What a... RUSH! [Archive] - Audio & Video Forums

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Rich-n-Texas
02-13-2008, 09:17 AM
Ordered tickets for the Snakes & Arrows tour today. They'll be here in Dallas on April 25th, which is a Friday, and barring rain, the perfect weather to see them in. The venue is an outdoor ampitheater type of arrangement; there is lawn seating in the back, but I got pretty good reserved seating tickets very close to center stage.

It's been more than 20 years since I last saw them so this is going to bring back a LOT of great memories about the musical aspect of my past. I'm STOKED!!!

ForeverAutumn
02-13-2008, 09:22 AM
Lucky you! You're going to have a great time!

GMichael
02-13-2008, 09:40 AM
I knew there was a reason I liked you. I've seen RUSH a bunch of times. And I've been to outdoor concerts countless times. But I never saw RUSH outdoors. It should be great. Have a good time and report back on how much fun you have.

tony_abreu
02-14-2008, 06:03 PM
I saw them last year and you won't be dissapointed. These guys just keep on getting better. I missed half of the show due to a flight delay. I was in Puerto Rico in a bussiness trip and the flight was delayed (Ft. Lauderdale/Miami). It was my fourth rush concert and it was awesome.

Regards,
Tony

musicman1999
02-14-2008, 07:19 PM
One of Canada's great bands and i have yet to see them, i never seem to be able to go when they are here.On one trip here they filmed a great Trailer Park Boys episode.Maybe they will come in the fall.

bill

ForeverAutumn
02-15-2008, 06:29 AM
One of Canada's great bands and i have yet to see them, i never seem to be able to go when they are here.On one trip here they filmed a great Trailer Park Boys episode.Maybe they will come in the fall.

bill

Was that the episode where they kidnapped Alex Lifeson? That was great!

Rich-n-Texas
02-15-2008, 06:38 AM
What's this? I'd be perfectly happy if they'd just release a live concert video.

GMichael
02-15-2008, 07:09 AM
What's this? I'd be perfectly happy if they'd just release a live concert video.
Another one?

Rich-n-Texas
02-15-2008, 07:13 AM
Hugh???

ForeverAutumn
02-15-2008, 07:26 AM
Live concert DVDs are coming out their freakin' ears...

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/104-7254900-8228713?url=search-alias%3Ddvd&field-keywords=Rush

And why are you calling Mike, Hugh?

Rich-n-Texas
02-15-2008, 07:34 AM
I was certain I'd read posts here sometime back where someone was complaining that Rush hasn't released concert DVD's. Didn't realize R30 was a DVD, I thought it was a CD. It's going in my Amazon shopping cart ASAP!

HUGH is a reference to a mis-spelling pixelthis often makes. He's trying to say huge, but he types HUGH. I think it's hilarious so I use it sometimes. It doesn't really fit in this case but it gives me a laugh just the same.

GMichael
02-15-2008, 07:37 AM
I guess that would make it an inside (your head) joke.

Rich-n-Texas
02-15-2008, 07:51 AM
Thanks for the follow-up pix. :rolleyes:

tony_abreu
02-15-2008, 08:37 AM
I would recommend R30 and Replay. I was very dissapointed with Rush in Rio. The performance was great, but the sound mix was horrible.

Regards,
Tony

musicman1999
02-15-2008, 09:07 AM
Was that the episode where they kidnapped Alex Lifeson? That was great!

That was the one.That was one of my favorite episodes, Alex was great and when Bubbles played guitar was great as well.

bill

topspeed
02-15-2008, 10:40 AM
Red is the New Black.

Remember that.

I saw Rush in Marysville last year on the S&A Tour. Terrific concert and astonishingly tight, especially considering how long they've been in the game. Maybe you can figure out what the roasters on stage were for (you'll see). Kinda hoped they were going to toss the chickens into the crowd at the end of the show but it never happened. Lord knows we earned it as the birds weren't the only ones roasting: It was 106 degrees that day!

Peart's solo is absolutely sick. Nice tip o' the hat to Buddy Rich and listen for the 7/8 rhythm. It's amazing.

