Fly By Night Review

FLY BY NIGHT

RUSH

1975

Anthem/Mercury

Prod. by Rush and Terry Brown

It’s obviously worth noting that I come into these Rush reviews with a slightly predetermined mindset. In any review of the band Rush’s music, I will do my best to displace my previous distaste for the band, but I will repeatedly make it clear that, in the past, Rush has most certainly not been my thing, and I am here to challenge that idea and try to enjoy a band millions around the world revere.

Sound the alarm; I really, really like parts of Fly By Night. As an album, it’s as deeply flawed as Moving Pictures, and the highs aren’t quite as high as “Tom Sawyer.” But Fly By Night exposes a Rush that is more interested in other people’s music than their own; only a couple of the songs on Fly By Night sound like definitive Rush anthems, while the rest seem to be Rush taking on other people’s sounds. Some of these experiments turn out really, really awesome; others work less well.

First, what works; “Anthem” and “Best I Can” are a rollicking force that is undeniable. “Anthem” is more mathematical than most of what appears on this album, but like “Limelight,” the band mostly stays together, letting guitarist Alex Lifeson take the lead instrumentation on the song. Geddy Lee and Neil Peart keep their rhythm in check, but the vocal by Lee is still grating on “Anthem.” It’s not enough to ruin the slick, somewhat blues-y ride, but a performance with a better vocalist would be highly engaging. Peart, in particular, manages to produce a drum beat that is fun to listen to without being overwhelming, a task Peart can find difficulty accomplishing. It’s moments like “Anthem” that let me remember Peart’s talent rather than find myself aggravated with his arrogance.

Honestly, though, I don’t think there’s a band that would top Rush’s performance of “Best I Can,” a song that is so non-definitively Rush that I wish, wish, WISH this had been their direction all along. “Best I Can” absolutely reeks of a fusion of blues-driven hard rock and pop rock at the same time; think the world’s best fusion of AC/DC and Elton John’s “The Bitch Is Back,” however anachronistic that may be. Lee is singing a harder, deeper vocal than usual as well, with a voice echoing Bon Scott and Brian Johnson on their best days. In case you can’t tell, I’m absolutely floored by how much I like “Best I Can,” down to its very Joe Perry riffs, its absolutely killer instrumentation on the hook, and a sweet guitar solo by Lifeson. While I can understand that it’s lacking in iconic moments (see “Tom Sawyer” drum fills, “Spirit of Radio” opening, etc.) it’s a fun, fun song.

There are a couple other songs that work, though not nearly as well as “Best I Can.” The third track, “Between, Beneath, and Behind,” is a fun (if overly mathematical) high-tempo jam. Moments of it remind me of “Ballroom Blitz,” but I would definitely rather listen to the Sweet classic every time; the hook’s attack is repetitive very, very quickly, leaving me indifferent every time. And “Making Memories” contains some quality guitar work as an attempt to take on the style of southern rock outfits like Lynyrd Skynyrd; Lifeson really nails that impression in the solo, which is highly technical and filled with twang. The rest of the song is a pretty fun acoustic jam with some great bass work by Lee.

Now, while half the impressions work shockingly well, the rest struggles to excite or entice me. “By-Tor And The Snow Dog” begins with a relatively unimpressive and standard Rush jam, which is too calculated and mathematical for my tastes; Lee’s vocal is shakier on this song than any other, as well. The second half of the song contains a long psychedelic jam, perhaps an attempt to capture what fellow “prog” outfit Pink Floyd had been up to on Meddle and Dark Side of the Moon, but it fails miserably to sound like anything other than aimless noodling. Considering there’s plenty of Pink Floyd that sounds the same way, I can’t blame them for failing, but it is still a failed experiment. Unlike some of these other songs, no member manages to do anything especially memorable or impressive, leaving “By-Tor” bloated and flaccid. These same words, bloated and flaccid, would probably describe my feelings on the rest of the album.

Of course, most people are probably surprised I’m not very into “Fly By Night,” the album’s lead single and title track. And it’s not bad, it’s just very, very boring. It’s distasteful to me for many of the same reasons I didn’t like “Vital Signs” or “Witch Hunt”; the song is aimless math gone awry, never really letting itself find an identity or escape the confines of its prison. The guitar solo is fine, but it fails to impress much more than your average Journey guitar solo, a comparison that is not complimentary.

“Rivendell” intrigues me, though. Now that there’s Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings to define that saga, perhaps it’s impossible for me to truly sift back into the world of Tolkein’s imagination, but “Rivendell” does momentarily evoke a very small amount of the energy I remember feeling towards The Hobbit. That said, it’s miserably performed by Lee’s weak vocal, it’s excessively long at almost 5 minutes, and nothing changes after the first chorus is reached. But if “Rivendell” were one of the few windows into Tolkein’s world, I could imagine that it’s a relatively decent success in that department.

Overall, Fly By Night is an interesting sonic collection, especially for fans of Rush. It’s this moment in musical history when Rush didn’t really know who they wanted to be. This is the moment just before Rush became one of the most ego-centric, sonically self-feeding bands in the world; this is when they were listening to everyone else and putting together anything that stuck. It’s exciting for the same reason Rubber Soul is a fascinating hinge in the career of The Beatles, or for the same reason we should all be excited for Green Day’s ¡Uno!/ ¡Dos!/ ¡Tres! trilogy, or Muse’s electro-heavy The 2^nd Law. And while Rush’s impressions mostly pale in comparison to the originators of the style, some of these impressions are worth hearing on their own merits.

