Petrucci and Geddy Lee on season premiere of VH1's "That Metal Show" on Feb. 21

[KevShmev]

Geddy had a "thank God we have Alex and not this guy" look on his face.

I know some will jump in and point out that Alex Lifeson isn't the technical player than John Petrucci is, and I agree, but you almost NEVER see Alex Lifeson resort to mindless shredding or playing fast for the sake of it. Nearly ever solo he plays just oozes with emotion (which is not to say that JP is not an emotional player, for those ready to reply thinking I implied that  ).

[Sycsa]

I think JP could imitate Lifeson's style and playing with ease. Not to take anything away from the guy, I really like him, both as a player and his personality, but I always saw him as the nr. 3 guy, way behind Neil and Geddy in every aspect.

[KevShmev]

I think JP could imitate Lifeson's style and playing with ease. Not to take anything away from the guy, I really like him, both as a player and his personality, but I always saw him as the nr. 3 guy, way behind Neil and Geddy in every aspect.

Okay, but that means what, exactly? 

As for being the number 3 guy, rubbish.  Alex is the heart and soul of the band.  Plus, and I have long said this, if Lifeson was as proficient technically as Lee or Peart (or Petrucci), Rush wouldn't be Rush.  The fact that Lifeson is probably only an 8 or 9 on a technical scale of 1-10, actually works to their benefit, as it prevents full scale wankeries on an entire band level, which DT is definitely guilty of at times. He is more than great enough to keep up with his bandmates when they are all going off, but he rarely feels the need to.  Just because you can do it, doesn't mean you have to.  A song like La Villa Strangiato shows that Alex has major chops, but again, he rarely goes off like that.

[ThatOneGuy2112]

I can totally see people ripping on JP for mindless shredding, but I feel this is a situation where it's just "eh, who cares? Just show us what you got."

[King Postwhore]

#3 guy.

Name me another guitarist that sounds like Lifeson?   He may have been copied because he is influential but no one, no one sounds like Alex.

[Sycsa]

#3 guy.

So he's more important/influential than either Neil or Geddy? I don't see that. Even people who aren't into Rush heard about the first two, not so much for Alex.

Also, to draw a rough comparison, it's a no brainer to rank Geddy above JMX, ranking Neil higher than Portnoy/Mangini is also a given, but Lifeson > JP? Nah.

[KevShmev]

That's irrelevant.  How they compare to players from other bands means nothing.  In Rush, they are all equal, although Neil is still "the new guy."

And I will say it again: Alex Lifeson is the heart and soul of Rush. I doubt most would disagree with that.

[Skeever]

Nothing against metal or anything like that, but a TV show where the middle-aged hosts are wearing Iron Maiden and Slayer t-shirts just looks kinda...sad?  I mean, I know it's called That Metal Show, but still.

I agree. Watch That Metal Show and it's like a  bunch of guys talking about bands that haven't been interesting for years. Then of course they pimped Adrenaline Mob hard, and I always had the feeling that for the audience AM were like the one "new" band they had discovered in years.

[Sycsa]

Alex Lifeson isn't the technical player than John Petrucci

"thank God we have Alex and not this guy"

How they compare to players from other bands means nothing.

[KevShmev]

It's all about context.  Your comments basically imply that Rush would have been better with a better player as a guitarist, or that any band automatically becomes better with better players, when in reality it's the blend of the three guys that makes Rush Rush.  But feel free to cherry pick some more comments to try to suggest that I'm being hypocritical.

[rumborak]

Nothing against metal or anything like that, but a TV show where the middle-aged hosts are wearing Iron Maiden and Slayer t-shirts just looks kinda...sad?  I mean, I know it's called That Metal Show, but still.

I agree. Watch That Metal Show and it's like a  bunch of guys talking about bands that haven't been interesting for years.

I know it's too easy a pun, but "That 70's Metal Show" is a much more apt description of the show.