Rich-n-Texas
02-15-2008, 10:59 AM
The one thing that always stuck in my brain over the years is remembering their precision and tightness live. It was like sitting in the recording studio.

Hmm... Rotisserie chicken. Me likes! :thumbsup:

Finch Platte
02-15-2008, 11:18 AM
I would recommend R30 and Replay. I was very dissapointed with Rush in Rio. The performance was great, but the sound mix was horrible.

Regards,
Tony

Rush, with a bad mix?!?!?!

NO WAY.

Impossible. :rolleyes:

ForeverAutumn
02-15-2008, 11:22 AM
Maybe you can figure out what the roasters on stage were for (you'll see).

Peart's solo is absolutely sick. Nice tip o' the hat to Buddy Rich and listen for the 7/8 rhythm. It's amazing.

The roasters (and vending machines on the last tour, and washers and dryers on the tour before that) are to replace the amp stack that was behind Geddy many years ago. Geddy dropped the amps several years ago but felt like he still needed something behind him to give him a backdrop.

Speedy's right about the drum solo. We saw Rush early in this tour and were sitting side stage over Peart's drum kit. We were able to watch the solo from a bird's eye view and it was jaw dropping! Best drum solo I've ever seen...and I've seen A LOT of solos.

Rich-n-Texas
02-15-2008, 11:23 AM
Red is the New Black..
I hope Red Sector A is still red. I hope Red Barchetta is still red? :confused5:

Rich-n-Texas
02-15-2008, 11:24 AM
Okay now you guys aren't going to spoil this for me are ya?

tony_abreu
02-15-2008, 12:17 PM
RB30 is sonic years better than "Rush in Rio". When I played it, I just can go thorugh the whole thing, the only reason I go back to it, the performance is awesome.

Rush, with a bad mix?!?!?!

YES ALL THE WAY ON THIS ONE!!! :-)

Regards,
Tony

ForeverAutumn
02-15-2008, 12:24 PM
Rush, with a bad mix?!?!?!

NO WAY.

Impossible. :rolleyes:

Do I detect a hint of sarcasm?

:)

Rich-n-Texas
02-15-2008, 12:26 PM
I think he was just trying to get under your skin FA. Here, try my sarcasm detector...

bobsticks
02-15-2008, 03:26 PM
Red is the New Black...


Ya mean 'cause of something like this?

http://www.rushisaband.com/images/200706/550.f.jpg

Rich-n-Texas
02-15-2008, 03:30 PM
Holy crap! Is that you sticks??? I thought you had more hair. :sosp:

bobsticks
02-15-2008, 04:52 PM
Holy crap! Is that you sticks??? I thought you had more hair. :sosp:

No Rich, that's one of Peart's drum techs behind his new red Snakes and Arrows set which can be viewed here: http://www.rushisaband.com/display.php?id=1056

Rich-n-Texas
02-15-2008, 05:04 PM
Should've recognized the snake and arrow logo I reckon.

Not running on all 8 tonite sticks.

bobsticks
02-15-2008, 06:45 PM
Should've recognized the snake and arrow logo I reckon.

Not running on all 8 tonite sticks.

It happens.

Rich-n-Texas
04-26-2008, 04:45 PM
Free Rotisserie Chickens!!!

Geddy delivers "Henhouse" chickens!!!

:) :) :)

bobsticks
04-26-2008, 05:13 PM
So, clearly you're not running on all 8 tonight either, eh?

