Album Battle- Permanent Waves VS Signals

[ytserush]

Permanent Waves by a mile. Signals was the beginning of the end. ;)

 

R40 is the beginning of the end. Just sayin'

 

You can say it but it ended a long time ago.

 

I guess I'll just consider myself fortunate that the end was only a recent development in my case.

[toymaker]

For some fans, it just doesn't make sense to try to compare a 70s Rush album with an 80s Rush album.

[Lucas]

For some fans, it just doesn't make sense to try to compare a 70s Rush album with an 80s Rush album.

 

You got that right TM

 

http://www.mensfashionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/featured-image-730x500.jpg

[Powderfinger]

"The Spirit of Radio" is perhaps my favorite Rush song, at least among the radio-friendly shorter songs. But Signals is my favorite Rush album.

[fraroc]

SIGNALS 100%

 

[Mosher]

Permanent Waves has, as others rightfully noted, Natural Science.

 

This fairly adequately closes the case with a ruling in strong favor of PeW.

 

Of course it's only fair to judge the albums as whole constructs, and things might tighten a bit.

 

I'll trip and fail at the following exercise, but the best thing about Rush fans is that one person's least favorite song can be another fan's favorite.

I will rank every song and see which album ends up with the stronger presence.

 

So here goes, with fingers crossed that I don't look back on this and wonder what the heck I was thinking. (Since this probably would be different tomorrow).

 

1: Natural Science

2. The Analog Kid

3. Freewill

4. The Spirit of Radio

5. Countdown (because someone out there must love it, might as well be me)

6. Subdivisions

7. Jacob's Ladder

8. The Weapon

9. New World Man

10. Entre Nous

11. Digital Man

12. Losing It

13. Different Strings

14. Chemistry

 

I'll add that I like every song up there. There are Rush songs I don't like, but these are two very solid albums throughout.

 

For me I think it's clear that I like PeW much more. Even weaving the tracks the top of the list is PeW heavy while the bottom is a lot of Signals.

[Lucas]

Permanent Waves has, as others rightfully noted, Natural Science.

 

This fairly adequately closes the case with a ruling in strong favor of PeW.

 

Of course it's only fair to judge the albums as whole constructs, and things might tighten a bit.

 

I'll trip and fail at the following exercise, but the best thing about Rush fans is that one person's least favorite song can be another fan's favorite.

I will rank every song and see which album ends up with the stronger presence.

 

So here goes, with fingers crossed that I don't look back on this and wonder what the heck I was thinking. (Since this probably would be different tomorrow).

 

1: Natural Science

2. The Analog Kid

3. Freewill

4. The Spirit of Radio

5. Countdown (because someone out there must love it, might as well be me)

6. Subdivisions

7. Jacob's Ladder

8. The Weapon

9. New World Man

10. Entre Nous

11. Digital Man

12. Losing It

13. Different Strings

14. Chemistry

 

I'll add that I like every song up there. There are Rush songs I don't like, but these are two very solid albums throughout.

 

For me I think it's clear that I like PeW much more. Even weaving the tracks the top of the list is PeW heavy while the bottom is a lot of Signals.

 

Welcome to the forum Mosher, and with a great first post no less

 

( BTW, has Toymaker contacted you yet about the 70s vs 80s thing ?? )

 

:D

[Lucas]

I love Countdown too

[toymaker]

I'm in a fairly small minority that digs Chemistry.

[Mosher]

Thanks Lucas for the welcome. I haven't spent much time discussing Rush with anyone other than my old internal monologue, and I guess it was time to talk to other fans.

 

I'm a music junkie and love something from every genre pretty much, and I've always found that no matter how much I appreciate a band, I start to appreciate them more when I see why others click in the ways they do.

 

I wasn't contacted about anything, but 70's vs. 80's sounds cool. I will look it up.

[Mosher]

Apologies for ranking something last, but something had to be. :)

 

I don't skip Chemistry, it's a fine song and I really like the idea of writing each verse separately.

[toymaker]

Thanks Lucas for the welcome. I haven't spent much time discussing Rush with anyone other than my old internal monologue, and I guess it was time to talk to other fans.

 

I'm a music junkie and love something from every genre pretty much, and I've always found that no matter how much I appreciate a band, I start to appreciate them more when I see why others click in the ways they do.

 

I wasn't contacted about anything, but 70's vs. 80's sounds cool. I will look it up.

 

Hey Mosher, welcome to the forum.

