Yea, I remember doing some EQ'ing for the original cds since they came off a little flat. Thanks for the input by the way!
It's one of about four decent songs on the album (BU2B, Seven Cities, Headlong Flight, The Garden). Caravan is a tuneless pro-tools disaster. The Wreckers, Wish Them Well, Carnies and BU2B2 are flat out bad and the rest is meh. The distorted part at the end of Clockwork Angels (the song) almost saves it, but it is too long and pointless. The biggest problem is that Geddy's voice is just gone on this album. It was good run, but it's over.
This set was created a few years ago, and stops with the Snakes & Arrows era; I could feasibly add a 6th disc with material from the recent albums, and then it wouldn't be a meagre 5CDs anymore I 1. FINDING MY WAY 2. WORKING MAN 3. FLY BY NIGHT 4. ANTHEM 5. BY-TOR AND THE SNOW DOG 6. BASTILLE DAY 7. 2112 : OVERTURE / TEMPLES OF SYRINX 8. PASSAGE TO BANGKOK 9. LESSONS 10. TWILIGHT ZONE 11. CLOSER TO THE HEART 12. MADRIGAL 13. XANADU 14. A FAREWELL TO KINGS II 1. CIRCUMSTANCES 2. THE TREES 3. LA VILLA STRANGIATO 4. THE SPIRIT OF RADIO 5. FREEWILL 6. DIFFERENT STRINGS 7. LIMELIGHT 8. YYZ 9. TOM SAWYER 10. RED BARCHETTA 11. VITAL SIGNS 12. NEW WORLD MAN 13. SUBDIVISIONS 14. THE ANALOG KID 15. COUNTDOWN III 1. THE BODY ELECTRIC 2. DISTANT EARLY WARNING 3. THE ENEMY WITHIN 4. RED SECTOR A 5. THE BIG MONEY 6. MARATHON 7. TERRITORIES 8. MYSTIC RHYTHMS 9. TIME STAND STILL 10. FORCE TEN 11. PRIME MOVER 12. OPEN SECRETS 13. TURN THE PAGE IV 1. SHOW DON'T TELL 2. RED TIDE 3. CHAIN LIGHTNING 4. THE PASS 5. THE AVAILABLE LIGHT 6. ROLL THE BONES 7. GHOST OF A CHANCE 8. DREAMLINE 9. FACE UP 10. BRAVADO 11. LEAVE THAT THING ALONE 12. ANIMATE 13. COLD FIRE 14. THE SPEED OF LOVE 15. DOUBLE AGENT V 1. TEST FOR ECHO 2. DRIVEN 3. RESIST 4. GHOST RIDER 5. SECRET TOUCH 6. ONE LITTLE VICTORY 7. EARTHSHINE 8. FAR CRY 9. ARMOR & SWORD 10. THE MAIN MONKEY BUSINESS 11. THE WAY THE WIND BLOWS The earlier selections were often guided by compilations I have for that period...it wasn't until more recently that I filled in a lot of the gaps in my Rush collection, so there will be more of an overlap with Chronicles and Spirit Of Radio on CD1 and CD2, whereas the 1984-1991 material has more personal preferences. We share three choices from Presto! EG.
What is "tuneless" supposed to refer to there? Or is it just a way to say you don't like it/it doesn't connect with you?
Fun fact: four Rush albums in a row peaked at the same chart position (No. 10) on Billboard (from Exit to Power), which suggests that they had a fairly steady fan base buying those albums upon release. The two previous records both made top 5 (Permanent #4 and Moving #3). Although commercial sales often don’t mean much, here I see a kind of direct parallel. When Hold Your Fire peaked at 13, it seemed like the commercial era of Rush had peaked (from Permanent Waves on). HYF represents the end of an era, the band’s association with Mercury in the US, and of their big 80s synth driven sound. For me, Hold Your Fire works. I have great memories of listening to it and seeing the tour. More song-oriented than previous records, and less detail in the recording. As some have noted, everything sounds blended together in the mix, creating a bigger sound, more atmosphere. Not exactly what you expect from a power trio. On this album, Rush took that approach far as they could go. As I said, for me as a fan it works very well. But I also see the necessity of then scaling it back and reworking the sound for the next album, Presto, which I love too. Back to power trio and a return to form of sorts.
Great list! Nice to see you went with Countdown, Open Secrets, Face Up, Body Electric, and Cold Fire here!
Absolutely agree with this! Presto was the right time to move on from the 80s Rush sound, great as it was. EG.