3/5

HIGHLIGHTS: “Anthem,” “Best I Can,” “Making Memories”
MISSED OPPORTUNITIES: “By-Tor And The Snow Dog,” “Fly By Night,” “Rivendell”
NEXT STOP: Aerosmith, “Toys In The Attic”
AFTER THAT: Elton John, “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road”

Moving Pictures Review

MOVING PICTURES

RUSH

1981

Anthem/Mercury

Prod. by Rush & Terry Brown

It’s obviously worth noting that I come into these Rush reviews with a slightly predetermined mindset. In any review of the band Rush’s music, I will do my best to displace my previous distaste for the band, but I will repeatedly make it clear that, in the past, Rush has most certainly not been my thing, and I am here to challenge that idea and try to enjoy a band millions around the world revere.

Rush’s Moving Pictures is probably their most accessible record. With multiple classic rock staples, its place is cemented throughout the annals of rock history. However, I find it hard to recommend Moving Pictures, which is ultimately a collection of songs rather than a concept album, to anyone who has heard these songs extensively through classic rock radio.

Yes, “Tom Sawyer” is a brilliant piece of music on a fresh listen; who could deny that? Its trance-like synth and guitar is just about perfect, and it's one of the most unified songs the band's ever had. It's one of few times a song was clearly written around a series of drum lines Neil Peart had created, and it's wildly successful, though it's worth noting how much of a team player bass player Geddy Lee manages to be here as well. The vocals on the track are still as mediocre or frustrating as most Rush songs (your mileage will always vary in regards to the caterwauling of Geddy Lee) but they don't really detract from the quality. To those who would deny the awesomeness of the famous drum fills on the studio version of the song, I salute you for entering a realm of Rush denialism that eclipses my own.

But parts of “Tom Sawyer”, “YYZ”, and “Limelight” fail to impress after years of exposure. They’re high-energy, they’re well-crafted, and they certainly stand out more successfully than some of Rush’s other songs. But the big punches in "Tom Sawyer" and "YYZ" are moments of intense technical skill rather than beauty or humanity, and so the “songs” serve as vehicles for moments of a good show. Meanwhile, "Limelight" has always seemed like a song that belonged to another band, and on multiple listens of the album, I simply lost focus during the song.

Alex Lifeson’s guitar contributions are rarely exciting throughout Moving Pictures, and every Lee vocal bounces between tolerable and distracting. This, of course, leaves Rush with their most famous attributes; Lee’s bass-playing and Neil Peart’s drumming, both regarded as world-class players. Outside of “YYZ,” Lee does not receive center stage often, and yet he continues to play as though he’s the only man on stage. Basslines on “Limelight” and “The Camera Eye” force through unnecessarily, leading to a handful of jumbled moments. These are quality basslines, but they’re often played at inopportune times. Peart is much guiltier of this problem, playing ludicrous drum parts on “Red Barchetta,” “Limelight,” and “Vital Signs” that distract far more than they add. I’ll say once again that I believe Rush is an extremely talented trio of players that have a tendency to compete with each other for the listener’s focus rather than write a cohesive song.

As for the non-radio tracks, there’s enough to like that a fan of the band’s style might adore Moving Pictures, but those that aren’t crazy about Rush’s style won’t find much to love in the other songs. “Red Barchetta” remains a casualty, as Lifeson’s best guitar riff is overshadowed by Peart’s excessive drum lines. “The Camera Eye” is actually a very enjoyable collection of different sections, but many of the riffs found in the 11 minutes never really evolve into anything that earns the run-time. “Witch Hunt” and “Vital Signs” are fine songs that simply fail to differentiate themselves from the pack.

3/5

HIGHLIGHTS: “Tom Sawyer,” “YYZ,” “Limelight”

MISSED OPPORTUNITIES: “Red Barchetta,” “The Camera Eye”

NEXT STOP: Yes, “The Yes Album”

AFTER THAT: Muse, “Black Holes and Revelations”

Next stop in regards to Rush: Their 1975 album Fly By Night.

RUSH - A Return

I don’t remember if I’ve made it clear in my previous blogs (if so, it was likely during my Lamb of God review) but I really, really dislike Rush. I find them to be a group of talented players who write music to flagrantly display their talent rather than put together something cohesive. I believe the only thing holding most of Rush’s music together is the truly awful vocals of Geddy Lee, a piece I regularly cannot abide.

What’s more, Rush isn’t the most talented band in the world, so where do they get off? Sure, their major competitors in the field either do exactly what Rush does in an effort to show off (read: most prog, after Rush) or have broken up as of long ago (Led Zeppelin, The Who, Derek & The Dominos,) but that does not give them permission to play the full-band equivalent of Yngwie Malmsteen.

And yes, there are a few Rush songs I like. “YYZ,” “Tom Sawyer,” and “The Spirit of Radio” all have their own merits, and “Limelight” is actually just a really excellent song. And their role in the Jason Segel comedy I Love You, Man is indelible and hilarious. But most of the rest of what I’ve heard through the radio is either mindless drivel or (at least partially) unlistenable.

This summer, I intend to give them the old college try. Why? Because people adore them, and after three years of maintaining that Rush is my least favorite band, it’s time to challenge the beast once again. My musical tastes have drastically changed since I held that opinion, so, who knows? Maybe I’ll come out of all this liking them.

As a result, you can expect three Rush reviews by the end of August. No, they will not necessarily all be in sequence, and yes, they will be chronologically out of order. I’ve been recommended to go listen to Moving Pictures (an album I own and once liked,) then Fly By Night (whose title track I at least somewhat revile at the time of this writing,) and then, lastly, 2112 (whose title track I most certainly found unlistenable last time I gave it a shot.)

I’m moving the files for Moving Pictures onto my computer with better speakers now. Wish me luck.