The Rush Thread v. Clockwork Angels

[KevShmev]

They are close, but I probably slightly prefer P/G.  If I compared the songs, they'd be about even (both have a handful of great songs, a few good songs, and two okay "by Rush standards" songs), but P/G simply sounds better.  It has a very nice overall sound to it sonically, while Signals sounds slightly muffled, like they weren't sure how to mix it with the greater emphasis on keys, and P/G has that cold and wintery feeling to it that is just awesome.

[dbrooks22]

They are close, but I probably slightly prefer P/G.  If I compared the songs, they'd be about even (both have a handful of great songs, a few good songs, and two okay "by Rush standards" songs), but P/G simply sounds better.  It has a very nice overall sound to it sonically, while Signals sounds slightly muffled, like they weren't sure how to mix it with the greater emphasis on keys, and P/G has that cold and wintery feeling to it that is just awesome.

Agree 100% with this.  P/G has a beautiful darkness to it... lots of tension and a rawness that is rarely found in post-MP Rush.  Though i think song quality is roughly equal on both, the sound on P/G is better...

[MasterShakezula]

They are close, but I probably slightly prefer P/G.  If I compared the songs, they'd be about even (both have a handful of great songs, a few good songs, and two okay "by Rush standards" songs), but P/G simply sounds better.  It has a very nice overall sound to it sonically, while Signals sounds slightly muffled, like they weren't sure how to mix it with the greater emphasis on keys, and P/G has that cold and wintery feeling to it that is just awesome.

Agree 100% with this.  P/G has a beautiful darkness to it... lots of tension and a rawness that is rarely found in post-MP Rush.  Though i think song quality is roughly equal on both, the sound on P/G is better...

You guys know what's up.  P/G really benefits from its cold and synth-heavy, yet not sterile production.  It truly sounds like the future, even if it was done with 1984 equipment.  Hell, it reminds me of the book 1984. 

Funny thing, when I first heard Power Windows and Hold Your Fire, I felt really let down, because even though they are good albums, (PW especially), Sigs and Grace were just so good, IMO, that I couldn't help but feel disappointed that they didn't meet that sorta quality.

[KevShmev]

Signals sounding the way it did was probably a big reason why they fired Terry Brown.  They said at the time that they wanted to see how other producers would treat their music, and given that they knew they were going in a more keyboard-heavy direction, following the failure of Signals from a production standpoint, they probably weren't confident that Brown was the man to get the most out of them in regards to the direction they were heading.  I know they said it came at a high cost, as it cost them their friendship for a long time I think, but Brown did appear with them on the Moving Pictures DVD last year when talking about aspects of the recording and whatnot, so it appears as if they buried the hatchet, so that was good to see, given how important Brown was to them during what most would call their peak.

[ZBomber]

Well Drew, since you asked for it...

Signals > Grace Under Pressure.

While Signals is strong all around, with Chemistry being one of the best tracks on the album, Grace Under Pressure has Kid Gloves and Red Lenses, and both are sub-par by Rush standards. Though both albums have two big favorites of mine, Subdivisions, and The Enemy Within.

Gross. Chemistry is one of the worst tracks on the album, aside from Countdown.

P/G rivals Power Windows for me. Love the atmosphere of both of those albums.

[MasterShakezula]

P/G is better than fucking PW! 

I mean, for starters, P/G doesn't have Grand Designs. 

[Nel]

Grace Under Pressure is by far my favorite Rush album. It was the first one I got after Snakes And Arrows. The first half is just so catchy!

A few weeks back, I heard Power Windows and Hold Your Fire for the first time. I've had them for almost two years but never really took the time for them until recently. Power Windows is awesome too. Hold Your Fire, though... that was disappointing. Only the first song was memorable. The rest of the album sounded very bland to me. I only got a little bit into Presto, bad that wasn't very impressive either.

[MasterShakezula]

Give HYF and Presto some time.  I needed time for them to grow on me, and I enjoy them now, though they have nothing on Caress of Steel through P/G.  Like, HYF, especially is really soft and mainstream, not to mention overproduced, but if you keep on listening to it and get to the bottom line, there's a fine collection of tunes there, though I agree that Force 10 totally overshadows the rest of the album.

