Snyder80

I've never understood the whole Rush is ugly thing. I mean have some of these so called comedic critics ever taken a long gander at some other bands. Cast a gaze upon Ratt during the video for "Round and Round" or take a look at a picture of Jeff Keith (lead singer of Tesla) circa 2008 or so and tell me that picture doesn't scream "Tales from the Crypt". Rush certainly had their bouts with bad fashion but overrall they look like pretty average guys.

Money is the cause of almost as much hatred and murder in the world as religion. It's powerful for all the wrong reasons and none of the right ones. What would the world be like if grass was currency? I know, void of lawns.

The whole wait til you're a certain age argument baffles me. Age is no indication of maturity. My wife and I had our first at 23 and most people we know consider us pretty good parents. On the other hand I work with a guy who is 42 and has a three year old who can't put together a complete sentence and still wears diapers and has never even been put near a toilet to begin potty training. His clothing is all purchased from consignment stores while his father sports $150 sneakers and $2000 televisions. Now does that really indicate that age equals maturity?

And frickin' Ceiling Unlimited. That song almost made me get run over. That's cool. It might have been me that almost ran you over. Everytime the end of Vital Signs comes on I have to air drum the shit out of it. Usually I'm good with my index and middle finger playing the hi-hat and snare respectively with my left foot providing a mix of bass and hi-hat lift but when he does that double bass part at the end of Vital Signs with the crashes just exploding in unison I have to use both feet and both hands. The f***ing fingers and one foot just doesn't make enough noise.

I find it deliciously ironic, given the album title in question, how much discussion this thread has created. To the author of the topic: bravo! P.S. It's still an 80's album. If you look at the album pictures both Mr. Lifeson and Mr. Peart have had haircuts.

Earthshine is a great tune. My fav off of VT.

Definitely 80s. It doesn't even feel like a 70s record. The reggae break in TSOR and Entre Nous make it quite obvious that a new decade and a new era had begun. Along with Freewill packing as much musical explosiveness and raw energy into five minutes as 2112 and Hemispheres did in twenty-six and change.

80's: Regardless of changes in style, the "era" of the 1980's was Rush at their most creative and most experimental which ended up equating to a band that was so multi-dimensional and unique that very few people could even give them a genre label. From The Spirit of Radio to The Big Money to Lock and Key, the band was explosive and unpredictably exciting. The different flavors and styles of music they delved into and rocketed out of with great achievement can't be compared to any other band that has ever existed. Neils Arrival - 1979: Before Neil they were bland, period. Regardless of how many people might disagree the band we know and love today would never have existed without the arrival of the quiet, lanky drummer who moonlighted as a tractor parts salesman. The lyrics he brought to the table paved the way for the kind of music they wanted to write. Could Xanadu have been written if they were singing about sex or beer? Hemispheres was clearly the peak of this time period and is a landmark album for muscianship. Circumstances was definitely the proto-type song of the type of music they were starting to lean towards with a more concise feel. VT-Present: Solid material for the most part but that explosive musicianship seemed to take a back seat when compared to the rest of their catalog. 90s: The band was at their best in the beginning of this decade with Roll the Bones, and struggled a lot in an industry that was searching for it's indentity in the rock community. I hate to admit it but even Rush was tugged this way and that by the grunge movement. Bravado and Animate, however, remain two of their finest offerings...ever.

No need to panic. The odds of Geddy reading this thread and saying, "Well that seals the deal. I'm done with touring" is vanishingly close to zero. Their live dvd's are another story. We're specifically talking about live performance not the live releases. Does his vocal idiosyncrasies actually bother anyone while they're at the show? That's my thoughts almost exactly. I adore the shows and enjoy them immensely. The energy and excitement that comes with a live show is indescribable and most people who don't attend them can't even understand. The DVD's are never as good as actually being there. Just watch Rush in Rio. Personally that is my favorite recorded live show of theirs. Now can you imagine having been there?

I don't but I have solid plans to get one. I've spent the last five years planning it and designing it so it's original and hopefully memorable in a good way.

