Nocturne songfacts Geddy Lee, Rockline, May 13, 2002: "Nocturne was one of the later songs that we wrote for the record after the break that we had. There was a group of about 5 or 6 songs that came from a two week period of just what I would consider the best jams Alex and I have ever had. I really love this song, I love the drum pattern, especially the way it starts. Its kind of about the questions you can subconsciously answer in your dreams without realizing it." >> --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- We open with a nice drum pattern laying the foundation and then we get a solid raw guitar pattern, this gives way to the bass, with a little distortion on it, and the vocals come in. Did I have a dream? Or did the dream have me? Did I have a dream? Or did the dream have me? Set off on a night-sea journey Without memory or desire Drifting through lost latitudes With no compass and no chart Flying through hallucination Distant voices, signal fires Lighting up my unconscious And the secret places of the heart Dream temporary madness Dream a voice in the wilderness Dream unconscious revelations The morning says, the answer is yes Did I have a dream? Or did the dream have me? Did I have a dream? Or did the dream have me? Floating through a darkened mirror Deep reflections in disguise Soaring through lost altitudes Without wonder, without fear Symbols on a field of visions Behind the curtain of sleeping eyes On the instant of waking Another world of dreams appears Dream temporary madness Dream a walk in the wilderness Dream unconscious recreation The morning says the answer is yes Dream temporary madness Dream a voice in the wilderness Dream unconscious revelations The morning says, the answer is yes The morning says, the answer is yes Source: LyricFind Songwriters: Alex Lifeson / Geddy Lee Weinrib / Neil Peart Nocturne (2013 Remixed Audio) lyrics © Ole Media Management Lp This seems to be, lyrically, Neil describing his kind of lost in the wilderness feeling. I think it expresses itself well enough. I like this track, but it is probably in some ways a slightly weaker track for me. We get the dynamic hard section and quiet section again, probably my favourite section though is about three quarters of the way through with the little guitar riff turning around on itself against the beat. I enjoy this, but it is a slightly lesser track.... perhaps by this stage of the album I am waiting for the big finish.
Nocturne Remix It seems like the bass is more defined in the opening section, and Geddy's vocal seems a little clearer at the start. Again this is just on the computer, so merely fleeting observations. To some degree in the instrumental section there seems to be a broader soundstage and I find that section more effective in the remix.
Nocturne This song starts off really cool. The "Did I have a dream/ or did the dream have me?" is a really cool lyric and makes for a very catchy vocal line. Unfortunately, the "harsh" portion of the song is a little too harsh and borders on a mess. Then the chorus kicks in, which still sounds pretty sloppy but a bit more melodic. Overall, I feel like there are some really cool ideas with this song but the transitions are too rough. It sounds like it was put together pretty quickly and maybe it needed a little more work on certain sections. Its not bad, but I feel like it could have been better. It's rare that a Rush song comes off as half-baked, but this one does.
Nocturne is another track where I like the lyrics which explore the dreamworld and the realworld (especially as it can seem like a dream). But unlike most of Neil's lyrics, they don't sound as good sung as they appear on (virtual) paper. Musically it's middle-of-the-road latter-day Rush for me. The result is a below-average track.
Nocturne I rather like this one. I need to crank it up to the max this afternoon and give it some more proper listening. Somehow I haven’t heard this one much yet even though I’ve been listening to the album on/off for two weeks. A provisional “thumbs up”.
Nocturne It was noted earlier that there's a sameness pervading this album that maybe lets it wear out its welcome before sometime before the album ends. Now's about when I reach that point. It could easily have been earlier, but even with a sort of sameness of sound and structure, the previous few songs had something really unique somewhere under the surface to hold my interest. This one doesn't quite get there. Lyrically, I feel like this is one of those songs where Neil had something to say and got off to a good start, but couldn't quite bring it home. Playlist: no. Skip: maybe.
Nocturne I’m with Claus on this one: It really does have a different thing about it. The bass line carries an edgy momentum throughout the song, and the louder crazy parts add some different dynamics that are missing elsewhere on the album. The transition period starting at 3:15 does a great job of setting up the final frenetic bit at 3:54. Are those screams or just guitar sounds that I hear in that final section? Wow. I definitely like this song. Not the “best” on the album for me, but it’s darn good.