Rich-n-Texas
04-28-2008, 11:55 AM
The impressions I got in 1983 of the band when I saw them live for the first time are exactly the same as those I got on Friday night. Absolute precision as if I were in a giant recording studio. It just amazes me how these three are so tightly glued together. I could play air guitar and hit the strings at the same time as Alex, and I could hit the snare and cymbals at the same time as Neil as if I were sitting in my living room with six speakers blasting at "concert level" ( :ihih: ) at my head. I'm SURE the hot babes behind me on the lawn were impressed, although none of them reacted when I threw my pick at them. :nonod:

The weather was perfect, the light show was phenominal, the three screen video was at times hilarious (especially when Cartman and the boys intro'd and butchered Tom Sawyer) the beer was @ $8.00 for Bud Light (GAG, Vomit... good lord I'll even drink a friggin' Shiner) overpriced, our seats sucked, and I think I got a "contact high" from the people sitting directly upwind from us (Ahhhh... just like the old days. :thumbsup: ) Nevertheless, we could see the band and the sound quality I'd say was fantastic for all but a couple of songs where I couldn't hear a few of Alex's riffs. The quality definately improved after the third or forth song to the point where every instrument sounded almost as if they were coming from a CD through a very high powered amp while at the same time not being overpowering.

They played TWENTY EIGHT :yikes: songs over a 2 & 1/2 hour span with a short intermission. The intermission couldn't have been more perfectly timed as it gave me a chance to expell the remnants of the Guiness Stout and a Belgian beer called Maredsous that I had when we stopped at a brew pub before the show. Very tasty it was. Alex played all sorts of guitars, Geddy's bass and keyboard attacks were unrelenting and his usual stage presence was just a thing of beauty. Neil, as usual was expressionless except for a couple of times when he opened his mouth to breath (I guess that's what he was doing). The guy is so... what's the word... business-like? that I kept feeling like I should run up to the stage and tell him: Neil, take it easy man! Your gonna hurt yourself. Please! You've got all night okay? He's truly in a different world when he's playing with his toys ya know? During Malignant Narcissism he broke into a solo, which included some of the most bizzare sounding percussion I've ever heard when he switched over and started playing his electronic percussion instruments (midi devices?). It wasn't a real long solo but it's certainly one like I've never heard before, and the beat projected right through my chest. What a thrill.

Here's the set list:

Limelight
Digital Man
Ghost of a Chance
Mission
Freewill
The Main Monkey Business
The Larger Bowl
Red Barchetta (I nailed the air drums on this one!)
The Trees
Between The Wheels
DreamlineA 10 minute intermission followed by 5 songs in a row off Snakes & Arrows which just about had me doing back flips in progression...

Far Cry
Workin' Them Angels
Armor and Sword (Broke two strings on my air guitar:incazzato:)
Spindrift
The Way The Wind Blows
Subdivisions
Natural Science
Witch Hunt
Malignant Narcissism
Drum Solo
Hope
The Spirit of Radio
2112 (Overture/Temples of Syrinx) ( I got goose bumps, the hair on the back of my neck...etc. :cornut:
Tom SawyerEncore:

One Little Victory
A Passage To Bangkok
YYZ (Just blew the house down. What a way to end the show!)Their next stop is up in OK which was tempting, but no can do.

So that's my Rush experience for the year. I'm including a review which, if read carefully will explain the Rotisserie chickens. :yesnod:


DALLAS — First, you have to understand several things about the long-lived Canadian band Rush: they write brainy, knotty songs full of time-signature changes and “deep” lyrics; they have instrumental chops that impress lesser mortals and inspire many other musicians; they stage extravagant stage shows of lasers, lights, explosive pots and triple projection screens; and they have a very dada-like sense of humor. In short, they are one of the Americas most popular cult bands and are beloved by engineering, professional and blue-collar nerds everywhere. They also refuse to believe that after 30 years together that they have nothing new musically to offer – hence the predominance of songs from their latest album Snakes & Arrows.

Rush also has a huge back catalog of gold and platinum albums that most fans want to hear a fair sampling from. What helped make this concert so great was that it offered nothing but 2 ½ hours of prime Rush with no opening band. The amazingly cool weather at the Superpages.com (http://www.pegasusnews.com/r/34/197/) amphitheater was also an added bonus to the fans at the show.

