New Rush album! Clockwork Angels

[Andy44]

So I had pre-ordered this on Amazon last month and I finally got it two days ago. After listening to it 2 or 3 times I'm liking it alot. So great to finally get some new Rush, and it's got a nice heavy sound to it. Plus it's the first prog/concept album they've done in a while, with a whole fantasy steampunk theme. My favorite band is back!

Loving Alex Lifeson's guitar on this:

 

[RacerX]

I listened to it. IMHO A farewell to kings,hemispheres,permanent waves,moving pictures,signals (1977 to 1982) were their best albums/years. Rush has so much talent but I just haven't been able to get into their music since. Now I do goto their concerts. They play their new songs. But if you have ever been to their concerts you know when they play their older songs the crowd goes crazy. They do put on a hell of a show live. Now this particular song was ok but in the solo I think I heard some frett-board taps during the solo which did make my ears perk up a little. I just wish they would go a little more back to the old Raw sounding days. Its so close just under the surface....and I wait for it...and I wait for it....and just when I think they are about to unleash the fury...they change melodies .....and I am like "Awww man! Damm! " lol Its just so frustrating but in a good way I guess
Thanks for sharing

 

[Andy44]

I grew up listening to people who only wanted to hear the 70s Rush. Now I run into people who only want to hear the 80s or 90s Rush. I ignore all that.

I love the old stuff, but Rush doesn't go backwards, ever. That's why they are still around and still fresh, unlike AC/DC who just keep making the same album over and over again. The 70s ended 32 years ago, they aren't coming back, and Geddy can't scream like that anymore anyway, so it's no more productive to wish for it then it is to wait for Santa Claus to show up. The three of them have grown as musicians and songwriters and as bandmates, and the fun of being a Rush fan is when you get to see what their next album will sound like.

 

[RacerX]

I apologize if you took offense to my last post. I was just re-living the old Rush days. I didn't mean that the newer music was bad or anything. It is not. You can't find a better 3 piece rock band anywhere with that much talent and a full sound. Let me just say IMO these guys are great at what they do and deserve to be held in a category all their own. They by no means "suck" in my book. I may or may not go out and buy their newer albums, and that is ok, but you can bet I will spend $150 on me and my wife to goto their next concert! So either way however you want to look at it, We (me and you) still both get to jam whether it is new or old material ...me and you both get what we want and are still supporting the band in some way shape or form! It's all good bro! Keeping the faith right along with ya

 

[Andy44]

No offense taken! I didn't mean to sound harsh.

I went through a period in the 90s where I kind of stopped paying attention to Rush as I got busy with other life stuff and got a little turned off by some of the changes they were making.

And I understand the love for the old prog stuff. It would've been nice if they had done that for a few more years. In general the prog music of the 70s was great. Gabriel-era Genesis, Pink Floyd, Yes, etc. Given how many bands turned awful in the 80s or just couldn't make it at all, I think Rush handled the transistion very well. Signals and Grace Under Pressure are fantastic albums IMO.

 

[Interceptor]

Sounds great,Alex's guitar tone is reminicent of there 2112 album.

 

[dougkeenan]

in case it got overlooked

 

[Scav]

There they are: the three amigos. :thumbup:

 

[Andy44]

LOL they should dress like that on stage for a show, Beatles-style!

 

[streb2001]

Got this from Amazon a couple of days ago and haven't stopped listening to it since. Back to bass riffs and guitar solos at last. Excellent!

Best thing since P/G?

 

[Andy44]

Best thing since P/G?

That seems to be a popular opinion, which I might share. I've listened to this thing over and over again, the way I did when I was 16 and bought a new album, and the songs are all in my head now. Especially Seven Cities of Gold, love that tune.

The Anarchist, Clockwork Angels, and Headlong Flight are also awesome. I can't believe how good this is. Rush is doing prog rock again, but with an updated skill set. Rush is doing prog rock again!

And I bought the vinyl. Waiting on a phono pre-amp to show up at my door so I can spin up my old record player. My first new Rush record in...well...a long long time!

 

[streb2001]

Vinyl? Where from? Tell me now!

ed. OK found one. Not Amazon though, £55 you must be joking. £25 from WhatRecords.

There is something about owning a new vinyl album that CD just cannot match. A long time for me too, the last vinyl Rush I bought was Power Windows back in 1985 (?)

 

[Andy44]

Vinyl? Where from? Tell me now!

Don't know if Amazon UK has this or not: http://www.amazon.com/Clockwork-Ang...225227&sr=1-1&keywords=clockwork+angels+vinyl

Wait, found it! http://www.amazon.co.uk/Clockwork-A..._0_main?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1342225318&sr=1-1

I've bought hard-to-find stuff from Amazon UK before. Costs a bit more and takes longer to get here but it works. Should work better for you!

 

[streb2001]

Beat me to it! See above...

ed. to bed. Drunk in charge of a credit card is not a good idea!

 

[streb2001]

It's here!

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/87400636/CA_discs.jpg

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/87400636/CA_back.jpg

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/87400636/CA_inner.jpg

:thumbup:

 

[TitanII]

Been a Rush fan since '77 (have seen them at least 30 times since), so yes, I'm a Rush fan, and yes, it's always great to have "new" material (not really new, they've been playing a lot of these songs live for the past 4 years), but the production value of Clockwork Angels is nowhere near up to the task of accurately presenting this material. It's WAY too compressed and consequently, uniformly too loud and seriously lacking dynamics.

Susequently to buying it, I re-EQ'd the tracks (cut some of the lowest frequencies, attenuated some of the highs and rebuilt the peaks) and burned a copy to disc. Much more listenable and now in heavy rotation. So, yeah, it's a great collection of their work, but the production? Uhh...not so much.

 

[Eli13]

I should go check this album out.

*Silently thanks his dad for introducing him to Rush as a kid*

 

[streb2001]

I find it no more compressed than Counterparts. In fact, Clockwork Angels is easier on my ears than Counterparts. The one that was completely ruined by excessive compression was of course Vapor Trails. I understand that Rush are planning to re-release VT in a properly mixed version. There are some examples on Spotify and it does sound so much better.