Rush

[el diablo]

Power Windows (1985)
The Big Money - 9/10
Grand Designs - 7/10
Manhattan Project - 7/10
Marathon - 9/10
Territories - 7/10
Middletown Dreams - 9/10
Emotion Detector - 8/10
Mystic Rhythms - 7/10

Album rating - 7.8/10

A very glossy, very synth-heavy and yet laidback album that really showcases Neil's lyrics.

• Geddy is the star here as Alex and Neil's playing take a pretty big backseat. There are, of course, complexities within their simplicities, but mostly this album is all about Geddy's bass, Neil's words, and the synths.
• This is one of only a few Rush albums that I don't think has a single great song. A lot of the tunes almost get there, but nothing truly hits that peak of their best work.

I realize this is all subjective but Grand Designs is All-Time classic Rush greatness.

 

[MrK]

Two of your worst takes ever. Will breakdown later.

I expect you and I get very different things out of Rush.

I realize this is all subjective but Grand Designs is All-Time classic Rush greatness.

It’s very good, but the lyrics and song don’t ever fully synch up for me. Also, like a lot of Power Windows, the music sometimes feels run-on, as though it lacks strong dynamics.

 

[Diesel 11]

A very glossy, very synth-heavy and yet laidback album that really showcases Neil's lyrics.

• Geddy is the star here as Alex and Neil's playing take a pretty big backseat. There are, of course, complexities within their simplicities, but mostly this album is all about Geddy's bass, Neil's words, and the synths.

Nevermind scores or anything like that, these two points are hard for me to wrap my head around. Power Windows has so much energy from beginning to end I'm surprised anyone would call it "laidback". Not to mention Alex and Neil taking a backseat. Neil's drumming is huge all across this album, really utilizing his electric kit to its full capabilities. "Mystic Rhythms" is one of Neil's all-time drum tracks and "Territories" and "The Big Money" also dispel this notion.

But Alex... to me, Power Windows is the album where Alex's guitar, sidelined on the previous two records, comes back in a big way. His riffs are married to the synths and sound much more biting, and solo-wise this is a contender for his best ever work. "The Big Money" and "Marathon" are contenders for his best two solos, period. Are we listening to the same album?

Fly By Night (1975)
Anthem - 8/10
Best I Can - 3/10
Beneath, Between and Behind - 7/10
By-Tor and the Snow Dog - 8/10
Fly By Night - 9/10
Making Memories - 6/10
Rivendell - 4/10
In the End - 5/10

Album rating - 6.2/10

Neil's arrival certainly levels up the instrumentals and the lyrics, but overall this is not a massive improvement on the debut album. The good songs are overall better, though!

• Another Rush album that does not feature, IMO, any perfect songs. The title track, Anthem and By-Tor all get legendary status, but none are 10/10's.
• The back half of the album really yawns to the finish line. It's like after the title track this becomes a typical 70s southern rock record, but for some reason there's a boring song about elves.
• Speaking of that boring song, it's so weird to have a Rush song that features no drums or bass.
• Thank goodness they stopped allowing Ged to write lyrics.

Not an improvement? It's up by 20 points over the debut for me! The album has only continued to go up in my estimations. Here are my updated scores:

Anthem - 10/10
Best I Can - 9/10
Beneath, Between and Behind - 8/10
By-Tor and the Snow Dog - 10/10
Fly by Night - 8/10
Making Memories - 8/10
Rivendell - 8/10
In the End - 7/10

Total: 85%

The 3/10 for "Best I Can" blows my mind. Has your sense of joy died, sir? It's a simple song but it's fired up and Neil's drumming elevates it to a completely different plane. He sounds so furiously intense and it is glorious to hear. I also don't think Geddy's lyrics are lackluster enough to push it down when the music is so bangin'.

Fly by Night is leaps and bounds over the debut and for a band to craft a genuine classic on their sophomore record like that is massive.

Signals (1982)
Subdivisions - 10/10
The Analog Kid - 10/10
Chemistry - 8/10
Digital Man - 7/10
The Weapon - 6/10
New World Man - 9/10
Losing It - 10/10
Countdown - 5/10

Album rating - 8.1/10

A mixed bag of an album that veers the band fully into synth territory. I enjoy that sound, but I definitely don't love every song here.

• Neil is at the absolute top of his lyrical game here. Subdivisions and Losing It are breathtaking lyrics.
• Subdivisions, Analog Kid and Losing It are some of the best Rush songs of all time.
• The majority of the album feels very thematically linked (youth, divided society, dreams and hopes and the reality of those things) and then Countdown shits the bed with all that.

Got to Signals today, here are the new scores:

Subdivisions - 10/10
The Analog Kid - 9/10
Chemistry - 7/10
Digital Man - 7/10
The Weapon - 7/10
New World Man - 8/10
Losing It - 7/10
Countdown - 9/10

Total: 79% (weighted)

"Countdown" is such a powerful little track. Kind of a hidden gem for me.

I find this album to basically be a foreshadowing of what Rush will become after Power Windows. Coming off the heels of Moving Pictures, Signals is really tame. It's very consistent though, which makes it worth coming back to, but it doesn't thrill me nearly as much as the five albums that precede it and only "Subdivisions" hits without a doubt the peak that Rush have up to this point usually been able to crush multiple times on their albums.

I expect you and I get very different things out of Rush.

I suppose, because I also got to Grace Under Pressure today and my score went down.

 

[MrK]

Nevermind scores or anything like that, these two points are hard for me to wrap my head around. Power Windows has so much energy from beginning to end I'm surprised anyone would call it "laidback". Not to mention Alex and Neil taking a backseat. Neil's drumming is huge all across this album, really utilizing his electric kit to its full capabilities. "Mystic Rhythms" is one of Neil's all-time drum tracks and "Territories" and "The Big Money" also dispel this notion.

