I bought HYF when I was in high school and hated it. But over the years I've come to appreciate it more.
HYF brings to a close my favorite era of Rush and is the most recent Rush album I listen to. Being made for CD, it has an inordinate amount of filler ("Second Nature, "Tai Shan", etc.).
I agree that it's a good but not great album. There are some great tracks in there but I really didn't care for the sound of the drums in the mix. It's has a sort of popping, midrangey sound that detracts a little. Some of the songs seem like middle of the road fluff but there's still a lot that keeps it worthwhile. And a lot of people come to view this album as an end of the electronic period but I disagree. In recent years I've learned to re-appreciate Presto more than ever, and there's still plenty of electronics in there. I've always loved 'Red Tide'. Roll the Bones was a complete disappoinment, and that signaled the end (for many years) for me. When I bought up the back catalog several years ago of the 90's albums onward that I hadn't heard, I found that I had only missed the occasional great track. All albums (aside from Clockwork Angels, which I love) were very spotty. Permanent Waves through Presto are a very strong string of albums.
Saw them on this tour which was remarkable as usual, but never got into the album. I am not put off by it, but it does little for my Rush appetite.
I appreciate Mission a lot more because of Alex's ending solo which doesn't fade. They really soar at the end. Love that song.
"Mission" does sound better on A Show Of Hands. The band seemed to elevate it on stage. The studio recording is more sterile. "Prime Mover" on the DVD has a better groove to it. I can't agree on the rest of the HYF songs. Part of the problem is that there is some weird vocal work on many of those songs that weren't reproducable live. So, the vocal rhythms for "Force Ten" and "Turn The Page" come off a bit awkwardly. Aimee Mann is sampled on "Time Stand Still", so might as well listen to the studio version.
I hated the album when it came out and almost checked out as a fan. I still feel it is the worst (read: the one I personally like the least) of the "synth" era albums and even Geddy Lee expressed his candid thoughts on this album in the Beyond The Lighted Stage documentary ("almost like jazz rock" or words to that effect.) I was so disenchanted with this album that I missed the tour intentionally and this was the first time I missed them since the ESL tour. Stuff like "Tai Shan" and "High Water" will never grow on me. With that said, I have warmed up to it over the years. I will always prefer Power Windows or GUP but I have learned to really like and appreciate songs like "Open Secrets." That one is real good - a true deep cut. And of course "Force Ten" "Time Stand Still" are bonafide Rush classics. Then there is "Mission" an absolute gem of a song.
I'm with you. I always thought that I hated the album, until one day I sat down and realized how many amazing songs are on it. You mentioned "Red Tide," but "Show Don't Tell," "Presto," "The Pass," and especially the amazing "Available Light" are some of my favorite songs. I think what it was was that I got into the album in the '90s, and I had a hard time getting past the '80s production (and, like HYF, it was maybe a couple of songs too long). I got the sound of the album confused with the quality of the songs.
Funny you mention that, because Surveillance (which came out in '87) is my favorite Triumph album. Carry on the Flame, Long Time Gone, and Never Say Never are as good as anything they did IMO. I wouldn't call it a hair metal album, though the drum sound is similar to many hair metal acts of the time. It's definitely the most dated (depending on your preferences) and polished-sounding Triumph album in terms of production, that's for sure.
While I love the studio version of Force Ten, I prefer the ASOH version due to the extended solo. For the other songs, I actually like the studio versions more.
Maybe I was exaggerating a little on Triumph although they did straddle that line with A Sport Of King's. I actually thought Surveillance was a step back in the right direction.
Hold Your Fire is probably my favourite Rush album. While it is not flawless, I connect with every track. Its an album which I enjoy over many repeated listens, and never tire of - I always see this a good sign. Completely agree. I put the problem with the sound on this album down to the mix, not the mastering, however. Both the original CD and the '97 'Rush Remasters' CD sound pretty bad. There's no definition to the sound, all the instruments blend into one sonic mush which is a real shame, because the performances and songwriting are so strong. I'd be interested to hear a remix of this album to see what could be done to improve things!
I love "Time stand Still"with Aimee Mann on backing vocals. HYF is a good album imho. The live album during that tour is also a must have for me -- A Show Of Hands.
I put Hold Your Fire on last weekend and totally forgot about that fade. But I listen to live Rush a bunch more than I do the studio albums.
Power Windows always strikes me as the most dated-sounding record of theirs. HYF was the first Rush record I bought, so that probably informs my perspective. Ditto for the Power Windows tunes on ASOH. I was really hoping for a live album from that tour after they released the killer live version of Lock and Key as the music video for that album track.
I believe it affected one of the songs on the Sector Three version of Power Windows too. Shades of the "underdub" version of "The Weapon" that MFSL put out... just used a different tape provided, rather than checking it was the correct one.
Hard to tell if the band even knows about it. I don't think anyone from the label or anyone in the control room has ever said a word about it. I don't mind it because it's different and I can always pull out an original. Too bad ICE magazine is no longer around to answer these kinds of questions.
