Was Rush Better in the ’70s or ’80s?: Roundtable

Which Rush is your favourite Rush? The hippie-haired energy trio who crafted sci-fi narratives and complicated prog-rock instrumentals within the mid-to-late ’70s? The group with supremely awkward ’80s haircuts who paired virtuosity with polished FM-radio choruses?

Both reply is legitimate. However the query continues to be divisive. Many followers solely indulge within the band’s proggiest ’70s materials on 2112 and Hemispheres, swearing off their music after the tracks received shorter and the synths received extra intense. Others are allergic to the pre-“Tom Sawyer” period, when Neil Peart’s lyrics have been at their nerdiest and Geddy Lee nonetheless shrieked at glass-shattering ranges.

So, let’s settle this as soon as and for all — or, actually, simply add to the infinite debate – by tackling that age-old query: “Which Rush period reigns supreme?”

1) Had been Rush higher within the ’70s or ’80s?

Ryan Reed: That is actually powerful as a result of we’re basically evaluating two totally different bands with very totally different approaches. Within the ’70s, Rush have been briefly onerous rock earlier than they went full prog, and it took them towards the top of the last decade to search out their footing. (I do know it is blasphemy amongst Rush followers, however A Farewell to Kings and Hemispheres each mop the ground with 2112.) However after they reached their prog pinnacle, they ranked alongside style’s greats like Genesis, Sure, King Crimson and Light Large. That artistic spark lasted by the early ’80s, together with their transition to shorter, hookier songs on Everlasting Waves and Transferring Photos. In case you break down these 4 albums — Kings and Hemispheres vs. Waves and Photos — it is not possible to select a winner. So you need to take a look at what’s left. Backside line: They launched extra high quality albums within the ’80s — even the stuff from Alex Lifeson’s “A Flock of Seagulls haircut” period. Grace Beneath Strain, Energy Home windows, Maintain Your Fireplace and Presto every supply a profession spotlight or two. It is a numbers recreation. (In the meantime, their 1974 debut is a spinoff dud.)

Ed Stenger, Rushisaband.com: Evaluating Rush from one decade to the following is a totally subjective train, so it’s powerful for me to say whether or not they have been “higher” within the ‘70s or ‘80s, however I’ll say that they have been positively totally different. I choose the ‘70s period simply because it’s the place I minimize my enamel with Rush, so these albums will all the time maintain a particular place for me. The evolution of the band was dramatic from album to album within the ‘70s, particularly between the debut and Fly by Evening, and between Hemispheres and Everlasting Waves. So, within the sense of their development as a band and the event of their sound, the ‘70s have been definitely a extra thrilling and eventful time for Rush. Everlasting Waves was their goodbye to the uber-progressive, side-long epics and paved the way in which for the keyboard-laden ‘80s. These ‘80s albums have a extra constant, polished edge to them, however these couldn’t have occurred with out that hyper-evolution that occurred with their ‘70s materials. The ‘70s have been analogous to the band’s adolescence and the ‘80s their younger maturity. Each have been nice eras in their very own proper, however the ‘70s have been positively extra necessary for the event of Rush’s musical id and iconic sound.

Matt Wardlaw: The ’70s discovered Rush creating and evolving as a band, with the world listening in on every report. They have been already a classy unit musically, even with the songs on their debut. However the albums they launched all through the remainder of the last decade noticed them proceed to hone in on their particular person and collective strengths as musicians and as a gaggle. I’d give a slight edge to their work within the ’80s, as a result of they actually took benefit of what they’d discovered from the time spent within the studio and on the street within the ’70s. They married that discovered information with the alternatives that expertise introduced within the ’80s and used that mixture of parts to prove albums and songs that stay extraordinarily compelling.

Michael Christopher: The Rush of the ’70s, although nonetheless clearly discovering their method at factors, had an vitality that was plain. That enthusiasm allowed them to do eight-minute-plus songs like “By-Tor and the Snow Canine,” “Xanadu” and the epic title observe to 2112 that by no means actually felt meandering. Only a few bands from that interval may say the identical. And after they weren’t stretching out musically, or the observe didn’t want a lot area to breathe, they supplied a packed-in ferocity that stands up towards a few of the finest onerous rock of the last decade. There are the apparent examples like “Fly by Evening,” however dig deeper into one thing like “Want Some Love” from the 1974 debut. Whereas perhaps not essentially the most lyrically poetic or musically flashy, you’ll uncover simply over two minutes of intense, unbridled enjoyable.