Definitely no! What they should do, like it or not, is lean towards the newer material that is shaped around his naturally occuring vocal changes. Complain all you want but the man shouldn't still be trying to sing Circumstances. However I think he sang all of Clockwork Angels quite beautifully. He's one of the most accomplished musicians on the planet. Ask yourself if you really want him to hang it up because he can't sing like he did when he was twenty-five.

That was Rush in their infancy. The things they have accomplished since far surpass that era of their existence. I know I'm a child of the 80's but some fans rabid obsession that borders on murderous rage over that time period is mind boggling to me.

I agree. Some people think it's their best instrumental. I don't get it... at all. I really hope you're being sarcastic because otherwise someone might want to let you in on the fact that Freeze isn't an instrumental... Also, it's a great song that ties in nicely with the Fear series, especially lyrically. The post-chorus bridges are terrific. Sometimes I feel like not being able to connect to some of their lyrics is like saying you aren't human. I'm not being judgemental here, really, but I mean who the hell hasn't felt like that? "I'm not prepared to run away and I'm not prepared to fight." Sounds like money hiding time in the lunch line.

I haven't heard the remixed version and I probably never will. I've always enjoyed this album the way it is. The lyrics are emotional and powerful and the mix I think, albeit by accident, is a good representation of that period in their career. It's tumultuous and sporadic and not always together in the best way. For something that obviously wasn't delibrate, I think it carries a lot of weight. Great record, by the way.

I've never seen Neil or any other musician I worship in pubic. If I did see Neil, I would offer a polite thank you with a handshake and walk away. I heard him in an interview and a man came up to him on the street, shook his hand, said thanks and kept going. Neil was grateful for that encounter judging by his face when telling the tale.

I was around but I was three. My memory is pretty outstanding as still remember, with great clarity, the day my father walked in the door with Signals in his hand and the first time I held that record sleeve in my hands. However, obviously, I wasn't really in tune with the music world. My parents weren't really into The Police but we had a neighbor who loved them and I do remember hearing lots of stuff from Synchronicity. Don't get me wrong, I listen to a great deal of The Police and those sounds definitely link up around that time period.

Maybe it's because I'm not an accomplished musician. I listen a lot of The Police and enjoy much of it but I fail to hear the similarities between the two. However, I have a bad habit of comparing the sound of the entire band against each other. And truthfully, I'm not really trying to piss people off but I don't like hearing comparisons between a guy who is a 40 year virtuoso musician and is considered to be one of the best guitar players of all-time and one guy whose band made their last album in 1983 and the other band that lives and dies inside their radical politics.

There was an admitted influence by The Police in the early 80s. Lifesons rythm playing during this period was clearly taken from Summers. Just listen to Vital Signs. There WAS an influence. There was an admitted influence by The Police in the early 80s. Lifesons rythm playing during this period was clearly taken from Summers. Just listen to Vital Signs. There WAS an influence. I wish people would acknowledge their own ignorance. From the August 2007 issue of Guitar World: "GW: ...how influenced were you by new wave? Many of the songs on [Moving Pictures] are short and poppy, at least by Rush standards, and your guitar sound bears similarities to that of Andy Summers." "Alex Lifeson: I was very influenced, in many ways. I cut my hair! [laughs] That shocked a lot of our longtime fans who were used to my long flowing locks. Also, I started dressing cooler, more au courant, wearing bright, colorful blazers and ties. I didn't look like I'd just come from a Rennaissance fair. [laughs] "It was time for all of us to change, musically, visually—our entire attitude. The songs got shorter, more accessible. It felt good to become a bit of a new band. We were listening to the Police, and their impact was huge. We saw that a rock trio could do so many different things." "GW: A hint of that impact was apparent on Permanent Waves--the reggae break in 'The Spirit of Radio'--and on 'Vital Signs,' from Moving Pictures." "Lifeson: Yep. That was early Police influence. Their rhythms, their sounds... It was exciting as when Cream came out. For us, it was a matter of using those New Wave influences in ways that enhanced, but didn't degrade, what we were doing. "There was the Edge, too. What he did with the echo pedal is beyond measure. Yeah, the Edge and Andy Summers were high on my list in those days. Still are." Vital Signs is poppy? Really? Compared to what? It's reggae influenced and it is indeed shorter but it's far from pop worthy. Is there a single tune off that album that runs across as mainstream pop? If so, it's news to me. Either way he can state influence all he wants but I've never heard a lick of U2 in a Rush song. Those two bands are like two different planets. One grows awesome huge fruit bearing trees and the other is covered in shit.

