RUSH – Rush (1974-2009) RM | SHM-CD | Serie Rush デビュー35 周年記念紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 1 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Rush's self-titled debut is about as uncharacteristic of their renowned heavy progressive rock (perfected on such future releases as Hemispheres, Moving Pictures, etc.) as you can get. Instead of complex arrangements and thoughtful lyrics, Rush sounds almost identical to Led Zeppelin throughout -- bluesy riffs merged with "baby, baby" lyrics. The main reason for the album's different sound and direction is that their lyricist/drummer, Neil Peart, was not in the band yet, skinsman John Rutsey rounds out the original line-up, also consisting of Geddy Lee (bass/vocals) and Alex Lifeson (guitar). It's nearly impossible to hear the anthemic "Finding My Way" and not picture Robert Plant shrieking away, or Jimmy Page riffing on the jamfest "Working Man," but Rush was still in their formative stages. There's no denying that Lee and Lifeson were already strong instrumentalists, but such predictable compositions as "In the Mood" and "What You're Doing" prove that Peart was undoubtedly the missing piece to the puzzle. While longtime Rush fans can appreciate their debut because they never returned to this style, newcomers should stick with their classics from later years. Greg Prato
Tracklist :
1    Finding My Way    5:06
2    Need Some Love    2:20
3    Take A Friend    4:24
4    Here Again    7:34
5    What Your Doing    4:22
6    In The Mood    3:34
7    Before And After    5:35
8    Working Man    7:10
Credits :
Drums, Vocals – John Rutsey
Guitar, Vocals – Alex Lifeson
Lead Vocals, Bass – Geddy Lee

RUSH – Fly By Night (1975-2009) RM | SHM-CD | Serie Rush デビュー35 周年記念紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 2 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Prior to one of Rush's first U.S. tours, original drummer John Rutsey split from the band, since he wasn't prepared to commit to the band's rigorous touring schedule. And it proved to be a blessing in disguise, since his replacement was to become one of the most respected rock drummers of all time, Neil Peart, who would also steer the band towards success with more challenging material -- starting with Fly by Night. While the title track and the album-closing ballad, "In the End," still had Zeppelin roots, the album isn't as straightforward as the debut. Rush's first bona-fide classic, "Anthem," is included, while the over eight-minute "By-Tor and the Snow Dog" helped pave the way for the group's future epics ("2112," "Cygnus X-1," etc.), and introduced the fans to Peart's imaginative lyric writing, often tinged with science-fiction themes. The reflective and melodic "Making Memories" is an underrated early composition, while "Beneath, Between, & Behind" is a furious heavy rocker. Fly by Night may not be one of Rush's finest albums, but it is one of their most important -- it showed that the young band was leaving their Zep-isms behind in favor of a more challenging and original direction. Greg Prato

Tracklist :
1    Anthem    4:23
2    Best I Can    3:25
3    Beneath, Between & Behind    3:02
    By-Tor & The Snow Dog    (8:37)
4.1    I. At The Tobes Of Hades    
4.2    II. Across The Styx    
4.3    III. Of The Battle    
4.4    IV. Epilogue    
5    Fly By Night    3:21
6    Making Memories    2:58
7    Rivendell    4:56
8    In The End    6:46
Credits :
Bass, Guitar [Classical], Vocals – Geddy Lee
Drums, Percussion – Neil Peart
Guitar – Alex Lifeson

RUSH — Caress Of Steel (1975-2009) RM | SHM-CD | Serie Rush デビュー35 周年記念紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 3 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

When Rush finished their third album, Caress of Steel, the trio was assured that they had created their breakthrough masterpiece. But when the album dropped off the charts soon after its release, it proved otherwise. While it was Rush's first release that fully explored their prog rock side, it did not contain the catchy and more traditional elements of their future popular work -- it's quite often too indulgent and pretentious for a mainstream rock audience to latch onto. And while Rush would eventually excel in composing lengthy songs, the album's two extended tracks -- the 12½-minute "The Necromancer" and the nearly 20-minute "The Fountain of Lamneth" -- show that the band was still far from mastering the format. The first side contains two strong and more succinct tracks, the raging opener, "Bastille Day," and the more laid-back "Lakeside Park," both of which would become standards for their live show in the '70s. But the ill-advised "I Think I'm Going Bald" (which lyrically deals with growing old) borders on the ridiculous, which confirms that Caress of Steel is one of Rush's more unfocused albums. Greg Prato
Tracklist :
1    Bastille Day    4:37
2    I Think I'm Going Bald    3:37
3    Lakeside Park    4:08
    The Necromancer    12:29
4.1    Into The Darkness
4.2    Under The Shadow
4.3    Return Of The Prince
    The Fountain Of Lamneth    19:58
5.1    In The Valley
5.2    Didacts And Narpets
5.3    No One At The Bridge
5.4    Panacea
5.5    Bacchus Plateau
5.6    The Fountain
Credits :
Bass, Vocals – Geddy Lee
Guitar [6 String, 12 String, Electric, Acoustic, Classical, Steel] – Alex Lifeson
Percussion – Neil Peart
Producer, Arranged By – Rush

