Rush is a Band

A blog devoted to RUSH:
Neil Peart, Geddy Lee & Alex Lifeson

Thu, Mar 28, 2024

Updates and other random Rush stuff

Fri, Dec 9, 2011@12:13PM | comments removed/disabled

Things continue to be relatively quiet on the Rush news front in the lead-up to the Holidays. The big news of this past week came in the form of a short new Geddy Lee interview at Billboard.com where Geddy discusses a range of subjects including the Rush documentary, how his parents being Holocaust survivors influenced his life and music, his baseball memorabilia collection and whether the band would consider playing another album in its entirety - like what was done with Moving Pictures on the recent Time Machine tour:

... We really enjoyed that whole experience. We played for three hours -- you can tuck a 45-minute album in there and still play lots of new things and lots of other things. If we were really out of our minds, we would attempt something like [1978's] "Hemispheres." If Rush has a cult following, within that cult following there's a following for "Hemispheres" [laughs]. I'm not sure we're up for that one, but I could see us doing "2112." ...

Geddy also talks about what fans can expect from Rush's upcoming Clockwork Angels album, along with some new revelations regarding their feelings on the recording of their last album - 2007's Snakes & Arrows:

The first two [single] releases from this album, "Caravan" and "Brought Up to Believe," are a great indication of where this album's going, although there's much more variety than just what those two songs offer. When I look back at [2007 album] "Snakes and Arrows," as happy as we were with that record, in retrospect I feel we kind of overdid it with overdubs. We'd like to simplify that, just in terms of making sure the guitar, bass and drum sounds are big and loud and clear, and any time we are going to add an overdub, to make sure that it definitely is adding and not subtracting.

This is probably the first negative thing the band has had to say regarding the recording of Snakes & Arrows. You can read the entire article/interview at this link. The band is currently in the studio finishing up the recording of Clockwork Angels which should be released sometime this Spring with a tour to follow.

The other major bit of news that came out this last week was Rush and their management acknowledging some minor production flaws in the Sector box sets. Since the release of the box sets a few weeks ago, several fans have reported issues with the Fly by Night CD on the Sectors 1 set, and with the A Farewell to Kings 5.1 DVD on the Sectors 2 set. Here's what was posted at Rush.com late last Friday evening:

We are aware of some slight technical issues surrounding the CD of 'Fly By Night' inside the Sector 1 box set release and the DVD for 'A Farewell To Kings' inside the Sector 2 box set that some fans are experiencing. It stems from a production flaw and it is currently being addressed. As soon as production is completed a formal announcement of how to replace the discs will follow shortly. Please be aware that there may be a time delay in shipping and receiving the disc and we sincerely apologize for this inconvenience - Geddy, Alex & Neil

MusicRadar.com featured Sectors in an article yesterday highlighting box sets that are available for the Holidays (thanks RushFanForever).

The list of nominees for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2012 was announced back in September and we learned at that time that Rush would once again be snubbed for induction. Earlier this week the Rock Hall announced the list of inductees which will consist of Guns N' Roses, The Beastie Boys, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Laura Nyro, Donovan and the Small Faces. As we have come to expect over the years after the inductees are announced, the press has a field day with discussions of what bands should have been inducted and weren't - and Rush is just about always at the top of their lists. NPR ran an article titled Shouldn't Rush Be In The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame?:

... let's consider Rush. As Wired's GeekDad blog wrote in September, the Canadian trio has sold more than 40 million records and has "more consecutive gold and platinum records than everyone except the Beatles and the Rolling Stones."

Even the president and CEO of the Rock Hall concedes the band should be honored. "They simply haven't gotten enough votes to make the ballot," Terry Stewart told Cleveland's The Plain Dealer earlier this year. "I can't tell you why. Based on impact, influence, innovation, and excellence, they're worthy. I think it's just a matter of time before it happens." ...

There's also a poll in the article asking whether Rush should be inducted. Currently over 97% of responders say YES. Pollstar ran an article profiling Rush and KISS as the primary overlooked bands for induction, and are running a poll asking readers which of these 2 bands they'd like to see inducted. You can take the poll at this location. Rush is way out front with close to 80% of the vote. The Globe and Mail posted an article titled What - no Rush?! And other Rock and Roll Hall of Fame oversights which talks about how absurd it is that Guns N' Roses made it in but Rush didn't:

Jann Wenner and Rolling Stone magazine are still hating Rush, unaccountably. Don't make us come down there and have Geddy Lee scream in your ear - the banshee-voiced Torontonian makes Axl Rose sound like a dove cooing in comparison.

And this CBS News article also wonders why Rush and KISS haven't been inducted yet. All of the press coverage inspired blogger and RIAB reader Jaybird to write this satirical piece titled Jann Wenner Explains Omission of RUSH.

