andrew28

Far Cry Caravan Armour and Sword Main Monkey Business Clockwork Angels The Anarchist BU2B Earthshine Vapor Trail The Wreckers How It Is The Way the Wind Blows The Garden

Can anyone point me to a restaurant that will give me food that I'm pretty sure I won't like? In the off chance that I do actually like the food, I guess I'll pay for it. But I probably won't like it, so in return for said food, I will offer my scathing review of it. Thank u.

QUOTE (GeminiRising79 @ Jul 9 2012, 03:19 PM) I've only heard the lo-res youtube version of CA, and I refuse to purchase the CD based on my initial reaction to it. If anyone would be willing to point me to a good quality recording, I will give a fair listen and see if it "blooms" after a week. If I do see some early glimmers and it grows on me, like so many of you insist, I will buy the CD. If not, I will give an in-depth critique of each song, and the album as a whole. Thank u, Kurt So you want a free CD and in exchange you'll give us your song-by-song review? Pass.

QUOTE (spock @ Jul 9 2012, 01:13 PM) So, in the middle of a song about mechanical angels that control "everything", the band transitions into some barroom blues segment that (a) musically isn't aligned with the rest of the song and ( seems very out of place in such a song based solely on the lyrics up to that point. Anyone else scratching their heads over that? Are they making some music reference to something we'll read in the novel (inside joke?), but otherwise doesn't quite fit? I thought that maybe the barroom blues section (nice name!) was supposed to be the watchmaker speaking out to the masses (hence the megaphone effect), and the rest of the song was merely a description of Chronos Square and the Angels themselves.

I'm there, but my name is split over two lines: ...........................................................Andrew Miller.............................................................

QUOTE (bluefox4000 @ Jul 2 2012, 11:18 PM) Still underwhelmed. but.....unlike most, I was Never ever expecting anything much. Not this late..... in their 20th damn album I mean that is a lot of information. I'm just happy to still have them active.....even if it produces ok to good albums. Mick I agree. An "OK" Rush album is much better than a masterpiece from most bands.

QUOTE (SlyJeff @ Jul 1 2012, 06:45 PM) QUOTE (beherit @ Jul 1 2012, 05:51 PM) I can hear a bit from all their records except the synth era To me The Anarchist sounds a lot like some of their Synth era tunes if you removed the synths. I thought the same thing. It would fit nicely on Signals.

QUOTE (SchemingDemon @ Jun 26 2012, 06:13 PM) Really? Again? I refuse to believe some people are this stupid Huh?

BTW, for those interested in getting their own copies of the preview, Anderson is making them available to the general public (it will cost you $1.30 in US postage): http://www.wordfire.com/images/stories/fre...klt_request.pdf

These days is seems like every movie that hits theaters is offered in 3D, too. Do you think they boys will bring back the 3D glasses for the CA tour (minus the Count Floyd intro). The whole steampunk vibe certainly lends itself to 3D.

QUOTE (spock @ Jun 21 2012, 01:00 PM) I know the story arc but feel like I'm looking at 12 Polaroid pictures trying to make out a life story - I expect the novel will fill in all the holes and make me appreciate CA even more. Very well said.