RUSH – A Farewell To Kings (1977-2009) RM | SHM-CD | Serie Rush デビュー35 周年記念紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 5 |

On 1977's A Farewell to Kings it quickly becomes apparent that Rush had improved their songwriting and strengthened their focus and musical approach. Synthesizers also mark their first prominent appearance on a Rush album, a direction the band would continue to pursue on future releases. With the popular hit single "Closer to the Heart," the trio showed that they could compose concise and traditionally structured songs, while the 11-minute "Xanadu" remains an outstanding accomplishment all these years later (superb musicianship merged with vivid lyrics help create one of Rush's best all-time tracks). The album-opening title track begins with a tasty classical guitar/synth passage, before erupting into a powerful rocker. The underrated "Madrigal" proves to be a delicately beautiful composition, while "Cinderella Man" is one of Rush's few songs to include lyrics penned entirely by Geddy Lee. The ten-minute tale of a dangerous black hole, "Cygnus X-1," closes the album on an unpredictable note, slightly comparable to the two extended songs on 1975's Caress of Steel. A Farewell to Kings successfully built on the promise of their breakthrough 2112, and helped broaden Rush's audience on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Greg Prato

Tracklist :
1    A Farewell To Kings    5:51
2    Xanadu    11:05
3    Closer To The Heart    2:52
4    Cinderella Man    4:20
5    Madrigal    2:34
6    Cygnus X-1    10:22
Credits :
Bass, Twelve-String Guitar, Synthesizer [Mini Moog, Bass Pedal], Vocals – Geddy Lee
Drums, Bells [Orchestra, Tubular], Cowbell, Vibraslap, Triangle, Temple Block, Bell Tree, Wind Chimes – Neil Peart
Electric Guitar, Guitar [Classical], Acoustic Guitar [Six And Twelve String], Synthesizer [Bass Pedal] – Alex Lifeson

RUSH – Permanent Waves (1980-2009) RM | SHM-CD | Serie Rush デビュー35 周年記念紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 7 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Since Neil Peart joined the band in time for 1975's Fly by Night, Rush had been experimenting and growing musically with each successive release. By 1980's Permanent Waves, the modern sounds of new wave (the Police, Peter Gabriel, etc.) began to creep into Rush's sound, but the trio still kept their hard rock roots intact. The new approach paid off -- two of their most popular songs, the "make a difference" anthem "Freewill," and a tribute to the Toronto radio station CFNY, "The Spirit of Radio" (the latter a U.K. Top 15 hit), are spectacular highlights. Also included were two "epics," the stormy "Jacob's Ladder" and the album-closing "Natural Science," which contains a middle section that contains elements of reggae. Geddy Lee also began singing in a slightly lower register around this time, which made their music more accessible to fans outside of the heavy prog rock circle. The album proved to be the final breakthrough Rush needed to become an arena headliner throughout the world, beginning a string of albums that would reach inside the Top Five of the U.S. Billboard album charts. Permanent Waves is an undisputed hard rock classic that endures. Greg Prato
Tracklist :
1    The Spirit Of Radio    4:57
2    Freewill    5:22
3    Jacob's Ladder    7:27
4    Entre Nous    4:37
5    Different Strings    3:49
6    Natural Science    (9:27)
6-I    Tide Pools    
6-II    Hyperspace    
6-III    Permanent Waves    
Credits :
Bass Guitar, Synthesizer [Oberheim Polyphonic, Ob-1, Mini-moog, Taurus Pedals], Vocals – Geddy Lee
Design Concept [Cover Concept] – Hugh Syme, Neil Peart
Drums, Timpani, Timbales, Bells [Orchestra, Tubular, Bell Tree], Wind Chimes, Triangle, Crotales – Neil Peart
Electric Guitar [Six And Twelve String], Acoustic Guitar [Six And Twelve String], Synthesizer [Taurus Pedals] – Alex Lifeson