2) Had been the addition of keyboards and the transfer to shorter, punchier songs a very good or dangerous factor?

Reed: Good on all counts. Each band, significantly a “progressive” band, must evolve. Rush have been already experimenting with synthesizers within the late ’70s, so it is not like they all of a sudden added a harp participant the next decade — they simply used the instrument extra as a foundational compositional device, quite than a decorative one. And it is not like they misplaced their chops: Geddy Lee and Neil Peart remained the sharpest rock rhythm part on the planet. That occurred to dovetail with their shift towards tighter, shorter songs. After the elaborately constructed Hemispheres, they could not presumably get any proggier, so that they began writing precise choruses. Can anybody be sad with a shift towards “Tom Sawyer” and “The Spirit of Radio”?

Stenger: Though I nonetheless choose the guitar-heavy, “proggy” Rush of the ‘70s, the transfer to shorter, punchier songs within the ‘80s was in the end a very good factor for Rush as a result of it allowed them to remain related as a band and to proceed their evolution. There’s little doubt that they misplaced some followers alongside the way in which with the addition of keyboards and their distancing from progginess, however — extra importantly — they gained many new followers by making those self same modifications. So, their fan base developed proper together with their sound — not like a lot of their ‘70s rocker friends, most of whom by no means modified a lot and in the end turned irrelevant, banished to taking part in reveals at rib fests, state festivals and on cruise ships to their getting old and ever-shrinking fan base. Rush really went the wrong way, regularly replenishing their viewers with youthful followers whereas retaining most of their old-school followers. Once they lastly retired final decade, they went out on the peak of their relevance and recognition because of their willingness to actually progress over the a long time quite than stagnate of their ‘70s roots. Paradoxically, their previous few albums noticed them return extra to that guitar-driven sound, however with a markedly extra polished consequence because of their prior explorations of different genres and devices within the ‘80s and ‘90s.

Wardlaw: I believe it was a very good factor and a pure development. Musical historical past has proven us that musicians are all the time going to play with the brand new toys which are round. On this case, as keyboards and synths turned extra of a factor within the ’80s, Rush embraced that pattern and put it into play with the music that they have been creating. The truth that the songs have been additionally shorter, I believe, was not less than partially due to the heavy street work as much as that time. That they had a greater deal with on how the person items of the machine labored and have been capable of concisely channel the perfect elements.

Christopher: It was a nice factor. Not like a whole lot of artists within the ’80s, Rush added keyboards not as a necessity to maintain up with the shifting instances however as a result of they have been naturally creating and located an avenue to complement their music. It’s the primary cause why these years are regarded again on so fondly — as a result of it doesn’t come off as dated or short-term, however quite intrinsic to the general trajectory of the band’s evolution. And the truth that they turned proggier whereas shortening the songs is a feat in itself that continues to be mind-boggling in the perfect method potential.

3) What’s essentially the most underrated Rush album from every of those 20 years?

Reed: For the ’70s, it is positively Caress of Metal. Okay, any album that features “I Assume I am Going Bald” cannot be a masterpiece, however critics — and even, now and again, the band members themselves — have dismissed the album as some sort of bloated artifact from the glory days of prog. There are some heavyweight moments right here, significantly the majestic “Lakeside Park” and “Bastille Day.” For the ’80s, it is onerous to decide on between Maintain Your Fireplace and Presto, however I am going with the latter. Arriving in 1989, simply earlier than the band’s soggy stretch of the early ’90s, Presto pivoted away from synths again to a guitar-heavy sound. However even at its riff-iest (“Present Do not Inform”), the album nonetheless affords a soothing knowledge – like on the poignant “The Cross,” on which Neil Peart tackles teenage suicide.

