ears were accustomed to heavy Seattle-style recording, with that sludgy bottom end, and huge walls of midrange guitars. When I stopped listening to that type of music, GuP grew a little better.

Based on his family, I think Ged is going to be alive for three more decades. He's got time to start to a new band!

I was just talking with a friend last month about how Marc Maron always rubbed me wrong. Bad vibes from him.

Great responses so far, thanks. I voted S&A -- the constant mid-tempo, the acoustic guitars, the lack of melody, the nondiscernable changes in the arrangements. I honestly can't think of much else like it in their catalog. Debut is a close second, but it still has vocal melodies, guitar solos, a variety of tempos, and pretty standard arrangements. Much like many other albums.

We can all agree on what constitutes the prog era, the AOR success era, the synth era. But I'm curious about your opinions re: the oddballs. You know: the albums that seem like one-offs, that aren't connected to any other albums by trend, technology, sound, or arrangements. Which album sounds the most different from everything else in the Rush catalog? I've narrowed it down to a few finalists. Comment below!

I can't believe nobody made A Farewell To Queens joke.

For such a great band, they had real trouble mixing. I can't think of any other band who had so many albums screwed up by bad mixes.

Let's hope it overdoses next year and joins the 27 Club.

Agreed. I think Lock and Key is the catchiest song in their entire catalog. If only they could rerecord the album with different synth sounds, bassier bass, and two fewer songs.

I feel like he gets written off by the general public who always associated him with his 70s banshee wail. The first Rush I ever heard was Presto, which is Geddy singing in excellent low chest voice because Rupert Hine was holding a gun to his head. "Bring it another octave down, Ged. That's it, just like that, nice and easy." LOL

It's also the beginning of his best vocal era. Alex's guitar drove the songs during the prog era, but Geddy's voice, bass, and feet drove the songs during the HYF-Presto-RTB-Counterparts era.

I'm really sorry he's gone, but at the same time none of us would've ever seen him perform again. I cannot envision anybody drumming at age 70 the way he did.

I went many years without listening to Rush. When I came back to the fold, it was most of Signals that stood out. Especially "The Weapon", with that amazing guitar solo from space, but other tunes too. (I'd never forgotten about Subdivisions.) I love love love the sound of this record. I know Alex argued about the mix, but I think the integration of keys with guitar is superb. And Neil's patterns are unrivaled -- he plays better here than he does on MP,.

No, I think they're going to leave his legacy entirely to the fans.

I think this tribute concert was a testament to how much people in the industry love and respect Dave Grohl. Musicians die all the time. Most of them aren't lucky enough to know a man who can organize top seasoned professionals to come and play for him (and with him) in the deceased person's honor. Also: I just learned that Grohl's mother died two weeks ago. Damn.

Whatever you're smoking, I want some. Alex's guitar sounded good but not great.

I said exactly that to somebody while watching it. 2112 was particularly slow. Maybe Dave asked to slow it down a bit. Oddly, I think Working Man sounded the best of the three, and I never say that. lol Alex changed the bridge part to YYZ too. I think he forgot how it went.

Damn, I honestly had no idea. I don't like KISS at all. Christ on a hockey stick, how did ever he become a musician? Thanks.

And that Signals tour setlist was SICK. All killer, no filler. That was the tour to see, IMO. (I didn't. I was 6 years old.)

Nah. Ged sounded the same as he has since 2008. You were probably hearing Les Claypool. It's hard to harmonize when you can't carry a tune in a bucket with both hands. I mean ... if Les had sung like that two thousand years ago, he would've been stoned to death.

It was great seeing them! Les Claypool: still weird! Still annoying! And why couldn't I stop watching Matt Stone play drums? It was like seeing a dog walking on its hind legs!

I would wordlessly toss Vapor Trails in front of him and hold eye contact until the message was delivered.

It's not even in my top 20.