Red Sector A encapsulates two things Rush does very well

[fraroc]

Juxtaposing bright, poppy sounding music with dark and sad themes and proving that even when going electronic synth pop rock, their songwriting prowess still shines on.

 

Red Sector A, compared to 70s Rush is a strange specimen. Alongside Afterimage, Geddy only plays the keyboards and doesn't even touch his bass guitar. But that doesn't stop it from being a musically impressive song with Geddy's keyboard skills and Alex's unusual chord patterns. Something that was never lost on them.

 

The song itself is quite upbeat, and danceable, almost as if someone could make an extended dance mix of the song. What makes this fact interesting is the subject matter of the song itself. It's about the Holocaust, an event where millions of people were senselessly slaughtered for not being "perfect" in the eyes of a crazed, evil dictator. The fact that a band could write a 1980s synth driven pop song about such a heinous chapter in history and have it be a considered a great song just proves, Rush is one of the most versatile bands in the history of music.

 

[Geddy's Soul Patch]

Common misconception, it's not about the Holocaust, but rather a dystopian future-type concentration camp. Great analysis though

[x1yyz]

The song itself is quite upbeat, and danceable, almost as if someone could make an extended dance mix of the song.

 

The thing that struck me when I saw it live was how danceable the rhythm section was. It's got this heavy, driving bottom end. But that seems incongruous with the lyrics, so you almost feel guilty bopping along to it.

[Narps]

Love the song and always have. One of my favorites from the 80's for sure. It should always be in the set list...

[Bigbobby10]

One of the first songs i heard by them, didnt even realize what it was about until years later, great song and one of my favorites

[Union 5-3992]

Common misconception, it's not about the Holocaust, but rather a dystopian future-type concentration camp. Great analysis though

Though the lyrics were heavily based on the experiences of Geddy's parents during the Holocaust

[PolarizeMe]

The song itself is quite upbeat, and danceable, almost as if someone could make an extended dance mix of the song.

 

The thing that struck me when I saw it live was how danceable the rhythm section was. It's got this heavy, driving bottom end. But that seems incongruous with the lyrics, so you almost feel guilty bopping along to it.

Yeah, that bottom end sounding bass synth has a consistent rhythmic pulse, almost hypnotic like that I bop my head to the rhythm section whether I wanted to or not.

[Ancient Ways]

This is a good read to put the inspiration in perspective

http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/23003/how-the-holocaust-rocked-rush-front-man-geddy-lee/

I wouldn't be so bold as to say it is "not about the holocaust" as much as it is inspired np by his parent's experience. Let's face it, an actual song about the holocaust would be difficult to do because of the nature of the subject.

[New World Kid]

While we're talking about the origins of the song, someone maybe will have to confirm this, but I heard that the phrase "Red Sector A" came from their assigned seating to watch the first space shuttle launch?

[Bigbobby10]

While we're talking about the origins of the song, someone maybe will have to confirm this, but I heard that the phrase "Red Sector A" came from their assigned seating to watch the first space shuttle launch?

• 
  The title is the name for the area where the band witnessed the inaugural Space Shuttle flight April 12th, 1981. The band wanted to capture the excitement of the launch with this song. Also see Songfacts for "Countdown."
  

http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=3330

Cant confirm if it is true, but I read it on there.

[antiquark]

While we're talking about the origins of the song, someone maybe will have to confirm this, but I heard that the phrase "Red Sector A" came from their assigned seating to watch the first space shuttle launch?

I read that too, somewhere online.

[x1yyz]

Common misconception, it's not about the Holocaust, but rather a dystopian future-type concentration camp. Great analysis though

 

While it may have been written about a fictional dystopian camp the song certainly describes WWII concentration camps.

[TexMike]

Good song, but I'm glad it was left out of R40. Played more than enough over the years.

[Rod in Toronto]

Great topic, fraroc, and what a great song Red Sector A is. My favourite version is the rawest and most distorted one, from Rush in Rio.

[Entre_Perpetuo]

When I first heard it I thought it was about the zombie apocalypse. No joke. I was actually kind of disappointed when I found out the scene being depicted was a concentration camp rather than a desolate world of the living dead.

[goose]

Brilliant thread! Agreed on all points. The song comes alive in concert like I would never have imagined.

[RUSHHEAD666]

It's all about Neil. Hi-hat accents, incredible organic and electronic drum placement.

[RUSHHEAD666]

Actually as the song goes deeper I love Neil going from hi-hat accent to China Boy.

[Blue J]

Yep...love this song, all the way around.

 

As driven and upbeat as Grace Under Pressure is, sonically, it is definitely one of their particularly darker pieces of work.

[Mr. JD]

I love Red Sector A. The music is excellent. I like the music so much it literately took me years before I put the words together, even after singing along for a very long time. But, that's me. Sometimes I just enjoy the music so much the words are just background stuff.