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Ged's 2 Least Favorite Rush Albums


Weatherman
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I think what Geddy really disliked about HYF and Presto and Roll The Bones (To a lesser degree) was the lack of the bottom end. I just finished reading Limelight Rush in the 80’s (A great read BTW as well as Anthem Rush In The 70’s and Driven Rush in the 90’s and In The End) and the biggest issues were after Grace Under Pressure they felt they lost their bottom end bass wise.

 

Alex looking back really is proud of his playing during the synth period but felt pushed out because so many of the songs were written on the keyboards and the keys were recorded before his guitars and he had to find a way “in” with the songs. I happen to think some of his most brilliant playing came about from Signals thru Hold Your Fire. And learned a lot about his rhythm work, chord structures and he made a conscience decision to completely change his sound on Power Windows and Hold Your Fire.

 

It really is the most fascinating period of the band and IMO what made Rush......Rush. I found the albums after Moving Pictures to be the absolute definition of Rush’s grip on “Progressive Rock” and what that really means.

 

Signals today sounds so milky and so smooth....it was such a wonderful marriage of analog keyboard goodness to this day. And that is the album Alex looks back on as his least favorite. He was so buried in the mix on that one and to this day I am sure it annoys him. But at the same time the sound of that record to my ears has aged so well. It really has. It was probably the creamiest sound they ever achieved on tape. The Sectors Remix and the Mobile Fidelity Studios Remaster truly bring those qualities out big time.

 

Grace Under Pressure was the last of the true analog recordings during the keyboard era. But it was a colder sound and quite relevant of their surroundings (recorded during the winter with snow all around them) and a conscience effort to bring up Alex in the mix. Grace has stood the test of time sound wise too and one of my all time favorites.

 

With Power Windows they really stretched themselves out with the songwriting, the use of sequencers everywhere, Neils drum sound was bombastic and Geddy moved to the Wal bass and seriously was funking out and it sounded glorious to me. The songwriting was extremely strong on Power Windows. But Alex again found himself trying to “fit in” with the layers and layers of keyboards. It was a real tough go as they occupy the same frequency sonically. But I think Alex pulled it off incredibly well and some of best guitar work is on Power Windows:

 

Big Money

Marathon

Territories

Middletown Dreams

Mystic Rhythms

Emotion Detector

 

Just Dynamite and his solo’s on Grand Designs and Emotion Detector are legendary. His riffage on the chorus on Manhattan Project s unmistakable.

 

Then we get to Hold Your Fire and it is actually....to my ears a less dense record than Power Windows. I gave it a spin again yesterday (Sectors Remaster) and I love this album. The songwriting was in top form. The first 8 songs are simply top notch. I know people hate Tai Shan....I don’t. And I love High Water which is a sonic feast to my ears.

 

But I get how some fans wanted Rush back to their heavier roots.....I get it.

 

I love that stuff too. I love all of it.

 

Moving on to Presto though.....the songwriting was simply not the strongest in their vast catalog. yeah there are some great highlights (Show Me Don;t Tell Me, The Pass, Presto and Available Light for me). But the rest was kinda mediocre for their high standards. Roll The Bones IMO was a much better record with better songs. I mean man.....the run of Dreamline, Bravado, Roll The Bones, Face Up (yep I love that song) and Where’s My Thing is amazing. And then toss in Ghost of a Chance.....Roll The Bones was a very well received Rush album and much needed for them coming off two straight Gold albums (gold lol.....500K units....I mean under Platinum was not good enough for them anymore think about that). But Bones still suffered that lack of the "bottom end” and they felt their work with Rupert Hine was “too soft”.

 

Counterparts was that return to that thick heavy sound and for me that was and is their true dark horse album looking back in time. Full of amazing Rush riff’s, great songs and a wonderful mix and master. They had not sounded this heavy since Permanent Waves. Moving Pictures was not as raw as Waves. It was the first time they went to a digital mix. Counterparts had that raw quality and a lot of that was due to Kevin “The Caveman” Shirley. He to into some heated exchanges with Alex LOL about going totally dry...no reverb, no effects. Alex was like....What!!!!

 

Anyway a lot of you know all this stuff....but it is cool to look back and see and hear the evolution of the band from 1974-1987 and then the walk back to their power trio roots.