I like the lyrics to "Nocturne" but, as with "Sweet Miracle", the music doesn't interest me all that much. The drum pattern is interesting, but the melody isn't really there. I think, again, the length of the album does a track like this one no favors given its position in the album running order. To me, this lyric is about Neil's motorcycle journey and the emotions he experienced while in the midst of it. I prefer the remix for the usual reason - a bigger, more cinematic soundstage. This works particularly well with this lyric. However, it also highlights Geddy's lead vocal, which isn't one of his best. The remix seems less abrasive than the original version. This is a song that I think would have benefitted from the addition of keyboards. It just needs something to give it melodic lift. As it is, it just seems like a few repeated riffs over and over, none of them particularly hummable. The morning says: The Answer is Yes is a great line.
Sweet Miracle: on an album with little brevity, this track works really well for me. Both in its shorter length and its simplicity. It is no fuss, no frills, and has a strong - dare I say it - sing-a-long quality to it. Enough driving riffing to keep it moving, whilst Geddy is throwing all sorts of melancholy at the vocal. Nocturne: a lower album track. The intro with the sound effects is good but Geddy's vocal seems to lack quality and the frenzied section is both too harsh and lacking in any real musicality. The section Mark mentioned is nice, but Geddy's harmony directly afterwards doesn't work at all - it sounds like he's had one too many vodkas and is three sheets to the wind. A flawed, incomplete track really.
"Secret Touch" For me, this has become something of a Rush standard. Heard it live numerous times, and I just really like the song in general. It starts out with a very cool, swaggering intro on bass and percussion as Geddy's vocal steps forward...and then the band lays into it. I do like those pulses during the heavy bits; they have a bit of that classic Rush vibe. But the original mix can be a bit harsh. Still, overall it comes across as a pretty decent workout by the trio. The brief instrumental which closes out the song is a classic Rush moment...makes me want to transform into the spirit of Neil Peart.
"Earthshine" Damn, another classic track for me. That intro just digs into subterranean levels. I love Alex's guitar on this one; that fat, melodic sound really makes this track. Too bad about the original mix, which adds a shade of harshness to the more complex sections. But overall, it's still a great song, and as far I'm concerned that's all that needs to make it work.
"Sweet Miracle" Yeah, it rocks right out of the gates, yet, it's not an over the top, in your face type of composition. This one has a lot of subtlety and finesse about it. There's a sense of hope to Neil's lyric. The overall sound has solidity. Really good track.
"Nocturne" Oh yeah, this is the real deal. Love the intro, and Geddy's vocal has an ease about it. Alex's guitar has a nice texture. Once again, that original mix takes away some of the nuance of the chorus, but I still enjoy this piece. Neil's drum fills have a kind of exploratory sense to them. Despite the recording/engineering flaws, I still like this one a lot.
Freeze (pt IV of Fear) songfacts This is part IV of the "Fear Trilogy" (making it no longer a trilogy) which is also made up of the songs "The Enemy Within" (Part I from Grace Under Pressure), "The Weapon" (Part II from Signals), and "Witch Hunt" (Part III from Moving Pictures). >> ----------------------------------- Essentially that just gives us a reminder of what the original Fear trilogy was..... I assume that down the track and in relation to his feelings regarding all the radical changes in his life, Part IV just brought itself out of that scenario. The city crouches, steaming In the early morning half light The sun is still a rumor And the night is still a threat Slipping through the dark streets And the echoes and the shadows Something stirs behind me And my palms begin to sweat Sometimes I freeze, until the light comes Sometimes I fly, into the night Sometimes I fight, against the darkness Sometimes I'm wrong, sometimes I'm right Coiled for the spring Caught like a creature in the headlights Into a desperate panic Or a tempest of blind fury Like a cornered beast Or a conquering hero The menace threatens, closing And I'm frozen in the shadows I'm not prepared to run away And I'm not prepared to fight I can't stand to reason Or surrender to a reflex I will trust my instincts Or surrender to my fright Sometimes we freeze, until the light comes Sometimes we're wrong, and sometimes we're right Sometimes we fight, against the darkness Sometimes we fly, into the night Blood running cold Mind going down into a dark night Of a desperate panic Or a tempest of blind fury Like a cornered beast Or a conquering hero Sometimes I freeze Sometimes I fight Sometimes I freeze, until the light comes Sometimes I fly, into the night Into the night Into the night Source: LyricFind Songwriters: Alex Lifeson / Geddy Lee / Neil Peart Freeze Part Iv Of "Fear" lyrics © Ole Media Management Lp People often refer to Fight or Flight, but always miss off Freeze ... In that little saying, it really needs to be Fight, Flight or Freeze, because they are the three natural reactions that people actually have. I think the