[dbrooks22]

Presto was actually the second Rush album i bought, after MP.  Initially, i was like, "What the hell is this?"  But i am grateful to have gotten early exposure to that side of Rush, because it allowed me to fill in the gaps more appreciatively.  All in all, Presto is top 3 for me.  I can certainly understand why many aren't that enthralled with it, but there is a subtlety in the songs that i can't quite put my finger on.  It takes a long time to find it - new Rushies shouldn't expect to get into Presto with the first listen (or first 20 listens).

[ytserush]

Since Roll The Bones came out 20 years ago (but I'd already listened to Roll The Bones (gold disc) a few weeks back) I listened to a few Roll The Bones Radio Shows this weekend.  (Up Close and Rockline) Nice trip in the wayback machine.

[dbrooks22]

Since Roll The Bones came out 20 years ago (but I'd already listened to Roll The Bones (gold disc) a few weeks back) I listened to a few Roll The Bones Radio Shows this weekend.  (Up Close and Rockline) Nice trip in the wayback machine.

I love RTB.  That was the album that was out when i first got into Rush.  Although not my favorite album, i still think it's their best songwriting work to date.

[MasterShakezula]

I don't.  I say it's the worst thing they ever did, and is Adult Contemporary schlock.  Only Dreamline, Bravado, and the instrumental appeal to me. 

And I like some AC.  (Mainly 90-92 Springsteen)

[dbrooks22]

I can understand your viewpoint.  But from lyrics to melodies, i think RTB is mature, thoughtful songwriting.  The only tracks that i don't love are Face Up and Neurotica.  Everything else is gold to me.  Ghost of a Chance is sublime.  Big Wheel rocks (although the production on the album, as noted many times before, is too thin and weak, detracting from the power of tracks like Dreamline and BW), title track is groovy with a signature beat, Heresy is brilliant.

[MasterShakezula]

I'll agree with you on the lyrics.  Often quite clever, with a lot of use of games as metaphors for life and its ways. 

[dbrooks22]

I could spend years discussing aspects of Rush.  I would say that, imo, the Rupert Hine albums (Presto/RTB) contain Neil's best lyrics.  Too bad they also have the thinnest sound.

[Pols Voice]

Oh cool. Another fan of Presto and RTB. I love those albums, Presto moreso. Just a lot of great, tight pop/rock songwriting.

Power Windows and Hold Your Fire are fine, with a few great tracks (The Big Money, Marathon, Force Ten, Prime Mover), but there is a sameyness to a lot of the material and a bit too much 80s gloss.

[MasterShakezula]

My favorite songs from PW and HYF are Big Money, Middletown Dreams, Mystic Rhythms, Force 10, and High Water. 

Especially Middletown Dreams.  Wonderfully gloomy, yet uplifting, and the intro and that crazy keyboard loop are possibly my favorite moments of the entire PW album. 

[dbrooks22]

mmmmm... i love all those tracks.  HYF i hold in very high regard also.  Interestingly, it has also been the most accessible album for my female friends.

[ZBomber]

Presto and Roll the Bones are two very awesome albums. The production of Presto is a little off putting, but the songs themselves are great.

[KevShmev]

mmmmm... i love all those tracks.  HYF i hold in very high regard also.  Interestingly, it has also been the most accessible album for my female friends.

That doesn't surprise me.  The girlfriend I had when I first got into Rush in late '91/'92 always said that her favorite Rush song was Time Stand Still.

[Orbert]

We heard "Time Stand Still" in the car the other day, and my wife mentioned that she'd always liked that song.  Amazing what a female guest vocalist can do for your appeal to females.

[Gadough]

Does it make me a sissy, then, if Time Stand Still is one of my Top 5 Rush songs?

[The Letter M]

Does it make me a sissy, then, if Time Stand Still is one of my Top 5 Rush songs?