[Madman Shepherd]

Nothing against metal or anything like that, but a TV show where the middle-aged hosts are wearing Iron Maiden and Slayer t-shirts just looks kinda...sad?  I mean, I know it's called That Metal Show, but still.

I agree. Watch That Metal Show and it's like a  bunch of guys talking about bands that haven't been interesting for years. Then of course they pimped Adrenaline Mob hard, and I always had the feeling that for the audience AM were like the one "new" band they had discovered in years.

Other people have said that the Metal Show is a guilty pleasure and I definitely fall into that category. I don't even particularly like any of the hosts or the execution of the show but I like the idea. 

They treat it more like an infomercial with points where the audience is expected to applaud at one of their cheesy jokes.  I don't mind that they're middle aged but it bugs me that they act middle aged just like you mentioned with trying to get street cred by liking a band they think the younger generations would like such as Adrenaline Mob.  Then again it could just be their extreme bias.

They also don't know as much as they think they do.  One thing that really irritated me was when they were talking about the albums Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman and Jim Florentine mentioned that they were recorded at the same time which is one of those stupid rumors that can easily be refuted by spending just shy of a minute on wikipedia. 

But for as much as I complain I make sure to watch every episode because its the only chance I get to see anything metal related on TV. 

They win this round.   

[Sycsa]

It's all about context.  Your comments basically imply that Rush would have been better with a better player as a guitarist, or that any band automatically becomes better with better players, when in reality it's the blend of the three guys that makes Rush Rush.  But feel free to cherry pick some more comments to try to suggest that I'm being hypocritical.

You're reading way too much into it. You floated the idea of how JP compares to AL and I shared my thoughts regarding the subject. A big 'lolnope' to the part in bold.

[nikatapi]

It's cool to get some tv time for DT, it would be even better if JP was involved in the chat, but even him playing seems good enough. Imagine if this lead to DT be a support act for a Rush show, that would be a dream come true for the guys i think.

[rumborak]

The way it looks with Rush, that opportunity looks like a very unlikely scenario. I would not be surprised if their current tour is the last big tour they do.

[CharlesPL]

,

[nikatapi]

The way it looks with Rush, that opportunity looks like a very unlikely scenario. I would not be surprised if their current tour is the last big tour they do.

For sure, i don't think it's realistic either, i just can imagine how psyched the DT would be for such an opportunity.

[Prog Snob]

Geddy looks really impressed.

https://ultimateclassicrock.com/john-petrucci-that-metal-show/

Or not.

I think he was looking for Alex in the crowd. 

[theseoafs]

I know some will jump in and point out that Alex Lifeson isn't the technical player than John Petrucci is, and I agree, but you almost NEVER see Alex Lifeson resort to mindless shredding or playing fast for the sake of it.

Sure you don't, but

a) Rush's music is really, really, REALLY different from DT's, and

b) The minute before That Metal Show goes on commercial break is not really the time for subdued, nuanced, emotional solos a la La Villa Strangiatio or something.

[AngelBack]

That's irrelevant.  How they compare to players from other bands means nothing.  In Rush, they are all equal, although Neil is still "the new guy."

And I will say it again: Alex Lifeson is the heart and soul of Rush. I doubt most would disagree with that.

I get what you are saying.  While I love the tech/shred guys, when you listen to the rhythms, textures, accents and atmosphere Alex carries, well I have come to consider him one of the best rock players ever.  And I cant think of one solo of his I would list in my top 25 of all time.  Achieving that level of expertise without the "hey look what I can do" moments makes it even more of an accomplishment. 

But I would say Geddy is the heart and soul.  I never really got that until I listened to Ged's "My favorite Headache".   Some amazing music and shows you where a lot of the emotion that drives Rush comes from.

[Zydar]

[Stadler]

Given that no two people bring the exact same thing to the table at the exact same time, I think the fact that Alex has thrived in the same band as Geddy and Neil for 40 years speaks volumes about his abilities.   If he was really "an 8 on the technical scale", he would have been gone a long time ago, or at least Rush wouldn't look like it did through those years.

