arctangent

My friend Rae is raising money for the charity C-R-Y (Cardiac Risk in the Young) who do research into Sudden Adult Death Syndrome and give help to bereaved families. In September she will be climbing Mount Kilimanjaro and has the chance to raise an extra £5000 for her chosen charity. Would Rush fans please vote for her here: http://www.mountainwarehouse.com/charity/entries/rae-climbs-a-mountain-e353.aspx it will cost you nothing to vote and she might just raise a lot of money for a very good cause. Thank you.

i don't know where you suggest any band plays though. every venue i have ever been to i have heard people have issues with the sound, from small venues like the scala through brixton right up to wembley stadium. its the nature of most venue's design that someone somewhere will have poor sound. that isn't rush's fault though. most of these venues have become music venues by accident. there are very few purpose designed and built music venues anywhere. certainly the O2 isn't that new now and certainly wasn't originally designed as a music venue. and i have indeed not gone to concerts because i couldn't get a floor ticket. i have missed pearl jam's last 2 shows in london because i couldn't get decent floor tickets. i also nearly missed out on seeing porcupine tree at the royal albert hall (a purpose built music venue where the sound at the side and up above the floor is always complained about too) because all the decent tickets had gone (luckily someone knew someone who got me a good ticket!). i doubt next time a band play the O2 that there will only be people on the floor. some don't know, many don't care. If rush decide to play there again they will still sell most if not all the tickets as they are probably one of the best live bands in the world and lots of people want to see them.

QUOTE (marshy64 @ May 27 2011, 11:41 AM)and dare I even suggest that they could have checked out possible bad reports about the O2's sound before they considered booking the venue in the 1st place. actually they did. my brother interviewed them for classic rock presents prog magazine when beyond the lighted stage was due to be released. geddy specifically asked about the O2 and what it was like as a venue but my brother couldn't help him as he'd never been there. and if he had i'm sure he would have recommended it... as i said the sound on the floor was spot on right from the first song. far better than any rush concert at wembley arena that either of us have ever been to.

QUOTE (marshy64) Honest and truthful. YES! honest is ok. truthful though? its not truth you are stating but your opinion. that's neither true or untrue as it is not a 'fact'. if that's how you feel fine but don't try and tell us its the 'truth' and don't expect everyone to agree with your opinion. a bit of advice - next time you decide to by tickets to an arena show, try and remember the logistics of the sound in such a place. in my many years of gig going experience sound is always set up to be best in front of the stage. which is why i never by tickets for this kind of gig that are not on the floor itself. if you are anywhere else don't expect the sound to be good (although if you are lucky and it is that's a brucey bonus).

where i was, on the arena floor block B, the sound was perfect right from the off. far better than any rush show at wembley arena where it often takes several songs for the sound guy to sort out. i guess at any arena gig the sound will not be perfect everywhere, especially up at the sides which is why i always prefer to be on the arena floor. not sure how anyone can compare the main arena with the indigo2 venue next door as its a completely different kind of venue. certainly everyone on the arena floor and up the sides on geddy's side of the stage were really getting into the music. lots of people i know noticed and commented on the lack of movement opposite on alex's side of the stage. whether you like the set list is of course a personal issue. i thought it was great to hear songs not played for some time, ie: marathon, presto, time stands still in the first set. personally i was really happy with the songs played, the sound quality, the performance, the lighting and (very loud) fireworks, the screen, the new videos and how much fun the band still seem to be having playing live..

QUOTE (Choose/the/light @ Jun 20 2008, 12:53 AM) QUOTE (Presto-digitation @ Jun 19 2008, 04:16 AM) QUOTE (Choose/the/light @ Jun 19 2008, 12:19 AM) I just bought The Sky Moves Sideways!!!!!!!!!!! awesome!!! i'm loving it so far, i've been listening to parts of it on youtube for the last week Generally I like it but it's generally not structured enough for my tastes. I think its a great break from structured music to just relax, i love it indeed. its nice to hear those songs in a different environment to their studio versions, done acoustically and solo or as a duet.

i would have to go with dogs as my favourite too.