Stenger: Caress of Metal is with out query Rush’s most underrated album of the ‘70s. As whimsical because it was, the songwriting was stable; there are some nice melodies in “Fountain of Lamneth,” regardless of it being a bit disjointed. “The Necromancer” is a enjoyable, Tolkien-esque romp, and “Bastille Day” is up there as one among their strongest album openers from that period — to not point out “Lakeside Park.” Most significantly, the “errors” made on that album paved the way in which for 2112 and all the pieces past. Rush’s most underrated ‘80s album might be Maintain Your Fireplace. It’s typically listed amongst followers’ “least favourite” Rush albums, doubtless because of its “poppy” sound and overuse of synths; it’s most likely the height of Rush’s synth period. Regardless of that, the songwriting is sound, with “Time Stand Nonetheless” being one among Rush’s strongest tracks from that period – or any period. “Pressure Ten” and “Mission” additionally stand out and stack up effectively towards Rush’s many different ‘80s-era compositions.

Wardlaw: It is onerous to take a look at any of the ’70s albums as being underrated. However 1975’s Caress of Metal might be the closest from their work in that decade. The group made their official transfer right into a extra progressive space, and it did not carry out in addition to the earlier two albums — and in that sense, it did not get pleasure from as a lot of the “limelight” as different albums within the catalog. Relating to the ’80s, it looks like 1987’s Maintain Your Fireplace will get a bit misplaced. That is unlucky, as a result of it finds the band in a great place, opening on an lively word with “Pressure Ten.” At a time when some ’70s legacy bands have been struggling to remain above the water, releasing albums that actually felt torpid or awkwardly positioned, Rush have been staring straight into the “eye of the storm” and pushing ahead with a few of their strongest work.

Christopher: The self-titled debut album will get handed over fairly a bit both as a result of it stands out musically just like the proverbial sore thumb from the remainder of their catalog, or as a result of it’s the one LP to not characteristic Neil Peart. These causes could be honest, however Rush is criminally underrated as a standalone work. Amid the overused — although completely comprehensible — comparisons to Led Zeppelin, “Discovering My Means” is an excellent opener, and “What You’re Doing” has a riff that’s borderline stoner-rock. In the meantime, why does 1989’s Presto get neglected a lot? The album is notably transitory, transferring out of the reliance on keyboards and leaning extra on guitar-oriented compositions, but that doesn’t negate some standout and simply plain fascinating moments. Trying on the larger image, the hate of Presto is comprehensible as a result of followers had gotten used to 1 method the band sounded, and the brand new strategy didn’t return or transfer ahead however type of veered. Nonetheless, “Superconductor” flat-out rocks, and deeper cuts like “Chain Lightning” have an early ’90s sheen that by some means manages to sound recent even right now.

4) Had been Rush higher stay within the ’70s or ’80s – and even the 90s or later? In case you may time journey to anyone tour, which wouldn’t it be?

Reed: Rush have been the uncommon prog band that harnessed extra management over its devices as time went on. I would not argue somebody who chosen the ’90s or past for this reply. However I would need to go along with the ’80s for a pair causes: Lee’s voice had matured past its preliminary untamed shriek right into a extra expressive, nuanced machine. And by this level, they’d a extra different catalog to attract from, which means I may hear extra streamlined songs like “Pink Barchetta” alongside a few of the earlier prog items. I would most likely time journey to the Transferring Photos tour, for no different cause than it is (most likely) my favourite Rush album.

Stenger: I’ve seen each tour since Energy Home windows, however I by no means was fortunate sufficient to see Rush stay within the ‘70s. So for that period, I can solely go by outdated live performance footage and secondhand reviews. That stated, I can actually say that they turned progressively higher every tour, and the R40 Dwell tour was hands-down their finest. Once they started the “night with Rush” format within the late ‘90s (the place they performed shut to a few hours with no opener) is after they actually took issues up a notch with followers getting a “two for one” take care of each present. In addition they began incorporating extra in-concert movies and stage props round that point, which simply added to an already unbelievable live performance expertise. So, simply these information alone make the reveals from the final 20 years actually stand out in high quality. Additionally, even with how good they have been on their devices to start with, their technical prowess and talent simply stored getting higher with each tour. They definitely went out on a excessive word. All that stated, if I may time journey again to see anyone tour, it could positively be 2112; it could have been a extremely distinctive expertise to see them at that uncooked stage of their profession after they have been nearly to interrupt vast open. I nonetheless envy of us who noticed them again then.

