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Rush's darkest album?


Rush Fan in Michigan
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Working our way through the R40 Countdown and we're at No. 13. I picked "Grace Under Pressure," which I like for a lot of reasons. But with concentration camps, death, the color red and all, I think it's a pretty dark album. Others have their dark moments, but this one seems to be a theme that carries over to the whole album.

 

Here's our post on the countdown:

 

http://metsguyinmichigan.blogspot.com/2015/03/rush-r40-countdown-at-no-13-grace-under.html

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CoS or GuP are the darkest by far for me. Nothing is darker than the Necromancer, and Bastille Day and FoL are incredibly dark. Even the lighter songs on CoS have a dark edge: Lakeside and ITIGB both grapple with the loss of youth and innocence.
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Musically, GRACE UNDER PRESSURE does not strike me as dark at all - it's lightweight and very unthreatening, and the lyrics do nothing for me as far as creating an ominous feel ...

 

CARESS OF STEEL, on the other hand, is, at times, creepy - the vibe of The Necromancer is really dark ... And as LedRush mentioned, Lakeside Park deals with a loss we can all relate to

 

I go with Caress Of Steel, with 2112 not far behind

Edited by Lucas
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The Fountain of Lamneth and The Necromancer are both pretty dark, and Bastille Day is kind of dark as well; I give it to Caress of Steel
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Snakes and Arrows.

 

It just has a lot of negative energy, especially if you remove the instrumentals. Spindrift, Armor and Sword, Larger Bowl, Bravest Face... And that dreadfully dark tempo throughout so many of the songs.

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AFTK

 

Flying into black holes, eternally trapped in caves of ice, ploughmen not knowing their role in society...doesn't get much bleaker than that.

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With possible exception of the debut, they're all pretty much as dark as eachother but i'll take ged's word for it when i read in an interview years ago he thought Hold Your Fire was really dark
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I agree with everyone who mentioned Caress Of Steel, and I think 2112 definitely has a darkness within it as well. Soliloquy, for example, is something that everyone who has ever been lost in a deep depression can relate to. I've cried to Soliloquy and Tears many times.
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Grace Under Pressure without a doubt.

 

1. Nuclear War

2. Losing a loved one

3. Concentration Camps

4. Anxiety and Fear of oneself

5. Being controlled by an outside force

6. Bullying

7. A song about the color Red

8. War

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Vapor Trails is all about a fresh start and ne beginnings, but it still has that aura of tragedy glooming over it.

 

I would actually say VT is their darkest album for this very reason. In fact, I would even suggest we could reverse your sentiment (call it a tragically gloomy album with an aura of a fresh start and new beginnings) and the statement is equally valid.

 

The title track, of course, is dark. But there are some other songs there that are very dark: Peaceable Kingdom and it's ominous message... Ghost Rider and the notion of carrying your emotional phantoms with you... How It Is with its upbeat pop sound, but the irony that it's very clearly about depression.

 

PS Toward some of the other posts.... while I get the idea that some of the early albums, with their dark fantasy and sci-fi imagery are seen as dark, my vote for VT being the darkest has to do with the fact the context of the album is rooted in real, human tragedy, rather than fiction.

Edited by WorkingAllTheTime
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