 

I think Counterparts was their best album post 1980’s. It really had that great Rush thickness that they lacked on Presto and Roll The Bones. And they had such strong songs on CP. Animate, CTTC, Alien Shore, Between Sun and Moon, Double Agent, Everyday Glory and Cold Fire and IMO the best instrumental since La Villa (yeah better than YYZ IMO) in Leave That Thing Alone. Man that song is a beast.

 

I don’t agree with Geddy on Hold Your Fire and I know Neil loved that record.

 

I do agree with him on Presto....it is near the bottom of my all time rankings. I still listen to it....an average Rush album is better than most bands good albums LOL....but I agree it was very hit or miss and the mix and master was just too soft.

Edited by Todem
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Signals today sounds so milky and so smooth....it was such a wonderful marriage of analog keyboard goodness to this day. And that is the album Alex looks back on as his least favorite. He was so buried in the mix on that one and to this day I am sure it annoys him. But at the same time the sound of that record to my ears has aged so well. It really has. It was probably the creamiest sound they ever achieved on tape. The Sectors Remix and the Mobile Fidelity Studios Remaster truly bring those qualities out big time.

 

...

 

With Power Windows they really stretched themselves out with the songwriting, the use of sequencers everywhere, Neils drum sound was bombastic and Geddy moved to the Wal bass and seriously was funking out and it sounded glorious to me.

 

...

 

Then we get to Hold Your Fire and it is actually....to my ears a less dense record than Power Windows. I gave it a spin again yesterday (Sectors Remaster) and I love this album. The songwriting was in top form. The first 8 songs are simply top notch. I know people hate Tai Shan....I don’t. And I love High Water which is a sonic feast to my ears.

 

...

 

Moving on to Presto though.....the songwriting was simply not the strongest in their vast catalog. yeah there are some great highlights (Show Me Don;t Tell Me, The Pass, Presto and Available Light for me). But the rest was kinda mediocre for their high standards. Roll The Bones IMO was a much better record with better songs. I mean man.....the run of Dreamline, Bravado, Roll The Bones, Face Up (yep I love that song) and Where’s My Thing is amazing. And then toss in Ghost of a Chance.....

 

Signals: I couldn't agree more. It's aged incredibly well and today sounds the best to my electronica-accustomed ears.

 

Power Windows: I couldn't DISagree more. I don't like the sequencers at all and I can't really listen to that album. The Wal bass sounded cool, but that's about it.

 

HYF: It really grows on you. I kinda liked it as a teenager, and even more now -- despite the keyboards. Something about it draws you back. TSS is probably their best pop song ever.

 

Presto/RTB: I'd settle it like this. Presto is more even and consistent, while RTB has higher highs and lower lows. Bravado is better than anything on Presto, but Neurotica is far worse than anything on Presto.

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I think what Geddy really disliked about HYF and Presto and Roll The Bones (To a lesser degree) was the lack of the bottom end. I just finished reading Limelight Rush in the 80’s (A great read BTW as well as Anthem Rush In The 70’s and Driven Rush in the 90’s and In The End) and the biggest issues were after Grace Under Pressure they felt they lost their bottom end bass wise.

 

Alex looking back really is proud of his playing during the synth period but felt pushed out because so many of the songs were written on the keyboards and the keys were recorded before his guitars and he had to find a way “in” with the songs. I happen to think some of his most brilliant playing came about from Signals thru Hold Your Fire. And learned a lot about his rhythm work, chord structures and he made a conscience decision to completely change his sound on Power Windows and Hold Your Fire.

 

It really is the most fascinating period of the band and IMO what made Rush......Rush. I found the albums after Moving Pictures to be the absolute definition of Rush’s grip on “Progressive Rock” and what that really means.

 

Signals today sounds so milky and so smooth....it was such a wonderful marriage of analog keyboard goodness to this day. And that is the album Alex looks back on as his least favorite. He was so buried in the mix on that one and to this day I am sure it annoys him. But at the same time the sound of that record to my ears has aged so well. It really has. It was probably the creamiest sound they ever achieved on tape. The Sectors Remix and the Mobile Fidelity Studios Remaster truly bring those qualities out big time.

 

Grace Under Pressure was the last of the true analog recordings during the keyboard era. But it was a colder sound and quite relevant of their surroundings (recorded during the winter with snow all around them) and a conscience effort to bring up Alex in the mix. Grace has stood the test of time sound wise too and one of my all time favorites.