Nah - it's in 7/4, so you're saved from it being a sissy-song. Now if it was in 4/4, that's a different story.

However, "Superconductor" isn't saved by being in 7/4, sadly enough...

-Marc.

[poespas]

Did anyone hear this beautiful cover of Time Stand Still by Nelly Furtado?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2y0hKk4YHXo

[PlaysLikeMyung]

Does it make me a sissy, then, if Time Stand Still is one of my Top 5 Rush songs?

Nah - it's in 7/4, so you're saved from it being a sissy-song. Now if it was in 4/4, that's a different story.

However, "Superconductor" isn't saved by being in 7/4, sadly enough...

-Marc.

Most of Time Stand Still is in 4/4

[dbrooks22]

Does it make me a sissy, then, if Time Stand Still is one of my Top 5 Rush songs?

Nah - it's in 7/4, so you're saved from it being a sissy-song. Now if it was in 4/4, that's a different story.

However, "Superconductor" isn't saved by being in 7/4, sadly enough...

-Marc.

Funny thing was, Superconductor was the first accessible song for me on that album.  Not surprising, but it allowed me to gradually immerse myself in the brilliance of the rest of it.  Took me about 6 months to really start appreciating Presto, and then for the next 18yrs it has been a sublime masterpiece.  Very good reward for the initial effort.

[The Letter M]

Does it make me a sissy, then, if Time Stand Still is one of my Top 5 Rush songs?

Nah - it's in 7/4, so you're saved from it being a sissy-song. Now if it was in 4/4, that's a different story.

However, "Superconductor" isn't saved by being in 7/4, sadly enough...

-Marc.

Most of Time Stand Still is in 4/4

Shhhhhhhh...PART of it isn't, so it's still good.

-Marc.

[Zydar]

Does it make me a sissy, then, if Time Stand Still is one of my Top 5 Rush songs?

Nah - it's in 7/4, so you're saved from it being a sissy-song. Now if it was in 4/4, that's a different story.

However, "Superconductor" isn't saved by being in 7/4, sadly enough...

-Marc.

WATCH HIS EVERY MOVE!

[The Letter M]

WATCH HIS EVERY MOVE!

ORCHESTRATE ILLUSIONS!

-Marc.

[The King in Crimson]

... I like Superconductor

[ZBomber]

It's not the greatest tune, but it's ok, I guess.

[Nel]

Random thought: Leave That Thing Alone is my favorite instrumental of all time, if only because it reminds me of the Stardust Speedway level from Sonic CD, and old Sonic games have my favorite video game music. That and it's just rockin' on its own anyway.

[Pols Voice]

... I like Superconductor

It ain't bad. Lyrics are kinda silly and the "Superconductor" voice is weird, but it's a solid track with a cool little riff.

[Zydar]

Random thought: Leave That Thing Alone is my favorite instrumental of all time, if only because it reminds me of the Stardust Speedway level from Sonic CD, and old Sonic games have my favorite video game music. That and it's just rockin' on its own anyway.

I haven't played that game, but I think Leave That Thing Alone is my favourite Rush instrumental - beating both La Villa Strangiato and YYZ.

[dbrooks22]

LTTA is definitely the highlight of Cparts for me.  I've heard that song used as a backdrop on several TV shows and sporting events.

I have to say, however, that Cparts was pretty disappointing for me.  I had the album 2 months before it was released (some random dude on Prodigy online sent me a copy cassette), and to this day it was just kind of blah.  I really love the sound and engineering of the album, but the songs are just blah.  When i read Neil saying that Animate was one of their all-time bests recently, i nearly gagged on my Cinnamon Toast Crunch.

That being said, I love LTTA, Cut to the Chase, Double Agent.  And NH and AS are good.  The rest.... yuck.  I can't believe they still play Stick it Out... that could take my vote for worst Rush song ever.  And i'm not alone - they did a poll at Rushisaband.com during the tour and an overwhelming 65% of people singled out that song to be the first to remove from the setlist.

OK, i'm done complaining.  Weak Rush is still great.