I was born in 1980 and raised on Rush from day one. Still I'm the opposite of most on these boards. The 80's material is what I grew up on; I had to discover albums like Hemispheres and AFTK on my own and at my own pace. It's hard for me to relate to a lot of fans on these boards because the material many distanced themselves from was the material that I've loved from the moment I first heard it. I would strongly suggest giving GUP another listen and try not to judge it against their earlier work. Rush isn't a band where that tactic works very well because they've always strived to be experimental and dynamic. Geddy Lee once said that in the early days they were just hoping they could get Neil to play the same beat two verses in a row. With a statement like that you would have to expect the most outlandish and unpredictable material from them, right? I'm fortunate to be the owner of my ears because I love most of their material, especially the 80's synth stuff. PoW is a perfect album. A great concept record and has some of Geddy and Neil's best work, in my opinion.

I have never or will ever understand the insistence by many that Alex Lifeson's myriad of guitar work is or has been influenced by The Edge (what a f***ing name...) or Andy Summers. There are positively zero similarities in the playing of those two when standing next to Alex Lifeson. The styles are different, the writing is different and truthfully, the goddamn talent is way different. Same thing with the bands. Are there really similarities between U2 and Rush?! Hey, my opinion, but U2 sounds like the most rudimentary, repetitive and boring music I've ever listened to. Yes, some of it I like and some of it is catchy but that's all it is, is catchy. Pop music. Rush and U2 are about as alike as cunnilingus is to a foot massage.

Subdivisions-10 The Analog Kid-10 Chemistry-8 Digital Man-10 The Weapon-10 New World Man-9 Losing It-8 Countdown-7 To me this album is near perfect. Many will disagree with me but being a child of the 80's, I can't help but look back and see this album as the one where they captured the sound that separated them from the masses of the decade. Of all the stylistic shifts and changes they've undergone, this one remains my favorite. The keyboards are tasteful and eleoquent and I think while Alex doesn't fully recognize his potential as a "quieter" guitarist until Power Windows, he very gracefully moves throughout this record (the solo for Subdivisons remains one of my favorites, just listen to how sad and angst riddled he makes it sound) and cuts loose on The Analog Kid. I'm sure it alienated a lot of fans upon it's release but I must say that it holds a special place with me as one of my absolute favorite albums of all-time, by any band. The lyrical material, especially that of Subdivisions, speaks to me on a very personal level and to this day I find myself feeling instant emotion the second I hear that opening keyboard. The album is a true gem and one that never ceases to please my ears and transport me to another place and time.

And people wonder why Neil Peart has several armed guards with automatic rifles surrounding him at nearly every moment while touring.

No. That was the genius of Ayn Rand's feelings. Are you saying that that line doesn't reflect Neil's personality? I'm pretty sure he was revealing part of himself there. Even if it was subconsciously.

How many of you realize that Neil let us glimpse into his feelings towards fans and fame on the first album he ever appeared on? Well, I know they've always told you Selfishness was wrong Yet it was for me, not you, I Came to write this song

And how could he not be embarrassed by the lyrical tripe that makes up Test for Echo? Horse shit. That album's lyrics, minus Half the World (still a great song minus the lyrics), are Shakespeare compared to Counterparts. Eh, maybe some of Counterparts but Animate is one of the most eloquent lyrical efforts he's every made. The meaning beneath those words is undeniable.