Kicking off with “Limelight” from their Moving Pictures album proved to be a smart decision as the crowd immediately jumped to their feet and pretty much stayed that way for the duration of the night. They then went into the Police-like “Digital Man” from their early 80s career. One of the earlier highlights of the night was an excellent rendition of the 1987 song “Mission.” Permanent Waves yielded “Freewill” and got the crowd around me to do a sing-along with it’s life affirming lyrics. Snakes & Arrows was also represented by an instrumental called “The Main Monkey Business.” This was the first of five instrumentals – if you count the amazing drum solo by percussionist extraordinaire Neil Peart and Alex Lifeson’s 12-string acoustic guitar solo performance piece called “Hope”.

The crowd pleasing, sci-fi car song “Red Barchetta” was followed by one of the more bizarre (but still great) songs in Rush’s oeuvre called “The Trees” from 1978’s Hemispheres album. A story about a dispute in the forest between the smaller maples and the larger oaks that oppress them by stealing all the sunlight – it sounds crazy, but it’s a parable about relationships between different cultural groups. The performed two more songs and went to intermission.

Before coming back on stage, the projection screens had a brief comedic film (the second of the evening) which featured bassist Geddy Lee as a Scottish truck driver who keeps saying “What’s that smell?” while on a quest to find delicious fried chicken. He picks up a trio of Barbie dolls and is stopped at a police barricade where a buck toothed policeman keeps asking, “Where are you going?” Meanwhile the Barbie dolls see a miniature Neil Peart doll on a drum kit and immediately leave the Scotsman for this handsome man. The Scotsman finally finds a place where a Swiss man tempts him a delicious fried chicken leg and yodels to his daughter “Heidi” to bring the traveler a bucket. The girl lifts a cleaver and brings it down and then turns around to reveal her identity as Jerry Stiller (George Castanza’s father) and yells back “Quit calling me Heidi!” This coupled with the three large rotisserie chicken ovens behind the bassist instead of the normal wall of amplifiers seems to indicate that either Geddy Lee loves the “universal tasting food” or that they are just plain surreal! They also had the cartoon boys from South Park introduce “Tom Sawyer” as Lil’ Rush and Bob & Doug McKenzie from The Great White North introduce “A Bigger Bowl.”

The second set kicked off with five straight songs from Snakes & Arrows. The video projected behind the band during “Workin’ Them Angels” had primarily black-and-white photos of heroic, hard working people that had angel wings on their shoulders. One of the larger bits of applause of the evening was when the screens showed 2 soldiers in the sunset with their angel wings. After that quintet of new songs, “Subdivisions” from 1982’s Signals album got an enormous response from the crowd. Musically, the next trio of songs may have been the best of the evening: “Natural Science,” “Witch Hunt” and the instrumental “Malignant Narcissism.” Peart’s drum solo used 2 sets of rotating drums (acoustic and electronic) with all manner of cowbells, wood blocks and electronic percussion pads and ended with a tribute to Swing drumming greats like Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich.

“The Spirit of the Radio” and the first two movements of the 2112 Suite upped the crowd’s energy level even more – which I did not think was possible given all that preceded it. The official set was completed with the still classic “Tom Sawyer.” After a very brief break, Rush came back out to perform their encore. When they played “A Passage to Bangkok” Lee had switched back to his old Rickenbacker bass (all the 70s progressive rock bassists used them) instead of his Fender Jazz Bass and Lifeson used his Gibson ES-355 hollow body instead of the slew of Les Paul guitars he had been playing all evening. They completed the evening with their best-known instrumental “YYZ” from the Moving Pictures album. The fans left the venue feeling very satisfied with the level of showmanship and musicality of the performance. A band that can continue to perform at this level and produce quality new music after more than 30 years is to be commended and worth watching!

:thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

ForeverAutumn
04-28-2008, 03:31 PM
Nice review Rich. They've changed their set list since the first part of the tour when I saw them. It almost makes me want to spend the dough to see them again in July...almost.

I would, but I can't afford it. :(

jasn
04-28-2008, 04:30 PM
Just this weekend I picked up the R30 DVD at Borders with a 30% off coupon. Great buy ( I haven't spent any time with the extra yet), and it shows off how well these guys have kept up with their game all these years. Highly recommended.