 

With Power Windows they really stretched themselves out with the songwriting, the use of sequencers everywhere, Neils drum sound was bombastic and Geddy moved to the Wal bass and seriously was funking out and it sounded glorious to me. The songwriting was extremely strong on Power Windows. But Alex again found himself trying to “fit in” with the layers and layers of keyboards. It was a real tough go as they occupy the same frequency sonically. But I think Alex pulled it off incredibly well and some of best guitar work is on Power Windows:

 

Big Money

Marathon

Territories

Middletown Dreams

Mystic Rhythms

Emotion Detector

 

Just Dynamite and his solo’s on Grand Designs and Emotion Detector are legendary. His riffage on the chorus on Manhattan Project s unmistakable.

 

Then we get to Hold Your Fire and it is actually....to my ears a less dense record than Power Windows. I gave it a spin again yesterday (Sectors Remaster) and I love this album. The songwriting was in top form. The first 8 songs are simply top notch. I know people hate Tai Shan....I don’t. And I love High Water which is a sonic feast to my ears.

 

But I get how some fans wanted Rush back to their heavier roots.....I get it.

 

I love that stuff too. I love all of it.

 

Moving on to Presto though.....the songwriting was simply not the strongest in their vast catalog. yeah there are some great highlights (Show Me Don;t Tell Me, The Pass, Presto and Available Light for me). But the rest was kinda mediocre for their high standards. Roll The Bones IMO was a much better record with better songs. I mean man.....the run of Dreamline, Bravado, Roll The Bones, Face Up (yep I love that song) and Where’s My Thing is amazing. And then toss in Ghost of a Chance.....Roll The Bones was a very well received Rush album and much needed for them coming off two straight Gold albums (gold lol.....500K units....I mean under Platinum was not good enough for them anymore think about that). But Bones still suffered that lack of the "bottom end” and they felt their work with Rupert Hine was “too soft”.

 

Counterparts was that return to that thick heavy sound and for me that was and is their true dark horse album looking back in time. Full of amazing Rush riff’s, great songs and a wonderful mix and master. They had not sounded this heavy since Permanent Waves. Moving Pictures was not as raw as Waves. It was the first time they went to a digital mix. Counterparts had that raw quality and a lot of that was due to Kevin “The Caveman” Shirley. He to into some heated exchanges with Alex LOL about going totally dry...no reverb, no effects. Alex was like....What!!!!

 

Anyway a lot of you know all this stuff....but it is cool to look back and see and hear the evolution of the band from 1974-1987 and then the walk back to their power trio roots.

 

I think Counterparts was their best album post 1980’s. It really had that great Rush thickness that they lacked on Presto and Roll The Bones. And they had such strong songs on CP. Animate, CTTC, Alien Shore, Between Sun and Moon, Double Agent, Everyday Glory and Cold Fire and IMO the best instrumental since La Villa (yeah better than YYZ IMO) in Leave That Thing Alone. Man that song is a beast.

 

I don’t agree with Geddy on Hold Your Fire and I know Neil loved that record.

 

I do agree with him on Presto....it is near the bottom of my all time rankings. I still listen to it....an average Rush album is better than most bands good albums LOL....but I agree it was very hit or miss and the mix and master was just too soft.

 

I don't agree with everything here, but posts like this are why I love TRF.

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.... and the biggest issues were after Grace Under Pressure they felt they lost their bottom end bass wise.

....

 

I was thinking something that is maybe a corollary to this in that I keep thinking that Geddy's bass was so clear in Grace and I never heard it as clearly in albums after that. To me, the joy in P/G is that both guitar and bass can be heard so clearly even though keyboards had been introduced that the keyboards never seemed intrusive to me.

 

I'm not sure if it's quite the same thing you're talking about though...

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If RTB consisted only of Dreamline, Bravado, RTB, WMT? & Ghost it would be one of their best albums ever songwriting-wise.

But unfortunately the other half of the record is mediocre at best. Rupert Hine's wimpy soft as a marshmallow production was insult to injury.

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If RTB consisted only of Dreamline, Bravado, RTB, WMT? & Ghost it would be one of their best albums ever songwriting-wise.

But unfortunately the other half of the record is mediocre at best. Rupert Hine's wimpy soft as a marshmallow production was insult to injury.

 

Eh, I don't know about best ever. Pretty stiff competition on that front from a lot of earlier records. Those are the highlights though I will agree.

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If RTB consisted only of Dreamline, Bravado, RTB, WMT? & Ghost it would be one of their best albums ever songwriting-wise.