 

The debate Lucas refers to is a no-brainer, really. Someone asked whether Permanent Waves, released Jan 1 1980, is in spirit more a "70s" album than an 80s album. The 70s camp (of which I am one) logically argued that since the record was conceived, written, recorded, mixed, mastered, packaged and even shipped in late 1979, it must be a 70s record. The 80s camp (who can fathom them?) argue things like, "well, it was released on Jan 1 so it's obviously an 80s record, dates don't lie, blah blah blah or, even more ridiculously, that because Rush were starting to write shorter songs with pop hooks and more synthesizers or whatever, that it sort of predicated the "80s sound," whatever that is. Anyway, like I said, it seems pretty obvious but there's no accounting for some people's stubbornness.

 

So . . . where do you stand?

Edited September 1, 2016 by toymaker

[Lucas]

Choose you answer very carefully Mosher, as a lot is riding on this . .

 

:D

[toymaker]

We'll embrace you as a fan, either way! All in fun.

[LedRush]

PeW is still Rush at their best.

 

Signals is the beginning of the dark period, and the first album since the debut which wasn't overwhelmingly awesome.

 

This isn't a contest.

[jamie]

I like Permanent Waves more because it has that "classic" Rush sound, if that makes sense. Signals is still great, just not quite the same style as PWaves.

[Permanent-Rush]

Permanent Waves for me!

[toymaker]

I like Permanent Waves more because it has that "classic" Rush sound, if that makes sense. Signals is still great, just not quite the same style as PWaves.

 

Yeah, that classic 70s sound, right? Love Permanent Waves. And Signals is also a gem.

[Mosher]

I had found the thread where the decade status of Permanent Waves was discussed, and found it fascinating in that it mattered so much to so many, but sadly I can't seem to find it again.

 

It's tempting to go into diplomatic mode and side with both camps. Certainly the fact that every single thing on PeW was already finalized before the 80's makes it a seventies album. And there can be no question that the fact it was released in the eighties makes it an 80's album. So we're really only determining which undeniable fact is the more pertinent to the question.

 

The painting example from that thread was intriguing. I painted something in 1979. I put it up for sale in 1980. When did I paint that picture?

By that test, PeW is unquestionably a seventies album.

 

Why does the time PeW was put on sale make the rules different for music?

 

It comes down to fairness. When determining sales, awards, or anything else for a given year they have to have a standard rule to determine what is legally considered. That is usually the release date. This makes it an 80's album.

 

(I'm beginning to feel like Vizzini determining which goblet is poisoned) :)

 

So now we ask ourselves if the release date matters for our purposes? We have to decide which matters more, when the work was done or when the work was presented.

 

I've made up my mind, I clearly can't choose the wine in front of you because...

 

Permanent Waves is a seventies album. That's when it was created, and for me the creative part is everything.

 

But I will also add, I've never cared about this before and I only learned in this forum that this was a thing for anyone. I don't know whether I am in the minority or majority, I'll find out when the masses gather with torches or roses.

 

This is the sort of critical content I'm here for! :)

[Lorraine]

Thanks Lucas for the welcome. I haven't spent much time discussing Rush with anyone other than my old internal monologue, and I guess it was time to talk to other fans.

 

I'm a music junkie and love something from every genre pretty much, and I've always found that no matter how much I appreciate a band, I start to appreciate them more when I see why others click in the ways they do.

 

I wasn't contacted about anything, but 70's vs. 80's sounds cool. I will look it up.

 

Hahaha, after being here a bit, you might go back to just talking to yourself about Rush. It's a lot safer sometimes. :madra:

 

Welcome to TRF! :hi:

[EagleMoon]

Thanks Lucas for the welcome. I haven't spent much time discussing Rush with anyone other than my old internal monologue, and I guess it was time to talk to other fans.

 

I'm a music junkie and love something from every genre pretty much, and I've always found that no matter how much I appreciate a band, I start to appreciate them more when I see why others click in the ways they do.

 

I wasn't contacted about anything, but 70's vs. 80's sounds cool. I will look it up.

 

Hahaha, after being here a bit, you might go back to just talking to yourself about Rush. It's a lot safer sometimes. :madra:

 

Welcome to TRF! :hi:

 

Haha! So true, but as long as you're strong in your convictions and not rude, you'll get along. :)

[Mosher]

I'll never be rude, that I can promise.

 

We don't have to worry about the strength of my convictions as I'm sure we'll all readily discover that mine are the only ones worth considering.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

:)

[Lorraine]

nm Edited September 2, 2016 by Lorraine

[Mosher]

That was just a joke, being rude is boring and predictable. I enjoy discussions where people respect each other and don't feel hurt because they don't like the same things.

 

There's almost nothing I like more in a music forum then to discover something about a song I'd never considered. Sometimes you can suddenly love a song that never connected with you before, or you can understand finally what someone meant when they didn't like a song.

 

I am already very happy with this forum. :)

[toymaker]

So, what album is quintessential Rush for you, Mosher?