RUSH — Moving Pictures (1981-2009) RM | SHM-CD | Serie Rush デビュー35 周年記念紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 8 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

1981's Moving Pictures is widely regarded as Rush's best album and lauded as one of the greatest prog/hard rock outings ever. The trio honed the new wave-meets-hard rock approach from 1980's Permanent Waves to perfection. Of its seven tracks, four remain in regular rotation on classic rock radio. While other legacy acts of the era experimented with various styles in vain attempts to remain relevant, Moving Pictures peaked at number three on both the U.S. and U.K. album charts. Their most renowned song, "Tom Sawyer," was co-written by the band with Max Webster lyricist Pye Dubois. It's followed by the futurist auto racing rebellion allegory "Red Barchetta," inspired by a short story written by Richard Foster and published in a 1973 edition of Road & Track magazine. It gives way to the sprawling prog instrumental "YYZ." "Limelight" borrows its intro from "Fly by Night," while the verse structure echoes "Free Will" in examining the hazards of fame. The 11-minute "The Camera Eye" begins with a layered synth-driven segment before transforming itself into a labyrinthian prog epic, marking the band's last recorded ten-plus-minutes studio song. "Witch Hunt" and "Vital Signs" remain two of the trio's more underrated rock compositions. The former is a moody collage of shouted voices, blasting guitar riffs, and dynamic crunch with sinister vocals, while the latter offers syncopated synths skillfully melding new wave and polished reggae with prog. Moving Pictures proved Rush still had vast, uncharted musical territory to explore. Greg Prato

Tracklist :
1    Tom Sawyer    4:34
2    Red Barchetta    6:09
3    YYZ    4:25
4    Limelight    4:19
5    The Camera Eye    10:59
6    Witch Hunt (Part III Of Fear)    4:44
7    Vital Signs    4:46
Credits :
Bass, Synthesizer [Oberheim Polyphonic, Ob-x, Mini-moog, Taurus Pedal], Vocals – Geddy Lee
Drums, Timbales, Bass Drum [Gong], Bells [Orchestra, Tree], Glockenspiel, Wind Chimes, Crotales, Cowbell, Percussion [Plywood] – Neil Peart
Guitar [6 & 12-string, Acoustic], Synthesizer [Taurus Pedals] – Alex Lifeson

RUSH — Signals (1982-2009) RM | SHM-CD | Serie Rush デビュー35周年記念紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 9 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Instead of playing it safe and writing Moving Pictures, Pt. II, Rush replaced their heavy rock of yesteryear with even more modern sounds for 1982's Signals. Synthesizers were now an integral part of the band's sound, and replaced electric guitars as the driving force for almost all the tracks. And more current and easier-to-grasp topics (teen peer pressure, repression, etc.) replaced their trusty old sci-fi-inspired lyrics. While other rock bands suddenly added keyboards to their sound to widen their appeal, Rush gradually merged electronics into their music over the years, so such tracks as the popular MTV video "Subdivisions" did not come as a shock to longtime fans. And Rush didn't forget how to rock out -- "The Analog Kid" and "Digital Man" were some of their most up-tempo compositions in years. The surprise hit, "New World Man," and "Chemistry" combined reggae and rock (begun on 1980's Permanent Waves), "The Weapon" bordered on new wave, the placid "Losing It" featured Ben Mink on electric violin, while the epic closer "Countdown" painted a vivid picture of a space shuttle launch. Signals proved that Rush were successfully adapting to the musical climate of the early '80s. Greg Prato
Tracklist :
1    Subdivisions    5:33
2    The Analog Kid    4:47
3    Chemistry    4:57
4    Digital Man    6:20
5    The Weapon    6:23
6    New World Man    3:42
7    Losing It    4:52
8    Countdown    5:50
Credits :
Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar – Alex Lifeson
Drums, Percussion – Neil Peart
Synthesizer,Bass Guitar, Vocals – Geddy Lee