majority of folks only generally have the freeze reaction in bad dreams. The number of folks I have spoken to that have dreams where something horrendous is happening and they freeze, or can't speak/call out or whatever is remarkable.... but one assumes that it happens in real life also, and that is what this song deals with. Lyrically this is indirectly linked to the scenario in Neil's life... and the thoughts regarding being in the night, in the dark, can readily be translated into being at home, rather than the city..... During the day we are generally surrounded by activity, and so any of those lingering pains/doubts/troubles tend to be slightly less overbearing, but in the night when things are somewhat quiet, the mind goes into overdrive. Particularly when one has been used to living with someone and all of a sudden we are left alone, and particularly in the circumstances Neil was in, the mind is left completely naked to its own wanderings.... and to some degree I can see the thoughts here coming directly from that. But essentially here we have a situation where we are on a dark and lonely street in the city at night, and there is an impending danger apparent, but not yet revealed, and this is about that freeze nature in that situation. It seems to be lyrically disconnected from the other songs in some ways, but I think it is an extension on them in some ways, as per my wandering thoughts up there .... anyway. We open with a nice bass and drum theme, and we get an harmonic guitar theme come in. It manages to have a sort of ominous sound to it, that suits the lyrics. Then we burst into a lone guitar doing that staccato rhythm, that has a sense of anxiety and disconnectedness. The basic musical theme of this track is fairly consistent, but we get subtle variations to wander along with. At 1:42 we move into a relief passage, and the music opens up, and we have a sort of reflective section, this smoothly flows back into the staccato section. Again in this track we get the doubled Geddy vocal in sections, that has an unusual, and kind of unsettling harmony vocal. We get the relief section again and this moves into a nice alternate kind of drum beat under the reintroduced staccato section, and then we burst into a kind of frantic guitar and some Geddy hollering with reverb in the background and we move into the panic riddled crescendo ..... and then we move into the chorus again .... I kind of feel like the panic riddled crescendo may have been a better place to end the song. I like this track, I think it is very effective in its message/music usage. I think it works really well as a song. I think it is slightly too long for its own good, but I am not going to skip it.
Freeze Remix It sounds a little cleaner..... It sounds fine, but I think to some degree that anxiety riddled edge is (just slightly) lost. I'm more of a song, than a sound guy, so this part is the most difficult for me to really look at. Again I think the original mix, for all its flaws captures the anxiety, and fear better in its claustrophobic kind of mix .... Either way, I definitely feel like the song would have been more effective if it finished up in that p[ost instrumental crescendo of panic and anxiety....
" Freeze Part IV Of "Fear" " Nice rumble to the start of this, but I'm not sure if this really carries though to the rest of the track. The chorus adds an interesting, open sound to the song, though it doesn't seem to play out well to the whole, as if there is a kind of disjointed mood. Some pretty good guitar motifs, and the drums are pretty solid, but I'm not quite sure if the song works overall. Good, but not memorable.
Rush 1970 - Nov 1998 Nov 2000 Geddy Lee My Favourite Headache My Favourite Headache The Present Tense Window To The World Working At Perfekt Runaway Train The Angel's Share Moving To Bohemia Home On The Strange Slipping Still Grace To Grace May 2002 Vapor Trails - interview One Little Victory Ceiling Unlimited Ghost Rider Peaceable Kingdom The Stars Look Down How It Is - live Vapor Trail Secret Touch - live Earthshine - live Sweet Miracle Nocturne Freeze (pt iv of Fear)
Freeze This one doesn't really come together for me. Reading through the lyrics I do see that they created music that purposely feels disjointed and uncomfortable, reflecting what the narrator describes. The rhyme scheme in particular is tough on the listener, as the couplets are far apart. I think Geddy had a tough time working out a melodic vocal line for this one and maybe they needed to rework parts to make them smoother and less forced. I feel like the overall rhythm and guitar tone is pretty out there. I would call this the most experimental track on the album. Vapor Trails is a pretty consistent album and this is the probably the worst track on it for my taste.
Freeze Sometimes this one seems like a bit of a jumbled mess.... and sometimes that jumble seems the perfect way to express the mood and message of the song. It's all herky-jerky, which can be a rather apt description of the whole fight/flight/freeze battle. In the end, I have to say the song is very good at what it does... I'm just not always that keen on what it does, no matter how well it does it. Good song, but pretty mood dependent for me as to whether I'm going to get something out of it. I agree that the remix cleans it up too much, and remove some of the edge that makes the song so good at what it does.