QUOTE (Gedneil Alpeart @ Jun 21 2012, 11:05 AM) QUOTE (andrew28 @ Jun 21 2012, 10:30 AM) QUOTE (Pound of Obscure @ Jun 21 2012, 09:51 AM) QUOTE (andrew28 @ Jun 21 2012, 09:29 AM) QUOTE (briremo @ Jun 20 2012, 08:59 PM) QUOTE (CantStopThinkingBig @ Jun 20 2012, 08:18 PM) Don't get me wrong, it's a good album... and it blows away S&A (which isn't hard to do). But I'm just feeling a bit underwhelmed. Maybe I expected too much... maybe it was all the anticipation. I also feel like the 3 singles we got to hear ahead of time are the main highlights of the album, so everything else is just "meh". I don't know... maybe I need to give it more time. Ive listened to it a few times now and have a couple of the tunes staying with me. I'm now burdened with the realization that they have cut and pasted the chorus arrangements for the past 10 years. So many people are leaning towards The Garden and personally I love it. And the reason is its melodic and original. as for the rest of the album I agree. meh. I agree. There are plenty of great "moments" throughout the album, but there are only a few songs that I LOVE from start to finish. There seems to be a lot of "cutting and pasting" and often the transitions from one paste to another are not so great. Sonically, it sounds like every other album today. One review I read compared it to a Nickelback album (production wise - not musically) and I can see his point. Part of what made Hemispheres, MP and PW is the production: Neil's crisp snare, Alex's bright and brilliant guitars, Geddy's signature bass lines - all working together and complementing each other without any sense of overpowering the other part. I can listen to Hemispheres on crappy headphones or computer speakers and still pick out ever little intricate detail. I can't say the same about CA. You're sonically stuck man. Get with the times. Music today is supposed to sound like fuzzy, buzzing crap. Time to grow and move on dude. In that case, it's the model of what modern audio production should be. Production aside, it still has lots of great moments, but there are just as many "meh" moments, too. The album's shining moments far, far outweight any "meh" moments for me. It's a very subjective take. About the sound, while I agree that Rush's older albums and generally albums from that time sounded clearer, warmer, and with better separation (which is ironic, considering that it's supposed to GET BETTER with time), today's sound and that of CA does not bother me and I'm easily able to overlook it. Yes, I acknowledge that it's loud, dense, and at times muddled, but those factors do not take away my enjoyment of the songs, which to me are some of their strongest in decades. I go by what I feel....the emotions....and I feel positive things when I hear this album that I haven't felt in a Rush album since the 1980s. So, I'm in the camp that agrees that sonic production has gotten worse with time, not better, but I'm easily able to overlook it when the music itself is so strong and powerful to me as I hear it on CA. With VT, I am not able to overlook it because the sonic production is much, much worse than on CA and the music is not as strong.....much more choatic, disorganized, and scattered. Agreed. I just wish the production was better so I could appreciate the music a little bit more. I think Nick R. does a great job at inspiring them to do great things (like a coach or conductor), but unfortunately, a lot of those things get lost in the mix.

QUOTE (Pound of Obscure @ Jun 21 2012, 09:51 AM) QUOTE (andrew28 @ Jun 21 2012, 09:29 AM) QUOTE (briremo @ Jun 20 2012, 08:59 PM) QUOTE (CantStopThinkingBig @ Jun 20 2012, 08:18 PM) Don't get me wrong, it's a good album... and it blows away S&A (which isn't hard to do). But I'm just feeling a bit underwhelmed. Maybe I expected too much... maybe it was all the anticipation. I also feel like the 3 singles we got to hear ahead of time are the main highlights of the album, so everything else is just "meh". I don't know... maybe I need to give it more time. Ive listened to it a few times now and have a couple of the tunes staying with me. I'm now burdened with the realization that they have cut and pasted the chorus arrangements for the past 10 years. So many people are leaning towards The Garden and personally I love it. And the reason is its melodic and original. as for the rest of the album I agree. meh. I agree. There are plenty of great "moments" throughout the album, but there are only a few songs that I LOVE from start to finish. There seems to be a lot of "cutting and pasting" and often the transitions from one paste to another are not so great. Sonically, it sounds like every other album today. One review I read compared it to a Nickelback album (production wise - not musically) and I can see his point. Part of what made Hemispheres, MP and PW is the production: Neil's crisp snare, Alex's bright and brilliant guitars, Geddy's signature bass lines - all working together and complementing each other without any sense of overpowering the other part. I can listen to Hemispheres on crappy headphones or computer speakers and still pick out ever little intricate detail. I can't say the same about CA. You're sonically stuck man. Get with the times. Music today is supposed to sound like fuzzy, buzzing crap. Time to grow and move on dude. In that case, it's the model of what modern audio production should be. Production aside, it still has lots of great moments, but there are just as many "meh" moments, too.