Ministry - The Forum, London And so we bid a fond farewell to mad, bad Al Jourgensen and his merry men. But this is no retro show, the chainlink fence across the front of the stage being just about the only nod to the past. The main set consisted entirely of tracks from Ministry's last three albums - a triptych of works inspired by the evils of America's current administration and more specifically Dubbya, just like his daddy inspired much of Psalm 69. This caused much controversy in the Ministry chatrooms and many spleens were vented and bile spat at this not being a greatest hits tour. But the quality of these songs stands up against just about anything in Ministry's illustrious back-catalogue. From the opening blast of Let's Go the set is well paced and well played by Al's band who, it has to be said, look a f***ing scary bunch. Al spends most of the night looking like Gary Oldman in Dracula with his top hat and round sunglasses and he acts like a circus ringmaster leading the band through the set. The band seem pretty fired up as they pummel the faster songs into submission whilst kicking back for the slower stuff such as Wrong and Senor Peligro. Al has been singing about ultra-controlling governments, corrupt politicians and the f*cked up state of the world for many years now. Unfortunately most of it is more relevant now than ever before. The main set ends with a monumental version of Khyber Pass. where's Bin Laden indeed! For the encores Ministry dip into their past for superb versions of So What, N.W.O., Just One Fix and Thieves, all played with their usual ferocity. They finish the show with three cover versions. Jim Morrison is probably still spinning in his grave at how Al led the band through a version Roadhouse Blues at least three times as fast as the original and what Louis Armstrong would make of Al's 'Tom Waites gargling Leonard Cohen' version of Wonderful World God alone knows. Of course the entire show is accompanied, as usual, by a barrage of psychadelic video images and bursts of harsh lighting. Al has his weird mic stand and the hired hand band members are uniformly excellent, especially the human octopus on the drums. It was a shame not to see the late Paul Raven on bass but I'm sure he was looking down with approval. Judging by the reaction of the crowd the new songs went down a storm. The pit was big and as active during the main set as it was during the first encore and I heard few complaints on the journey home. With the band turning in a performance as good as this one its a shame that Al feels the need to retire Ministry - the world needs bands like this - but at least Al and the band are going out on a high.

QUOTE (Mandalorian Hunter @ May 22 2008, 09:52 AM) QUOTE (arctangent @ May 22 2008, 07:56 AM) woooo, my ticket has arrived for the pt gig at the indig02 in october. can't wait! Aha! That means mine might have too. Reckon it'll be the one that gets filmed? i did read somewhere that was why they are playing the gig in the first place, so i hope they are. i have been into porcupine tree for a couple of years but until now the fates have conspired to keep me for seeing them live so i'm really looking forward to this.

woooo, my ticket has arrived for the pt gig at the indig02 in october. can't wait!

seeing saxon on the eagle has landed tour was my first ever concert! so i will always have a soft spot for saxon.

QUOTE (Mandalorian Hunter @ Apr 18 2008, 10:08 AM) Have you read anything I've posted so far? Obviously not, but there we go. yes, i have. my comment was about labeling bands, not really that you specifcally labeled porcupine tree as prog as you didn't. but others here have.

QUOTE (Mandalorian Hunter @ Apr 17 2008, 04:27 PM) Plus, labels on music are just as normal as the sun rising and setting, so I'd imagine you'll have to get used to it. why? someone who doesn't know porcupine tree might be put off by the prog label (i know i would have been... to me prog makes me think of bands like genesis, elp and yes. eeeuuw!) but if they listened to the band first without hearing what they might be labeled under by certain people they might love them. bands are percieved by the labels hung on them which is why it ticks mr wilson off so much. besides, who decides what the label of 'prog' actually means? right, i'm off to listen to some post-metal-prog-hardcore-grunge-house-emo-drum'n'bass-punk music

QUOTE (Skirmshander @ Apr 17 2008, 01:30 PM) To me, it doesnt really matter whether they are prog..... well said. far to many people want to hang a label on music, rather than just enjoying it. or not. as the case may be.

r.e.m. or screaming trees

QUOTE (Mandalorian Hunter @ Apr 4 2008, 10:58 AM) Deadwing does verge on metal in places, just like Fear of a Blank Planet does at times, but I'd agree with others that doesn't make them metal. no, just very good!

apart from which, fear of a blank planet is a far heavier album overall than deadwing.

QUOTE (sullysue @ Apr 2 2008, 09:14 PM) Ummm. Anyway, back to Porcupine Tree. Who else has We Lost the Skyline? ah, a fantastic release. great hearing some of their songs played solo(ish)/acoustic(ish), especially drown with me!

QUOTE (The Owl @ Apr 2 2008, 03:16 AM) QUOTE (Mandalorian Hunter @ Apr 1 2008, 04:46 PM) But the other thread was going so well... I'm posting in that one But this one's "Official".. says who?

marillion or porcupine tree

pink floyd or the beatles

elo or elp

electric light orchestra or the travelling wilbury's

radiohead or white stripes