But unfortunately the other half of the record is mediocre at best. Rupert Hine's wimpy soft as a marshmallow production was insult to injury.

The best part of those songs -- particularly the first two -- is that they sounded nothing, nothing, NOTHING like the other songs by other rock groups during the early nineties era.

They were all playing in the same sandbox but were using different toys.

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If RTB consisted only of Dreamline, Bravado, RTB, WMT? & Ghost it would be one of their best albums ever songwriting-wise.

But unfortunately the other half of the record is mediocre at best. Rupert Hine's wimpy soft as a marshmallow production was insult to injury.

The best part of those songs -- particularly the first two -- is that they sounded nothing, nothing, NOTHING like the other songs by other rock groups during the early nineties era.

They were all playing in the same sandbox but were using different toys.

 

I mean, I guess no one else was quite achieving the sound Rush did on RTB, but then I wouldn't really call that production job an achievement. Are you mainly implying that they didn't hop on the grunge bandwagon right away? That I do agree with.

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If RTB consisted only of Dreamline, Bravado, RTB, WMT? & Ghost it would be one of their best albums ever songwriting-wise.

But unfortunately the other half of the record is mediocre at best. Rupert Hine's wimpy soft as a marshmallow production was insult to injury.

The best part of those songs -- particularly the first two -- is that they sounded nothing, nothing, NOTHING like the other songs by other rock groups during the early nineties era.

They were all playing in the same sandbox but were using different toys.

 

I mean, I guess no one else was quite achieving the sound Rush did on RTB, but then I wouldn't really call that production job an achievement. Are you mainly implying that they didn't hop on the grunge bandwagon right away? That I do agree with.

 

Yeah, exactly. 1991 was the year of Metallica's Black album, Nirvana's Nevermind, Pearl Jam's Ten, RHCP's Blood Sugar Sex Magik, and others. RTB sounds nothing like them, in the best possible way.

Side note: Looking at that list, we could make the argument that 1991 would be the best year for rock music for a long time. All those bands, aside from Rush, peaked at that time.

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I dunno. I really enjoy the songs I mentioned but God Almighty does that album lack power or a sonic edge like a lot of the other records by other bands at that time. Thankfully they corrected course on Counterparts. I think RTB is even more wimpy sounding than HYF or Presto lol
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If RTB consisted only of Dreamline, Bravado, RTB, WMT? & Ghost it would be one of their best albums ever songwriting-wise.

But unfortunately the other half of the record is mediocre at best. Rupert Hine's wimpy soft as a marshmallow production was insult to injury.

The best part of those songs -- particularly the first two -- is that they sounded nothing, nothing, NOTHING like the other songs by other rock groups during the early nineties era.

They were all playing in the same sandbox but were using different toys.

 

I mean, I guess no one else was quite achieving the sound Rush did on RTB, but then I wouldn't really call that production job an achievement. Are you mainly implying that they didn't hop on the grunge bandwagon right away? That I do agree with.

 

Yeah, exactly. 1991 was the year of Metallica's Black album, Nirvana's Nevermind, Pearl Jam's Ten, RHCP's Blood Sugar Sex Magik, and others. RTB sounds nothing like them, in the best possible way.

Side note: Looking at that list, we could make the argument that 1991 would be the best year for rock music for a long time. All those bands, aside from Rush, peaked at that time.

 

U2 - Achtung Baby was nothing like what was going on around them as well. And IMO is U2’s crowning achievement (of course everyone likes to point to The Joshua Tree....which is a great album....but Achtung Baby was like their “Signals” A total 180 from what fans always expected from them).

 

Those two albums (RTB and Achtung baby) along with Pearl Jam’s Ten were in my constant rotation. I drew so much influence from those 3 records into my own music at the time (I was 21 in 1991). Great times.

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I dunno. I really enjoy the songs I mentioned but God Almighty does that album lack power or a sonic edge like a lot of the other records by other bands at that time. Thankfully they corrected course on Counterparts. I think RTB is even more wimpy sounding than HYF or Presto lol

 

I actually love the sound on it....it was very slick and unique. Yeah it lacked bottom end and raw power.....but we got that with all the live versions of our favorite tunes from RTB (and Power Windows and Hold Your Fire while we are at it). I like the studio recordings as a moment captured.

 

Again for me it is what makes the band so much more interesting to listen to still, to this day. If every album was mixed and recorded like Moving Pictures and Counterparts.....ugh....would become a bore to be honest.