With the exception of Counterparts, Vapor Trails, and Snakes and Arrows, our anthologies are pretty comparable: I would take out: Lessons The Twilight Zone Madrigal A Farewell to Kings Countdown (though not bad at all) The Body Electric Territories Open Secrets (though not bad at all) Turn the Page Red Tide (though not bad at all) Chain Lightning Face Up Leave That Thing Alone! (though not bad at all) Cold Fire The Speed of Love Double Agent Armor & Sword The Main Monkey Business (though not bad at all) The Way the Wind Blows And add: In the Mood Beneath, Between, and Behind In the End Lakeside Park (the rest of 2112) Something for Nothing Cygnus X-1 Jacob's Ladder Entre Nous Natural Science The Camera Eye Witch Hunt Losing It Between the Wheels Grand Designs Middletown Dreams Mission High Water Scars Presto Cut to the Chase Stick It Out Nobody's Hero Alien Shore Half the World Totem Time and Motion Summertime Blues Peaceable Kingdom Vapor Trails Sweet Miracle Nocturne Workin' Them Angels Hope Malignant Narcissism Seven Cities of Gold Headlong Flight The Garden
Sure I can. But I can hum Milton Babbitt, Cecil Taylor, etc melodies. I could hum any set of pitches one could write.
Total Compilation: I Finding My Way In the Mood Working Man Anthem Beneath, Between & Behind By-Tor and the Snow Dog Fly by Night In the End Bastille Day Lakeside Park 2112 A Passage to Bangkok Something for Nothing II Xanadu Closer to the Heart Cygnus X-1 Circumstances The Trees La Villa Strangiato The Spirit of Radio Freewill Jacob's Ladder Entre Nous Different Strings Natural Science III Tom Sawyer Red Barchetta YYZ Limelight The Camera Eye Witch Hunt Vital Signs Subdivisions The Analog Kid New World Man Losing It Distant Early Warning Red Sector A The Enemy Within Between the Wheels IV The Big Money Grand Designs Marathon Middletown Dreams Mystic Rhythms Force Ten Time Stand Still Prime Mover Mission High Water Show Don't Tell The Pass Scars Presto Available Light V Dreamline Bravado Roll the Bones Ghost of a Chance Animate Stick It Out Cut to the Chase Nobody's Hero Alien Shore Test for Echo Driven Half the World Totem Time and Motion Resist Summertime Blues VI One Little Victory Ghost Rider Peaceable Kingdom Vapor Trail Secret Touch Earthshine Sweet Miracle Nocturne Far Cry Workin' Them Angels Hope Malignant Narcissism Seven Cities of Gold Headlong Flight The Garden
I received my Sector 3 Box the other day and have pretty much listened to everything except for the Signals DVD. Yes, HYF sounds pretty good actually, I believe it's a DR 8, but yep, "High Water" is brickwalled at the very end and it started to numb my ears...amazing, I was enjoying the CD, then the last song was an ear-bleeder...bad job botching that one! Power Windows is also a problem, I believe it's a DR 7, but it sounds a little louder than that and the volume was bothering me. I believe Grace Under Pressure might be a DR 9, but I don't know what the DR is for Signals and A Show Of Hands...would you know? It's interesting, as I was listening to HYF tonight I couldn't detect where the different mixes were, but I'm sure they are there.
The flaws of Vapor Trails are glaring, and it's probably one of my least favorite Rush albums, but there is a charm about it that is certainly appealing, most notably the energy and aggression that oozes out of the entire record. As individual songs go, I am still pretty high on Freeze, Nocturne, Earthshine and Vapor Trail.
Sector- *Signals Analyzed: Rush / Signals -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DR Peak RMS Duration Track -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DR8 -0.10 dB -9.80 dB 5:38 01-Subdivisions DR9 -0.10 dB -10.46 dB 4:50 02-The Analog Kid DR9 -0.10 dB -10.86 dB 4:59 03-Chemistry DR10 -0.10 dB -11.63 dB 6:29 04-Digital Man DR9 -0.10 dB -10.80 dB 6:31 05-The Weapon DR9 -0.10 dB -10.67 dB 3:49 06-New World Man DR10 -0.10 dB -11.98 dB 4:57 07-Losing It DR8 -0.10 dB -10.40 dB 5:52 08-Countdown -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- *A Show of Hands Analyzed: Rush / A Show Of Hands -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DR Peak RMS Duration Track -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DR11 -1.41 dB -17.95 dB 0:53 01-Intro DR8 -0.05 dB -9.25 dB 5:58 02-The Big Money DR7 -0.05 dB -8.29 dB 5:22 03-Subdivisions DR7 -0.05 dB -8.56 dB 6:39 04-Marathon DR7 -0.05 dB -8.36 dB 4:40 05-Turn The Page DR7 -0.05 dB -8.97 dB 5:19 06-Manhattan Project DR7 -0.05 dB -8.42 dB 5:46 07-Mission DR9 -0.05 dB -9.81 dB 5:15 08-Distant Early Warning DR8 -0.05 dB -8.89 dB 5:33 09-Mystic Rhythms DR8 -0.05 dB -9.61 dB 3:58 10-Witch Hunt DR7 -0.05 dB -9.71 dB 4:37 11-The Rhythm Method (Drum Solo) DR8 0.00 dB -9.61 dB 4:55 12-Force Ten DR9 -0.05 dB -10.20 dB 5:13 13-Time Stand Still DR9 -0.05 dB -10.20 dB 5:18 14-Red Sector A DR8 -0.05 dB -10.30 dB 4:53 15-Closer To The Heart --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I think some Rush fans differ on songs maybe out what they want/expect from the band. Some want rock some want roll. I'm less a fan of some overlong guitar parts but a fan of their bigger/softer synth side as in HYF, which some do not like. I think "Tai Chan" fits here. Tho I think the synth patch or mix in "Subdivisions" is not quite right, I adore the song. But I love Rush because I can get a "Rivendell" and a "Tom Sawyer", etc. I've said before that "Broon's Bane" is still one of the most beautiful guitar melodies I've ever heard and it's the kind of thing that I wish had been recorded more seriously for a longer song on an album. And "Dreamline" from RTB seems like a seriously underrated song. Some of Peart's best questioning/inspirational lyrics and a very catchy hook to my ears. Of course, I associate it with a period where I had to make a big life move and this song was one of my soundtracks.
