Rush: "Snakes and Arrows" discussion (1 Viewer)

[TheLongshot]

Actually, I could make a good argument that the last song in many of these later albums are among some of the worst songs Rush has ever done. ("Out Of The Cradle", "Carve Away The Stone", "Everyday Glory", "You Bet Your Life") Hopefully, "We Hold On" breaks with that tradition.

Jason

 

[Brett_B]

Reading this thread I can't not stop this one Rush song from playing repeatedly in my head...Half the World.


With the exception of "Carve Away the Stone" I really enjoy listening to the other songs. "Everyday Glory" & "Out of the Cradle" are some of my favorites from their respective albums, and I just love the outtro guitar solo from "You Bet Your Life".


I think the one thing that we all could agree with is that with every new Rush album there is more than enough new material (full songs, solos, riffs,...whatever) to be more than satisfied. I am not saying everything about the album will be satisfactory, rather there will be some sort of enjoyment even it is just a few songs (better than nothing IMO).

In regards to the sound of the new album based on "Far Cry", I feel that song could have been on "Vapor Trails". I just hope that Alex holds to his words prior to making the album that there will be guitar solos. There wasn't one on "Far Cry".

 

[ScottH]

I LOVE 'Everyday Glory'. Then again, I love every song on Counterparts with the exception of 'Stick it Out'. And 'Everyday Glory' is the perfect closing for that album.

 

[ElevSkyMovie]

Yep, Everyday Glory is a great tune.

 

[Aaron Silverman]

That's just because you love The Knack.

Hey, I like Stick It Out. I suppose every song has its fans.

 

[Darryl]

I like Stick It Out too.

If anything, this thread shows how diverse people's opinions of Rush songs are. I guess we don't all listen to Rush in the same way. One of my all-time favorites is Distant Early Warning, but I almost never hear people bring that one up.

 

[Mike Broadman]

Brilliant song.

I'm not particularly anxious to hear guitar solos. I like that their song structures have gotten really tight and focused, and I hope that other than sound quality, they continue with they did on Vapor Trails as closely as possible. If there's some solo that acts as a well-time transition or link between sections and isn't wanky, then great, but I don't think we really need another By-Tor and the Eight Minute Jam Session.

 

[Gwon Chang]

What's funny about Rush is that I used to really dislike Grace Under Pressure and Signals, but now? They're two of my favorite records. Kid Gloves? Yes, please!

However, at no time will I ever truly enjoy Power Windows, Presto (though Show Don't Tell was a favorite in high school), or Roll the Bones.

YMMV.

 

[ScottH]

Oh man...what I would do for By Tor & The Snow Dog Part II. That, and all their "epic" stuff (Hemispheres, 2112, Cygnus X1, Xanadu, Fountain of Lamneth) is quintessential Rush in my book. By Tor is actually the song that really got me into Rush. It wasn't like anything I had heard before at the time (and probably not since).

 

[Aaron Silverman]

Gwon, you need to listen to Power Windows again.

Roll The Bones -- not so much.

 

[Nathan Eddy]

Yeah, Counterparts was the best of the 90s. I love Between Sun and Moon, and just about crapped my pants when they played it in 2002 on the Vapor Trails tour. I think I'd like RTB more if it didn't sound so thin and lifeless. The same songs played with a heavier sound might do it for me. However, I can't listen to Test For Echo at all. That's the only Rush CD I sold after buying it.

Back to Far Cry: after the opening "Jacob's Ladder" chords, the groove they settle into sounds very much like Neurotica off of RTB, right about 35 seconds into Neurotica ["Life is a diamond you turn into dust/Waiting for rescue, and I know that you just/Don't get it"]. Go and play the two side by side. Then it gets into that tuneless verse melody. I do like little parts of the song, the guitar breaks, the general tone of their instruments. I like the bridge, or chorus . . . it's hard to tell which is which, they just kind of blend together. I like that soft vocal melody at the bridge, too.

But the individual parts of this song don't build into anything. They don't climax or devleop. Just repetitions of the same three or so parts.

 

[Gwon Chang]

You're out of your mind! Too much jangly guitars, not enough balls for this guy.