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I rarely agree with artist's own assessment of their work, but HYF is among my least favorite Rush records. Presto is another matter. I like that record a lot. Artists are too close to the work - they are not to be trusted reviewing their own stuff. Ian Anderson scrapped the Chateau D'isaster tapes and gave us War Child, sheesh!!!

Actually, it was A Passion Play that Tull recorded after scrapping the Chateau D'isaster tapes, even including a re-recorded Critique Oblique on A Passion Play. While Solitaire got kept over for War Child.
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U2 - Achtung Baby was nothing like what was going on around them as well. And IMO is U2’s crowning achievement (of course everyone likes to point to The Joshua Tree....which is a great album....but Achtung Baby was like their “Signals” A total 180 from what fans always expected from them).

 

Those two albums (RTB and Achtung baby) along with Pearl Jam’s Ten were in my constant rotation. I drew so much influence from those 3 records into my own music at the time (I was 21 in 1991). Great times.

 

Dammit how could I forget? Achtung Baby is probably my favorite album of all time.

Also in 1991: Temple of the Dog, Soundgarden's Badmotorfinger, REM's Out of Time, and Guns 'n' Roses Use Your Illusions 1 & 2.

Rock has been in decline ever since.

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If RTB consisted only of Dreamline, Bravado, RTB, WMT? & Ghost it would be one of their best albums ever songwriting-wise.

But unfortunately the other half of the record is mediocre at best. Rupert Hine's wimpy soft as a marshmallow production was insult to injury.

The best part of those songs -- particularly the first two -- is that they sounded nothing, nothing, NOTHING like the other songs by other rock groups during the early nineties era.

They were all playing in the same sandbox but were using different toys.

 

I mean, I guess no one else was quite achieving the sound Rush did on RTB, but then I wouldn't really call that production job an achievement. Are you mainly implying that they didn't hop on the grunge bandwagon right away? That I do agree with.

 

Yeah, exactly. 1991 was the year of Metallica's Black album, Nirvana's Nevermind, Pearl Jam's Ten, RHCP's Blood Sugar Sex Magik, and others. RTB sounds nothing like them, in the best possible way.

Side note: Looking at that list, we could make the argument that 1991 would be the best year for rock music for a long time. All those bands, aside from Rush, peaked at that time.

 

Yeah Rush definitely didn't sound like any of that in 1991. I will agree that this made them pretty unique at the time. On the other hand though, I've always thought some of RTB bore an unflattering resemblance to Huey Lewis And The News, minus the pop songwriting prowess of Huey. In other words RTB doesn't sound to me like a conscious decision not to jump on the grunge bandwagon (which had only just broke through after all) as much as a natural progression from Presto before it, a holdover sound from the 80s without much sense as to where the 90s would lead. I don't think it was a mistake that they finally got their heaviness back on Counterparts, just before it was too late to catch a bit of the grunge wave.

 

But keep in mind reading all of this I'm pretty biased. RTB is my least favorite Rush album after all.

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Yeah Rush definitely didn't sound like any of that in 1991. I will agree that this made them pretty unique at the time. On the other hand though, I've always thought some of RTB bore an unflattering resemblance to Huey Lewis And The News, minus the pop songwriting prowess of Huey. In other words RTB doesn't sound to me like a conscious decision not to jump on the grunge bandwagon (which had only just broke through after all) as much as a natural progression from Presto before it, a holdover sound from the 80s without much sense as to where the 90s would lead. I don't think it was a mistake that they finally got their heaviness back on Counterparts, just before it was too late to catch a bit of the grunge wave.

 

But keep in mind reading all of this I'm pretty biased. RTB is my least favorite Rush album after all.

 

At least the first two songs on RTB are great. TFE doesn't even have one, so it gets my vote for bottom of the barrel of the whole catalog.

I always wonder how much better Dreamline would've sounded if the Caveman had mixed it... sigh.

Edited by Weatherman
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Yeah Rush definitely didn't sound like any of that in 1991. I will agree that this made them pretty unique at the time. On the other hand though, I've always thought some of RTB bore an unflattering resemblance to Huey Lewis And The News, minus the pop songwriting prowess of Huey. In other words RTB doesn't sound to me like a conscious decision not to jump on the grunge bandwagon (which had only just broke through after all) as much as a natural progression from Presto before it, a holdover sound from the 80s without much sense as to where the 90s would lead. I don't think it was a mistake that they finally got their heaviness back on Counterparts, just before it was too late to catch a bit of the grunge wave.