I think JP could imitate Lifeson's style and playing with ease.

He has; listen to the end of "Learning To Live".  Or various parts of WDADU. Or the intro to "The Looking Glass".

I can totally see people ripping on JP for mindless shredding, but I feel this is a situation where it's just "eh, who cares? Just show us what you got."

It is EXACTLY that.   That's the whole purpose of that section of the show, to shred mindlessly.   I'd be more disappointed if he did something different.

[ytserush]

Now where the hell is that popcorn emoticon?

[Dream Team]

I'm sorry; I know all of this has to be in the context of the way DLR dressed in the 80's, but that beard looks kind of ridiculous.

+999999

[Dream Team]

Nothing against metal or anything like that, but a TV show where the middle-aged hosts are wearing Iron Maiden and Slayer t-shirts just looks kinda...sad?  I mean, I know it's called That Metal Show, but still.

I agree. Watch That Metal Show and it's like a  bunch of guys talking about bands that haven't been interesting for years. Then of course they pimped Adrenaline Mob hard, and I always had the feeling that for the audience AM were like the one "new" band they had discovered in years.

Iron Maiden is WAY more interesting than your favorite band. The 80s was the greatest era for metal ever, so of course they're going to focus primarily on those bands. It could be infinitely worse, they could be wearing Korn and Slipknot shirts.

[Shadow Ninja 2.0]

Nothing against metal or anything like that, but a TV show where the middle-aged hosts are wearing Iron Maiden and Slayer t-shirts just looks kinda...sad?  I mean, I know it's called That Metal Show, but still.

I agree. Watch That Metal Show and it's like a  bunch of guys talking about bands that haven't been interesting for years. Then of course they pimped Adrenaline Mob hard, and I always had the feeling that for the audience AM were like the one "new" band they had discovered in years.

Iron Maiden is WAY more interesting than your favorite band. The 80s was the greatest era for metal ever, so of course they're going to focus primarily on those bands. It could be infinitely worse, they could be wearing Korn and Slipknot shirts.

hoping very hard this post is ironic

[ThatOneGuy2112]

Iron Maiden is WAY more interesting than your favorite band. The 80s was the greatest era for metal ever, so of course they're going to focus primarily on those bands.

[rumborak]

If he was really "an 8 on the technical scale", he would have been gone a long time ago, or at least Rush wouldn't look like it did through those years.

Where is the rationale for that? Look at Led Zeppelin; Jimmy Page is frankly sloppy as fuck, so sloppy in fact that official album releases of theirs contain total fudging on his part. Hasn't stopped the guy from becoming one of the most famous guitarists of all time.
Alex' contributions to Rush aren't some technical masterpieces of fretboard wizardry. He has an immediately distinguishable sound and approach to music. That's what makes him so valuable.

[King Postwhore]

Very true Rumbo.  That's what make's Alex unique.  His phrasing and choral structures are outstanding.  He also has a knack to pull back at the right moment and let the music breath or kill it when needed.

[Mebert78]

Ha! John brought a denim jacket to the show that he wore as a kid. He had drawn the cover from Rush's 2112 on the back with what looked like magic marker. No idea how he fit into that, lol. It was so tiny.

[OsMosis2259]

Anyone know when the episode was actually filmed?

It's cool that JP mentioned that they are in the studio.

[KevShmev]

Trunk: When we come back, we'll find out if this is going to be the last Rush tour.

Geddy (looks at the camera and mouths): No you won't.

[TheOutlawXanadu]

I'm not usually one to come out firing but these interviewers are kind of annoying

[Mebert78]

John breaking out the solo album material! Sounding nice.

[Mebert78]

Geddy ranking his favorite and least favorite Rush albums was hilarious, lol. "There's so much to disect in this!" shouts Eddie. Haha.