Wardlaw: I really feel like Rush performed a few of their finest live shows within the final half of their profession, with the Time Machine tour of 2010-2011 being one explicit excessive level. From a set-list standpoint, that trek and the following Clockwork Angels and R40 excursions confirmed their eager give attention to staging a brand new and totally different expertise for the followers, highlighting materials that hadn’t been performed beforehand or had hardly ever featured. So many teams slip into the part of  “best hits” excursions again and again to trip out the rest of their profession. Rush, as they did with so a lot of their profession strikes, dealt with issues in another way — and the followers received to see some actually particular reveals and moments consequently. So far as the time-travel side? It could be tempting to journey again to most of the excursions within the ’80s. However personally, I would have to decide on the Counterparts tour — I’ve a whole lot of remorse for lacking that one. Whereas it is documented partially on the Completely different Levels launch, I’ve hope that they’re going to launch a full present from that tour one among as of late.

Christopher: There won’t have been a greater Rush tour song-wise than their ultimate one, R40 Dwell in 2015. Hardly ever does a band get to exit after that many a long time and blow their audiences away with each the content material of the set lists and musicianship behind it. Some other tour could be doubtlessly slowed down by the work that was being promoted on the time. Going again in time, I’d need yet one more probability to see them within the spring or summer time of 2015.

5) How would you sum up Rush within the ’90s and ’00s? And the way do these a long time examine to the ’70s and ’80s?

Reed: One among my buddies, a fellow music journalist and Rush fan whose opinions I dearly respect, considers the ’90s one of many band’s excessive factors. What a dummy. There are stable songs right here and there on their three LPs of the period, however there are additionally some cringe-worthy moments. (Lee’s “rapping” on “Roll the Bones” is sufficient to discredit your entire decade.) Fortunately, the band rebounded for its ultimate stretch, saving some profession highlights for 2007’s Snakes & Arrows and 2012’s Clockwork Angels. For me, the ’00s have been closest in spirit to the early ’80s in balancing melodic verse-chorus songs with their normal virtuosity.

Stenger: Rush’s profession within the ‘90s and ‘00s was a bit tumultuous and disjointed by no fault of their very own, actually. The ‘90s have been, for my part, the least fascinating part of the band. The three releases of that interval (Roll the Bones, Counterparts, Check for Echo) have been stable rock albums, however noticeably missing in comparison with their different materials each earlier than and after. The ‘70s and ‘80s have been a prolific and eventful time for Rush, however they stagnated slightly comparability within the ‘90s. That was most likely because of them simply maturing as human beings and settling right into a groove as musicians. Regardless that they’d tragic causes for his or her lengthy hiatus within the late ’90s and early ’00s, I believe that point away was good for Rush musically. That rebirth of the band within the early ‘00s sparked a renewed creativity. Vapor Trails was uncooked and had its points, however the songwriting was robust and you would see the band returning to its guitar-heavy roots. That album was essential for them to shake the rust off and in the end introduced us two masterpieces in Snakes & Arrows and, particularly, Clockwork Angels.

Wardlaw: When grunge and different musical types emerged within the ’90s, it ended up being a career-killer for some teams. Rush responded by making Counterparts, a harder-edged report that pulled in some sonic influences from that point. That was the final time of their profession the place it felt like they have been making an attempt to slot in with present tendencies — and one may argue that they have been all the time making music on their very own phrases, not worrying about becoming into the panorama of what was perceived to be related. They made a whole lot of nice music in these ultimate years and a long time: Clockwork Angels, particularly, deserves extra acclaim than it receives. Whether or not or not they knew at the moment that it could be the ultimate Rush studio album they’d make collectively, it in the end ends their run on a extremely excessive word. How do these previous few a long time stack up with what they did within the ’70s and ’80s? I do not suppose there’s a lot to check — it is all one lengthy and actually fascinating street that we have been fortunate sufficient to journey as followers. In every period, they have been experimenting and pushing their artistic boundaries farther and farther out. I do not suppose they ever stopped looking for new paths as a gaggle, and that is admirable.

Christopher: Desperately looking for the perfect of each worlds is the right method to describe ’90s and ’00s Rush. There was this deeply ingrained fan base that cherished both the ’70s, the ’80s or each equally, and the band’s personal intent to please each whereas staying true to their want as musicians to develop. It could be unfair to place it in black-and-white phrases, given the band’s need to construct upon the previous right into a sound that might fulfill themselves and their viewers. In the end, Rush achieved the sometimes not possible act of progressing with out disappointing — another reason why they continue to be legends.

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