 

But keep in mind reading all of this I'm pretty biased. RTB is my least favorite Rush album after all.

 

At least the first two songs on RTB are great. TFE doesn't even have one, so it gets my vote for bottom of the barrel of the whole catalog.

I always wonder how much better Dreamline would've sounded if the Caveman had mixed it... sigh.

 

I do like the first two songs a lot, and I have a soft spot for the title track since it was played at R40. Also I dig Where's My Thing for what it's worth.

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I was surprised to read that he doesn't care much for Hold Your Fire and Presto.

It was a 2016 interview that I can't find right now. He said that he thought they needed to change their sound after those two albums, because of the keyboards.

The reason I'm surprised: Those two albums feature Geddy's strongest vocal performances.

Yes, the keys are annoying on HYF. But isolate the vocals for Time Stand Still, Lock and Key, The Pass, Presto, Available Light, etc. It's the best singing of his career -- melodic, controlled, even catchy.

Do you agree that those albums are the most disposable?

Presto, yes. Hold Your Fire, no.

 

Hold Your Fire is a conservative album in some ways - Geddy just didn't want to let the keyboards go.

But as an album itself, it has a lot of spectacular moments - Force Ten, Time Stand Still, Prime Mover, Lock And Key, Mission...

Even though, off course, you got Tai Shan - the bands' least favorite song in their whole catalogue. Second Nature just slows down Side A.

The only real problem with this album in particular is the production - I know 80's albums are supposed to have a lot more atmosphere to them, but this one sounds... echoey.

 

Presto is... more of a disappointment. Hell, possibly wasted potential. Of course you got bright moments like the first 3 tracks, the title track, "Red Tide" and "Available Light"...

However... this album is just very straightforward. It doesn't really do anything new, except hype first-time listeners with the first track, making them think "oh yeah, they are going back to the classic sound now!"

"Scars" just drags along, even though it has great bass lines. "War Paint" has a very cheesy chorus, so does "Superconductor" and "Hand Over Fist." "Anagram (For Mongo)" is... a song.

And of course... the tinny-ass production. You can definitely hear it once "Chain Lightning" plays.

 

I honestly just think that Hold Your Fire is a lot more memorable and interesting than Presto - especially in songwriting.

Edited by _hi_water._
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I was surprised to read that he doesn't care much for Hold Your Fire and Presto.

It was a 2016 interview that I can't find right now. He said that he thought they needed to change their sound after those two albums, because of the keyboards.

The reason I'm surprised: Those two albums feature Geddy's strongest vocal performances.

Yes, the keys are annoying on HYF. But isolate the vocals for Time Stand Still, Lock and Key, The Pass, Presto, Available Light, etc. It's the best singing of his career -- melodic, controlled, even catchy.

Do you agree that those albums are the most disposable?

Presto, yes. Hold Your Fire, no.

 

Hold Your Fire is a conservative album in some ways - Geddy just didn't want to let the keyboards go.

But as an album itself, it has a lot of spectacular moments - Force Ten, Time Stand Still, Prime Mover, Lock And Key, Mission...

Even though, off course, you got Tai Shan - the bands' least favorite song in their whole catalogue. Second Nature just slows down Side A.

The only real problem with this album in particular is the production - I know 80's albums are supposed to have a lot more atmosphere to them, but this one sounds... echoey.

 

Presto is... more of a disappointment. Hell, possibly wasted potential. Of course you got bright moments like the first 3 tracks, the title track, "Red Tide" and "Available Light"...

However... this album is just very straightforward. It doesn't really do anything new, except hype first-time listeners with the first track, making them think "oh yeah, they are going back to the classic sound now!"

"Scars" just drags along, even though it has great bass lines. "War Paint" has a very cheesy chorus, so does "Superconductor" and "Hand Over Fist." "Anagram (For Mongo)" is... a song.

And of course... the tinny-ass production. You can definitely hear it once "Chain Lightning" plays.

 

I honestly just think that Hold Your Fire is a lot more memorable and interesting than Presto - especially in songwriting.

 

Agreed on HYF. It's really grown on me as the decades have gone by, except for that thin keyboard sound...

But Presto is better than you make it out to be. What you call cheesy other people (me) call poppy. It's what they were aiming for at the time, and I like well-crafted pop-rock songs with vocal hooks. This isn't necessarily ground-breaking -- but it doesn't have to be, especially by a band that already had so many ground-breaking albums behind them.