Neil opens and closes the album on absolute fire, yes, I agree with that! Perhaps "laidback" is a poor choice of words. I find the drumming on the album to be anticipatory. It's like Neil is always building up to something (which he is, I get it). There's a lot of burgeoning kick and hi-hat patterns, a lot of supporting the song and not a lot of typical drumbeats. I'm not sure I'm explaining this correctly because I'm not a drummer, but it feels like a very supportive record for him, not a driving record. This is one of the reasons Neil was so great, I just think there's a bit too much of it on the album.

But Alex... to me, Power Windows is the album where Alex's guitar, sidelined on the previous two records, comes back in a big way. His riffs are married to the synths and sound much more biting, and solo-wise this is a contender for his best ever work. "The Big Money" and "Marathon" are contenders for his best two solos, period. Are we listening to the same album?

You mentioned his big solos, of which he has a few, but those are the only standout moments. The rest feels very much like he's just filling in gaps in the songs when the synths aren't dominating (and sometimes the synths are dominating over his riffs). I don't dislike the synths, I gave every song on this album an above average score, again: I just think it's a lot of the same.

The 3/10 for "Best I Can" blows my mind. Has your sense of joy died, sir? It's a simple song but it's fired up and Neil's drumming elevates it to a completely different plane. He sounds so furiously intense and it is glorious to hear. I also don't think Geddy's lyrics are lackluster enough to push it down when the music is so bangin'.

It's a straightforward rock 'n' roll song with incredibly literal lyrics. I don't come to Rush for simplistic 70s classic rock bangers. It is my least favorite aspect of their work, especially if Geddy is writing the lyrics.

Making Memories - 8/10
Rivendell - 8/10
In the End - 7/10

Losing It - 7/10

See, I was ready to come here and have a serious discussion, but the fact that you can rank Losing It lower than those last three Fly By Night tracks is just jaw-droppingly wacky. Losing It is a masterpiece and Making Memories could have been written by Steve Miller Band. Come on, now.

"Countdown" is such a powerful little track. Kind of a hidden gem for me.

I think it is successful in doing what it sets out to do. I just don't really care much for the straight observations and astronaut soundbites.

I find this album to basically be a foreshadowing of what Rush will become after Power Windows. Coming off the heels of Moving Pictures, Signals is really tame. It's very consistent though, which makes it worth coming back to, but it doesn't thrill me nearly as much as the five albums that precede it and only "Subdivisions" hits without a doubt the peak that Rush have up to this point usually been able to crush multiple times on their albums.

I agree on the tameness of Signals. Sonically, there's a lot of space on that record and it feels a bit empty compared to their previous (and subsequent) work. Losing It and Countdown are the only things keep us from rating it pretty much the same.

I suppose, because I also got to Grace Under Pressure today and my score went down.

Madness.

 

[Diesel 11]

You mentioned his big solos, of which he has a few, but those are the only standout moments. The rest feels very much like he's just filling in gaps in the songs when the synths aren't dominating (and sometimes the synths are dominating over his riffs). I don't dislike the synths, I gave every song on this album an above average score, again: I just think it's a lot of the same.

I don’t play guitar, so maybe Alex is doing really simple guitarwork across the album, but to me it sounds great and it sounds like he’s way more prominent than on Signals or GUP. “Territories” is a great example. It takes a hot second for him to come in, but when he does he steals the spotlight with that jagged, rollicking riff before the prechorus.

It's a straightforward rock 'n' roll song with incredibly literal lyrics. I don't come to Rush for simplistic 70s classic rock bangers. It is my least favorite aspect of their work, especially if Geddy is writing the lyrics.

The difference though is the drumming. No other classic rock band had such an intricate and over the top drum beat on their rock ‘n’ roll songs. The way that Neil drives the track is insane and the way they speed up the chorus is so much fun. Again, where is thy joy?

See, I was ready to come here and have a serious discussion, but the fact that you can rank Losing It lower than those last three Fly By Night tracks is just jaw-droppingly wacky. Losing It is a masterpiece and Making Memories could have been written by Steve Miller Band. Come on, now.

“Making Memories” makes me happy. “Rivendell” is very sweet. “In the End” is a strong track that’s not fully cohesive but has some great moments. I think lots of people will gravitate to a band’s early work because that’s where their youth, dreams, and inexperience is driving their work before they get too comfortable as musicians. I don’t always agree with that notion but I think it’s true of Fly by Night. So much energy and they’re not afraid to go for it.

I do like “Losing It” a lot, and it would be an 8, maybe a 9, if the song didn’t feel incomplete. After Power Windows, Rush have a big problem with dragging their songs out longer than necessary. Here though, they have an issue about not letting the song reach a more natural conclusion. That fade-out makes the journey feel unearned.

Madness.

Only by one point though. And it’s all thanks to “Red Lenses”.

 

[Azas]

Power Windows is the pinnacle of Rush's synth era. The production is fantastic, the music is both catchy and interesting, and it effortlessly induces dreamy, wandering thoughts and feelings.

Grace Under Pressure has a brilliant first four songs, but after that, I think the overall song quality drops off. On Power Windows, by contrast, almost every track ranges from good to great. The Big Money is probably the weakest of the bunch, imo

My personal highlights are Grand Designs, Marathon, Territories, Middletown Dreams, and Mystic Rhythms.

To me, this album proves just how important good, appropriate production is in elevating the music itself. The right production allows the songs to shine and become the best possible versions of themselves.

 

[el diablo]

My favorite guitar solo on PW is actually Emotional Detector. The song starts with a slow buildup but by the time they reach the solo Alex and Geddy are absolutely shredding.