I’ll admit to not being the world’s biggest Rush fan, but I do recognize they had a period where the quality of their tunes was top notch and this album is prime period Rush. Along with Hemispheres and Moving Pictures, for me, was Rush at their peak. All three are great musicians but the master of them all, Neal Peart. was at the peak of his profession and he wrote seriously interesting lyrics.
What a way to start an album off with Spirit of Radio, which ended up being your most well known song around the world. At the time this was about as close as Rush would come to commercial success. Freewill follows, and this is more of what I expect from them, a more progressive tune with lots of instrumental sections and some serious over playing. The one thing about Rush is that you can always recognize the sound. Whether it be Lifeson’s guitar, Peart’s drumming, or more obviously Geddy’s vocal, they are instantly recognizable. Side closer the epic Jacobs Ladder, has all of the trade mark Rush ingredients, cool time and key changes, and a big instrumental section. Over on the flip side, and Entre Nous, which by Rush’s standards is a normal song. Different Strings is the slow track on the album before we get to album closer Natural Science with its 9 minute progressive workout.
There are sections in this that Dream Theater have lifted to use on their own songs. The albums they record are definitely of their time, as the effects and instruments they used date them, especially on this and Grace Under Pressure being the other one that springs to mind. Anyhoo you may be thinking I don’t like this all that much, but I do, and I appreciate them as artists.
8/10 from The Grooveman.