Thanks c-e! Yes, Signals sounded very nice, although I didn't expect the DR numbers to be that high, and regarding A Show Of Hands, the actual CD sounds a drop louder to me than the DR numbers indicate, although there are 6 songs with DR 7 that I see. I thought "The Big Money" would have been DR 7, as it comes on a little loud, but I guess it's DR 8.
Yeah, it's very interesting that they seemed to take such an intense, aggressive, heavy/dense turn (not just because of brickwalling --the arrangements got really dense, with more of less a wall-of-sound approach) in the 2000s. Not that they were never heavy in their earlier years, but it was more sporadic and controlled. This really cranked it up. It was kind of like they decided to present their own very quirky take on metal/hardcore . . . as a trio of 50-somethings, 30 years into their career, which was just about the most unexpected move they could have made.
As someone who got into the band thanks to Roll the Bones and the synth era material after some friends show me A Show of Hands, I had no preconceived notions that Rush should give me any specific kind of music. Good music is good music, and it comes in many shapes and sizes. I love Dreamline, and I definitely think it was a big reason why Roll the Bones gave the band a resurgence in the mainstream, as it was their highest charting album since Moving Pictures here in the States, aided greatly by Dreamline, the lead single, going to number 1 on the mainstream rock charts. I knew quite a few people, who normally did not call themselves Rush fans, who owned Roll the Bones on CD. Very true. That said, I know Alex Lifeson was described Vapor Trails as an album that had a lot of "meat on them bones," but the heaviness of that album definitely caught me off guard when I first heard it. Even though Snakes and Arrows probably has slightly better songwriting, I probably prefer Vapor Trails as a whole more simply because I will take the raw and in-your-face sound of VT over the dry and kind of lifeless sound of S&A. VT, for all its fault, has a lot of personality, which I am not sure I can say about S&A.
I don't usually skip songs in general or with Rush in particular. For me there's only a handful of songs I'd consider skipping but that's usually as far as it goes.
FWIW, the Sector Grace Under Pressure is my favorite digital version. It may be a touch compressed, but I love the EQ on it. All of the previous versions were too thin and bright for my liking, and the Sector improves that by adding some warmth in the bass and mids. My overall favorite for GUP though, is the 2015 vinyl reissue. It's similar to the Sector remaster, but with better dynamics. I would have to listen to the other 4 albums again as it's been a while since I've heard the Sector versions.
I consider the Presto Tour to be my least favorite Rush tour ever (I refer to it as the midlife crisis tour) based on seeing it and seeing and hearing the live recordings. I would imagine Geddy and Alex would have been happier not being trapped behind the triggers (They've confirmed this I think) so maybe that's the "new life" aspect you're referring too. I thought this tour was a bit more stale than the norm for a number of reasons. It didn't seem like many of the performances were very inspiring. Also I didn't like that they punted Freewill after the instrumental break and Xanadu clocked in at under 7 minutes. (I suppose that is a revival of sorts.) They only played FIVE Presto songs and the first one of those was slotted number 8 in the set. I think the Roll The Bones Tour was better, especially from the Euro leg onward but the Presto tour seemed to be the bottom in my opinion.
And then there's me who would put those three 21st century records up against anything else they've ever done. (Perhaps not sonically but in just about every other way.)
Found a Red/Silver Mercury swirl pressing of Power Windows today for 99p. If it wasn't for this forum, I'd have left it in the racks but now I've got this thing about having the earlier versions! EG.