Earlier this week the Rock Band news site RockBandaide.com posted a rumor that Rush's 2112 would soon be coming to Rock Band DLC. It looks like that rumor was partially true in light of the news that the Rock Band website announced this morning the release of a Rush 3-pack for Rock Band DLC which will include The Spirit of Radio, Fly By Night and Caravan. They also hinted at more Rush releases for the near future, so 2112 may still be on the docket for a forthcoming release. The pack will release next Tuesday, December 13th. From the Rock Band website:

Three tracks from Canadian rockers Rush are set to hit the Rock Band Music Store on December 13th! "Fly By Night," from 1975's album of the same name kicks off the pack, followed by a live cut of Rush's "The Spirit of the Radio," one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's "500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll." The pack is rounded out by "Caravan," which was released as a single earlier this year. These three tracks are just the tip of the iceberg for Rush fans; we'll have even more exciting Rush/Rock Band news before the year's out, so stay tuned!

Rush's 2112 was the centerpiece of last year's Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock and several other Rush tracks have been made available for both Rock Band and Guitar Hero games over the past few years.

The London Free Press posted their list of 12 Music DVDs of Xmas 2011 (thanks RushFanForever) and Rush's Time Machine 2011: Live in Cleveland made the list:

Dirk, Lerxst and Pratt turn the clock back to 1981, playing their classic Moving Pictures in its entirety - along with other oldies and two new cuts - in this 160-minute show. Neil even smiles!
RATING: 4 (out of 5)

Guitar World magazine posted their list of 50 Classic Albums Celebrating Their 30th Anniversary (thanks RushFanForever) in 2011 earlier this week, and Rush's Moving Pictures made the cut.

Last year Sonic Reality released their Neil Peart series drum sample instrument library. It features drum samples from Neil Peart himself and was produced with the help of Rush producer Nick Raskulinecz. Sonic Reality CEO Dave Kerzner recently put together a unique progressive rock project called Sonic Elements, which features a revolving door of musicians from around the world playing classic rock covers and fresh originals that all make use of the various sound elements of yesterday and today with the latest music software instrument and recording technology. The project features several Rush covers utilizing the Neil Peart drums software including a version of Red Barchetta featuring Triumph's Rik Emmett (teaser 1, teaser 2); a version of Limelight (guitar solo teaser, outro) featuring John Wesley and Billy Sherwood; and this instrumental version of Mission. They eventually plan on releasing an entire album of Rush covers and you can follow their progress on Facebook or on SoundCloud. Here's a short interview with Rik Emmett at the Sonic Elements YouTube channel, which includes a short bit at the end with Rik recording some of Red Barchetta.

The first annual Ultimate Classic Rock Awards sponsored by UltimateClassicRock.com kicked off last week and Rush is in the running for several of the awards; Tour of the Year, DVD of the Year, Live Album of the Year, Box Set of the Year. So go vote for Rush!

Alex Lifeson is up for the Guitar World Hall of Fame in the magazine's 2011 Reader's Poll (thanks John H). So go vote for Lerxst!

Reader RushFanForever discovered a book on progressive rock titled Beyond and Before: Progressive Rock Since the 1960's which was released this past summer. The book makes heavy mention of Rush throughout its pages. For more details go to this link, and here's a Morning Star review of the book.

Axe Heaven miniature guitars and the Power Windows website have teamed up for an exclusive deal for Power Windows readers of free shipping on all domestic orders, and an overall 10% discount for international orders of $75 or more. For all the details go to the Power Windows site at this link.

Veteran English progressive rock band Nektar have announced that they'll be releasing an album of cover songs including a cover of Rush's The Spirit of Radio (thanks John). ELP's Keith Emerson is tentatively scheduled to play on the track.

Alex Lifeson will be among the performers at the 7th annual Andy Kim Christmas Concert next Wednesday, December 14th at the Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto. All proceeds from the concert will go to Toronto's Julliette's Place (Homeward Family Shelter). In addition to Alex, performers will include Kevin Drew and Brendan Canning from Broken Social Scene, members of Finger Eleven and Ron Sexsmith. Tickets for the show are $26 CND and are available at all Ticketmaster, Rotate This, Soundscapes, online at ticketweb.ca or by calling 416-870-8000. NOW magazine is running a contest where you could win tickets to the show. For all the details and to enter go to this link. Alex Lifeson also performed at last year's concert and you can check out videos and photos from that event in this post.

Speaking of Alex, MusicRadar.com recently asked several rock stars to pick their favorite Christmas songs for an article posted on their website earlier this week and Alex was one of the artists they spoke to. Lerxst picked the Little Drummer Boy and here's what he had to say about it:

"I always liked the Little Drummer Boy because of the tonality of the song. There was always something very plaintive about it. It wasn't one of those "up," joyous Christmas songs, which tend to get a little overdone. Actually, I did a version of it a while ago that came out nice.

"On the other hand, I do like upbeat Christmas songs, so I'd say my second pick would be Joy To The World - not anybody's version, in particular; I just like the song itself. It's spirited and very "Ho, ho, ho!" [laughs]

Here's Alex Lifeson's performance of The Little Drummer Boy from the 1997 album Merry Axemas:

That's all for this week. Have a fantastic and Rush-filled weekend everyone!

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