I am revisiting this album (Hold Your Fire). When I first heard it, it was the first Rush album I had heard, and my understanding was (at the time) that they were this great rock/metal band. So you can understand my shock when the first album I hear of theirs was this one. At the time I really didn't like it, but I was essentially hearing it way out of context. So years later I hear Moving Pictures and love it, so I try out a few other albums, and having digested most of their work from "Rush" - Grace Under Pressure, and having a better handle on the arc the band took, I have just revisited Hold Your Fire, and it makes much more sense in context with where they were and where they were going. I love Force Ten. I reckon it is among my favourite couple of dozen or so Rush tracks. I have also been enjoying the albums after this one. Again, it is about context of where they were for me .... but yea, when I first heard Hold Your Fire, I didn't try them out again for many years. It's a shame really. Great band.
I was in Junior High in 87 when I picked up the cassette Mark. My first Rush purchase, well besides the old Bob & Doug It probably wasn't till the mid 90's when I started delving into their back catalog. Pretty unique band
The only album by Rush that I can play straight through and not skip anything. Yes, I know this album in particular (and 80s Rush in general) tends to be frowned on by a number of people but I love what I love. I'm fond of concise songs....This is why I tend to be as supportive to the albums that people tend to frown on like this by other artists. such as "The Ultimate Sin" by Ozzy Osbourne, "Crazy Nights" by Kiss, "Raised On Radio" by Journey, and "The Sport of Kings" by Triumph. "Hold Your Fire" is Rush's equivalent of those records....Concise and rewarding for listeners of SONGS and melodies. The layered soundscapes of the "Hold Your Fire" album are rather meditative to me and I greatly enjoy that aspect of productions during this much despised (in general) period of recorded music.
I'm with you on this one: I also "tend to be as supportive to the albums that people tend to frown on like this by other artists. " I first got into Rush with Power Windows, so I've always liked both PoW and Hold Your Fire. I'm also a big fan of Raised on Radio, too. And Achtung Baby.....the list goes on and on. I guess I like bands that are willing to try something other than putting out Moving Pictures, The Joshua Tree, Frontiers, etc., all Part II. Sometimes it works well, other times not so much. But, I like the willingness to try new things and not be stagnant.
Think I have said the same earlier on in the thread, so unsurprisingly I agree 100%. Watching some of the drum fills on the live version on Show of Hands made me wonder if Neil Peart was superhuman. Edit:”Marathon” on Power Windows is possibly joint first with “Time Stand Still” for me. I love the classic / Terry Brown era Rush as much as anyone, but those two songs have always really resonated with me.
This is how I came to appreciate both Grace Under Pressure and Presto even more. Both are very song-focused, and not so much emphasis on the virtuosity of musicianship (though it is there). Good perspective.
I tried to remember what my first "new" Rush album was (wich released when I was aware of the band), I think Power Windows, but Hold your Fire really blew me away. I didnt mind at all the move away from the "old sound", I liked synth in my music (I remember hearing Tangerine Dream's Phaedra for the first time around that time). What I also loved how Neil moved his drums more to the background, but still sounded awesome while doing it. Time Stand Still was amazing, I loved the weird time signature it had, same goes for Lock and Key (I always end up air drumming that last part), it starts relative simple, and then Neil adds complexity as the song progresses, that ending is amazing, and love how it fades out (and you go "noooo keep going!").
Hold yourself Fire is simply up there with the rest of my favorite Rush albums now.As with Grace Under Pressure and Power Windows.Hold Your Fire has great musicianship catchy riffs and solos. great lyrics, powerful off time groovy drums and awesome bass and maybe a little to much keyboards but I am use to the sound now.
It is OK. I play it less than the other 80s albums, which is the era of the band I gravitate the most towards. Plenty of material I like on it, but I don't really revisit often.
Damn this album grew on me! I never sat down and honestly listened to it with a open mind.the 80s sound threw me off. But now it’s one of my favorite Rush albums!
I can pass on Tai Shan and High Water, but the first 8 cuts are all totally top shelf. Interestingly, I've seen Rush on 8 tours, and I recall this being the best show of the bunch.
Saturday morning spin of Hold Your Fire. Enjoying it and getting the distinct urge to play lots of Rush again. Haven’t got to Tai Shan yet; that may curb my enthusiasm. It usually does. Given Rupert Hine’s untimely demise, I think Presto at industrial volumes may follow. Edit: I am listening to The Mission and have realised how different the string and guitar parts are on the 2011 (I think) remaster compared to the original. I’ve read about this but it is the first time I have bothered to listen. One of Lifeson’s finest solos.
This master was done off a mix that was inadvertently supplied to the engineer. It has some swapped channels of certain instruments, but most important are the dialed up strings in the choruses. Noticeably different, but I can't say I prefer either version over the other. They are both their own. Kind of funny that no one picked this difference up until well after it was released! But it is interesting to hear an alternate version of a Rush track since we get so few 'rarities' out of the band. But I think the vaults may open up with the band now retired.
And I am pretty sure that it is no longer available. I remember that I bought it right before all the new remasters came out, and then it was unavailable after.
This is not the only difference on the Sector version of Hold Your Fire, as was explained in some thread on here. The one other difference I really investigated was the missing break in "Time Stand Still", which instead has drum hits like at other parts of the song. Also on PoWin, the ending of "Mystic Rhythms" is slightly different too.
Hold Your Fire was the first proper Rush album I purchased and listened to. It still remains one of my favorite albums by them, as unpopular as that opinion seems to be. Even something like Tai Shan, while not their strongest work, doesn't really phase me too much.
I have that 464-2 pressing it absolutely blows the remastered vinyl version out of the water . The remaster has this low pass filter on it it that really deadens it or maybe it’s just my copy.