 

[Nathan Eddy]

Power Windows does have some good music. But don't listen to it on the studio CD. Get the three DVD set which includes the A Show of Hands disc. Sounds much better.

I'm assuming everyone here has all 3 DVD sets offered by this band, right? The Rio set sounds bad, but R30 is wonderful. The Exist Stage Left/Grace Under Pressure/Show of Hands DVDs sound surprisingly good, too, considering their age. I love hearing Witch Hunt live!

 

[TheLongshot]

Actually, the Rio set sounds the closest to actually being at a Rush concert with 40,000 people going nuts. Personally, while it isn't perfect (Geddy's vocals could be higher in the mix), I find it more satisfying than some of the "cleaner" shows that are on DVD.

Jason

 

[Aaron Silverman]

Oh lordy, not this argument again.

The Rush In Rio disc is one of the best-sounding concert DVDs by any band, period. Anyone who thinks otherwise doesn't remember what it sounds like to be at a concert.

On the other hand, the crappy non-anamorphic video is inexcusable!

I don't have the latest DVD set (yet), but I used to listen to the A Show Of Hands CD all the time. In fact, for a long time I used it in my alarm clock. To this day I sometimes have flashbacks of that Three Stooges theme with the crowd noise when I wake up.

 

[Paul.S]

LOL. "The Big Money" will def get you goin' in the mornin'.

Damn I wish we could look forward to at least a 2 ch high rez release of the new album.

 

[Brian L]

Paul,

LMAO!!!!

In case anyone just can't wait until May, the track is now available for purchase on iTunes.....and before anyone thread craps, yes, I know, its a 128K AAC DRM riddled abomination.

But its new Rush music, and I am happy to give the band 99 freakin' cents to keep making music.

And at least on PC speakers, it doesn't sound half bad (better than the stream to my ears)...the bass and drums seem to have a nice swagger to them, and Lex's guitars is soarining above it all. The full LP release will not get here fast enough.

Brian

 

[Nathan Eddy]

Actually, I was one of the last people to post on that thread about a "fix" for the horrible DD sound.

Anyway, I don't want to start bashing Rio all over again. I just want anyone who thinks it sounds good to listen to ANY OF THE OTHER 4 CONCERTS ON DVD and try to defend it after that. It's the worst sounding of all 5. It's really obvious.

BTW, when I buy a concert DVD, I don't want it to sound like the mircophones were stuffed down the shirt of the nearesest South American. Sure, that might be the way a concert sounds in the middle of a crowd. But just as I wouldn't want to view the concert video from the worst seats, I wouldn't want to hear it from the middle of the crowd, either. Have you listened to any live music offered online at places like www.archive.org? When chatty people are sitting next to the microphones, it's horrible. But from that spot, it's entirely "real." There are degrees of reality. In my reproductions of live music, I prefer that scale tipped to the "sounds good" side, rather than the "sounds like crap," side.

 

[Paul.S]

Nathan, please. We're all capable of seeing who posted in that other thread. Many of the same people are here.

After saying you "don't want to start bashing Rio all over again," you then proceed to do precisely that. Please--'take it outside.'

This thread is supposed to be about the new record and, frankly, you're sh*tting all over my hopes that we won't have to re-visit s.q. issues once we all have the disc in hand.

Please. Stop.

 

[Nathan Eddy]

Paul, I'm not sh***ing over anything. That's a tad strong for what I actually said. My point about my contribution to the other thread was that I added positive, constructive advice for others to enjoy it more. My contribution wasn't bashing anything.

My points this time around related to concert recordings in general--a response to someone's stated philosophy on concert sound (see above). My philosophy differs from theirs. I don't see the problem with stating it.

And my points about the GOOD sound quality of all the other 4 Rush DVDs is offered to all those here who might not have those particular DVDs in hand. I deduce this fact from their praise for the Rio DVD (since, if they think that one sounds good, it suggests to me that they haven't heard the others). So the sound quality of Rio is just a tangential issue. I'm NOT wanting to reopen old wounds. But at the same time, I don't appreciate you telling me what to talk about. I'm not a troll. I obviously love Rush very much. And like you, I'm anxiously awaiting S&A.

Take heart. If the R30 DVD is any indication, the boys have once again made sound quality a priority. Do you have that DVD? The SQ is breathtaking.