Also, Alex's arpeggios on Presto are terrific. He built a good guitar sound for that at the time.

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U2 - Achtung Baby was nothing like what was going on around them as well. And IMO is U2’s crowning achievement (of course everyone likes to point to The Joshua Tree....which is a great album....but Achtung Baby was like their “Signals” A total 180 from what fans always expected from them).

 

Those two albums (RTB and Achtung baby) along with Pearl Jam’s Ten were in my constant rotation. I drew so much influence from those 3 records into my own music at the time (I was 21 in 1991). Great times.

 

Dammit how could I forget? Achtung Baby is probably my favorite album of all time.

Also in 1991: Temple of the Dog, Soundgarden's Badmotorfinger, REM's Out of Time, and Guns 'n' Roses Use Your Illusions 1 & 2.

Rock has been in decline ever since.

 

 

Yeah how can I forget Temple of the Dog. Probably the best album to come out of the “grunge” era IMO. Just a magical session. I think they made that album in under three weeks. So good to this day. I was a big fan of Superunknown s well. Badmortorfinger was gritty!!!. REM I cannot take for a minute LOL...not my cup of tea.

 

I think Rock has had plenty of great moments since 1991.....especially progressive rock....but I can see what you mean by the decline. And today...it is on life support right now.

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For anyone badmouthing the production on RTB, I'll just say this: that album has NEVER been properly mastered. Even the Audio Fidelity gold disc a few years ago, while it's the best of the bunch, still is way, way, way too bright.

 

I did my own personal "remaster" of it and put it through a parametric EQ a couple years ago. Using Kevin Gray's master as a starting point, I cut a whole 3dB out of the upper mids and boosted the "bass cloud" frequencies (from 150 - 500 Hz) by a good decibel or so, and the result was revelatory. Ged's vocals have vastly more power and body, the drums have impact and heft, and there are entire guitar parts that I'd never noticed before that suddenly popped out of the mix.

 

There's absolutely nothing wrong with Rupert Hine's production on that album if you master it correctly. The version I listen to now is so crankable that you can blow the house down with it, it just sounds better and better the louder it gets. Unfortunately, no mastering engineer has given it the balls that it needs to really shine.

Edited by Rush Didact
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For anyone badmouthing the production on RTB, I'll just say this: that album has NEVER been properly mastered. Even the Audio Fidelity gold disc a few years ago, while it's the best of the bunch, still is way, way, way too bright.

 

I did my own personal "remaster" of it and put it through a parametric EQ a couple years ago. Using Kevin Gray's master as a starting point, I cut a whole 3dB out of the upper mids and boosted the "bass cloud" frequencies (from 150 - 500 Hz) by a good decibel or so, and the result was revelatory. Ged's vocals have vastly more power and body, the drums have impact and heft, and there are entire guitar parts that I'd never noticed before that suddenly popped out of the mix.

 

There's absolutely nothing wrong with Rupert Hine's production on that album if you master it correctly. The version I listen to now is so crankable that you can blow the house down with it, it just sounds better and better the louder it gets. Unfortunately, no mastering engineer has given it the balls that it needs to really shine.

 

Any possibility for a share of that?

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For anyone badmouthing the production on RTB, I'll just say this: that album has NEVER been properly mastered. Even the Audio Fidelity gold disc a few years ago, while it's the best of the bunch, still is way, way, way too bright.

 

I did my own personal "remaster" of it and put it through a parametric EQ a couple years ago. Using Kevin Gray's master as a starting point, I cut a whole 3dB out of the upper mids and boosted the "bass cloud" frequencies (from 150 - 500 Hz) by a good decibel or so, and the result was revelatory. Ged's vocals have vastly more power and body, the drums have impact and heft, and there are entire guitar parts that I'd never noticed before that suddenly popped out of the mix.

 

There's absolutely nothing wrong with Rupert Hine's production on that album if you master it correctly. The version I listen to now is so crankable that you can blow the house down with it, it just sounds better and better the louder it gets. Unfortunately, no mastering engineer has given it the balls that it needs to really shine.

 

Any possibility for a share of that?

 

Yeah I'd like to hear that a lot actually. While my criticism of RTB doesn't end with the production/mastering, that is one of the biggest detractors from its quality, especially on songs that I do like a lot (like Dreamline).

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