Rush

Even though the lyrics of this record rely heavily on the writings and philosophy of Ayn Rand, don't think for a minute about throwing the baby out with the bathwater, because this album shines regardless of any mediocre novelist/faux "philosopher" who inspired its thematic content.

Geddy Lee can't sing, but he can screech. He can screech better than any banshee. And while he's not the most attractive thing to look at up there on the stage (not his fault, he was born that way), he can sure show more play bass and synthesizer simultaneously like no other rocker in history.

Don't confuse Alex Lifeson for Jimmy Page. But don't confuse Steve Jones for Alex Lifeson. When the guitar needs to sound like science fiction itself — as it does on 2112 — or later in their careers when it sounds like an outlawed automobile being chased by an "alloy air car," nobody in rock history has ever made the electric guitar sound so consistently and convincingly dystopian.

Neil Peart? Ever heard of him? If you haven't, he's the most technically skilled (or was, in his prime in the 1970s & 80s), versatile, and virtuosic rock drummer who's ever lived. Set the needle (if you have one) on side one of 2112, and listen to Overture/Temples of Syrinx, and hear the incomparable blitzing beat of genius. He drums faster than a bullet train, but it's intelligible-fast, each thwack distinguishable from the one preceding it, unlike the fast-thrash-ubiquitous-bashing predominant in today's harder-tinged music.

The Sex Pistols released one album in their "career" — iconic and influential as it was, granted — that garnered them a place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. While Rush, dozens of great albums out, all (except their first) filled with Neil Peart's poetry — yes, poetry — lyrics that could pass as poetry and not just lyrics (read Closer to the Heart, The Trees, Freewill & Red Barchetta for starters), and worldwide critical acclaim (except in almighty America) are not — huh? — in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Get serious. Rush, in fact, hasn't even been nominated for the Hall of Fame. Absurd.

I'm no rock critic, but I'd posit that if a "career" based solely on 1977s, Never Mind The Bollocks by the Sex Pistols, is worthy of Hall of Fame status, then so should Rush gain entrance into the Hall of Fame based solely on its 1976 release, 2112 — an album sonically superior and lyrically more astute (even despite Ayn Rand's nefarious influence) than that raucous, one-chordish, and angry (but not very bright) Sex Pistols record. show less

Peak Rush. Geddy Lee's voice is mellower than on previous albums. After this album, Rush went through a phase where they relied maybe a little too much on synthesizers and then overcompensated for that by making their final few albums very guitar-heavy and less melodic. If you were going to pick one album to introduce your friends to Rush, it should be this one.

Signals is an amazing album with no filler. Neil Peart's lyrics are down-to-earth and poignant. The tunes are highly evocative of show more the early 1980's, which were a magical time for my generation. And how in the world does Alex Lifeson move his fingers that fast? show less

Rush

12/7/85

Coliseum;

New Haven, CT.

The Spirit Of Radio

Limelight

The Big Money

New World Man

Subdivisions

Manhattan Project

Middletown Dreams

Red Sector A

Closer To The Heart

Marathon

The Trees

Mystic Rhythms

Distant Early Warning

Territories

Witch Hunt

YYZ

Drum Solo

Red Lenses

Tom Sawyer

Overture

Temples Of Syrinx

Grand Designs

In The Mood

AUD > ? > Cass > CDR

Length: 120 mins

Source: Audience

Part of The Studio Albums 1989 - 2007 box

Summertime Blues (Eddie Cochran cover)
Heart Full of Soul (The Yardbirds cover)
For What It's Worth (Buffalo Springfield cover)
The Seeker (The Who cover)
Mr. Soul (Buffalo Springfield cover)
Seven and Seven Is (Love cover)
Shapes of Things (The Yardbirds (cover)
Crossroads (Robert Johnson cover)