QUOTE (briremo @ Jun 20 2012, 08:59 PM) QUOTE (CantStopThinkingBig @ Jun 20 2012, 08:18 PM) Don't get me wrong, it's a good album... and it blows away S&A (which isn't hard to do). But I'm just feeling a bit underwhelmed. Maybe I expected too much... maybe it was all the anticipation. I also feel like the 3 singles we got to hear ahead of time are the main highlights of the album, so everything else is just "meh". I don't know... maybe I need to give it more time. Ive listened to it a few times now and have a couple of the tunes staying with me. I'm now burdened with the realization that they have cut and pasted the chorus arrangements for the past 10 years. So many people are leaning towards The Garden and personally I love it. And the reason is its melodic and original. as for the rest of the album I agree. meh. I agree. There are plenty of great "moments" throughout the album, but there are only a few songs that I LOVE from start to finish. There seems to be a lot of "cutting and pasting" and often the transitions from one paste to another are not so great. Sonically, it sounds like every other album today. One review I read compared it to a Nickelback album (production wise - not musically) and I can see his point. Part of what made Hemispheres, MP and PW is the production: Neil's crisp snare, Alex's bright and brilliant guitars, Geddy's signature bass lines - all working together and complementing each other without any sense of overpowering the other part. I can listen to Hemispheres on crappy headphones or computer speakers and still pick out ever little intricate detail. I can't say the same about CA.

I hear lots of "throwback" throughout. The opening riff to Carnies could have come off of Rush or FBN (or a Byrds album). The main riff to 7 Cities has throwback written all over it. And Headlong Flight in addition to Bastille Day, has a definite "By-Tor" feel in the solo section at around 5:00. Those are just a few off the top of my head.

I'm wondering if they'll stick to the story of Clockwork Angels this tour (to try to explain things and flesh out the story a bit); or if they'll have some fun with it and make fun of the idea. They never seem to take themselves too seriously. I could picture them mocking Clockwork Angels a bit by doing a "Duloc is a Happy Place" style piece from Shrek: Or like the Wonka's Welcome song from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory:

It's only a matter of time before someone in this group isolates the chanting, runs it through Pro Tools and reverses it to figure out what he's saying. We are Rush fans after all.

I was wondering if when they do it live he'll actually click his sticks or if he'll hit an electronic drum that has the sound sampled in (not sure if the drum mics would pick up the sound of the sticks).

QUOTE (GeddyRulz @ Jun 18 2012, 05:47 AM) Overrated: Clockwork Angels (title track). My opinion may change, but so far it's not grabbing me. It apparently has some diehard fans who are calling it the best song on the album by far... but I'm not getting it. Underrated: Wish Them Well. In my top four, easy. It doesn't get enough love, with many putting it near the bottom of the heap, if not THE bottom. Sure, it's just a straight-ahead rocker, but it's terrific. It's uptempo with a good vocal melody during the catchy chorus: "Thank your stars you're not that way..." Then there's "The Garden," which everybody rates very highly, but it DESERVES it! I agree with wholeheartedly. There are PARTS of CA that I love, but the segues from one section to next seem a bit "rough" to me. Maybe in time I'll get used to them and they won't seem so out of place.

QUOTE (Earthshine @ Jun 14 2012, 05:59 PM) Got to read it now. When does it go on sale? I think its release coincides with the tour. On Anderson's website, he said he'd make extras of the preview available. I bet if you shot him an email he'd hook you up.

QUOTE (cygnify @ Jun 14 2012, 11:19 AM) Very Cool!! There is a copy of this for sale on e-bay. Ridiculous price - but the description for the item has the basic description of the story line - but then, very cryptically mentions a name: "Owen Hardy" Is this the name of the protagonist??? SPOILER Scroll Down Yes, the protagonist's name is Owen Hardy.

QUOTE (cygnify @ Jun 14 2012, 11:19 AM) Very Cool!! There is a copy of this for sale on e-bay. Ridiculous price - but the description for the item has the basic description of the story line - but then, very cryptically mentions a name: "Owen Hardy" Is this the name of the protagonist??? I'll give a look see and let you know

QUOTE (lifeson90 @ Jun 6 2012, 06:28 PM) yeah nice one Andrew... tell the missus she has our respect She even likes "some Rush." Oddly enough, her faves are of the CP/RTB/TFE era.

QUOTE (upstateNYfan @ Jun 12 2012, 10:00 PM) Tonight I listened to the full album while on a long walk, and enorphins notwithstanding, Clockwork Angels was phenomenal. The best word I came up with was soaring.To achieve this level of musicianship while all are pushing 60 is unparalleled. Each of them are simply on fire. Allusions of Rush from each decade of their career are evident throughout the album, and the story weaves and blends cohesively into a brilliant album. It's their finest work. I did the same thing. I took a long walk the other night and I liked it a lot more under those circumstances (as opposed to listening to drips and drabs in the car or at work).