RUSH — Grace Under Pressure (1984-2009) RM | SHM-CD | Serie Rush デビュー35 周年記念紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 10 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Grace Under Pressure was the first Rush album since 1975's Fly by Night to not be produced by Terry Brown, who was replaced by Peter Henderson (Supertramp, Paul McCartney). The change resulted in a slightly more accessible sound than its predecessor, Signals, and marked the beginning of a period where many Rush fans feel that synths and electronics were used too prominently -- in effect pushing guitarist Alex Lifeson into the background. The songwriting and lyrics were still strong however, as evidenced by the video/single "Distant Early Warning" (a tale about nuclear war) and the often-overlooked highlight "Kid Gloves," one of the album's few songs to feature Lifeson upfront. Other standouts include a tribute to a friend of the band who had recently passed away, "Afterimage," the disturbing "Red Sector A" (which details a concentration camp), and one of Rush's first funk-based songs, "The Enemy Within." Whereas most other rock bands formed in the 1970s put out unfocused and uninspired work in the 1980s (which sounds very dated), Rush's Grace Under Pressure remains an exception. Greg Prato
Tracklist :
1    The Big Money    5:37
2    Grand Designs    5:06
3    Manhattan Project    5:05
4    Marathon    6:11
5    Territories    6:20
6    Middletown Dreams    5:15
7    Emotion Detector    5:11
8    Mystic Rhythms    5:55
Credits :
Bass Guitar, Synthesizer, Vocals – Geddy Lee
Drums, Percussion, Electronic Drums [Percussion] – Neil Peart
Guitar, Synthesizer – Alex Lifeson
Lyrics By – Peart
Music By – Lifeson, Lee

RUSH – Power Windows (1985-2009) RM | SHM-CD | Serie Rush デビュー35 周年記念紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 11 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Like much of the band's '80s output, Power Windows finds Rush juggling their hard-rock heritage with new technology to mixed results. With Alex Lifeson choosing sparse, horn-like guitar bursts over actual crunch, Geddy Lee's synthesizers running rampant, and Neil Peart's crisp, clinical percussion and stark lyrical themes (evoking cold urban landscapes), the result just may be the trio's "coldest" album ever. Still, it does boast its share of important tracks in "Marathon" and "Manhattan Project," while offering an energetic, tongue-in-cheeck hit single in "The Big Money." In an album that rewards patience (repeated listens are the key), the most gripping moments are saved for last, with the beautifully eerie textures of "Mystic Rhythms," a song that was later used as a concert drum solo showcase for Peart. Eduardo Rivadavia
Tracklist :
1    The Big Money    5:37
2    Grand Designs    5:06
3    Manhattan Project    5:05
4    Marathon    6:11
5    Territories    6:20
6    Middletown Dreams    5:15
7    Emotion Detector    5:11
8    Mystic Rhythms    5:55
Credits :
Arranged By [Choir], Conductor [Choir] – Andrew Jackman
Arranged By [Strings], Conductor [Strings] – Anne Dudley
Bass, Synthesizer, Synthesizer [Bass Pedals], Vocals – Geddy Lee
Drums, Percussion, Percussion [Electronic] – Neil Peart
Guitar [Electric], Acoustic Guitar – Alex Lifeson
Keyboards [Additional] – Andy Richards
Programmed By [Synthesizer programming] – Andy Richards, Jim Burgess

RUSH — Hold Your Fire (1987-2009) RM | SHM-CD | Serie Rush デビュー35 周年記念紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 12 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Hold Your Fire is an album in the purest sense; infinitely greater than the sum of its parts, it gradually draws in the listener by slowly revealing its nuances and secrets. While the use of keyboards is still overwhelming at times, Geddy Lee employs lush textures which, when coupled with a greater rhythmic and melodic presence from guitarist Alex Lifeson, results in a far warmer sound than in recent efforts. Of course, drummer Neil Peart is as inventive and exciting as ever, while his lyrics focus on the various elements (earth, air, water, fire) for much of the album. Opener "Force Ten" is the band's most immediate number in years, and other early favorites such as "Time Stand Still" and "Turn the Page" soon give way to the darker mysteries of "Prime Mover" and "Tai Shan." The multifaceted "Lock and Key" is quintessential Rush, and sets the stage for the album's climax with the sheer beauty of "Mission." As was the case with 1976's 2112 and 1981's Moving Pictures, Rush always seem to produce some of their best work at the end of each four-album cycle, and Hold Your Fire is no exception. Eduardo Rivadavia
Tracklist :
1    Force Ten    4:31
2    Time Stand Still    5:08
3    Open Secrets    5:37
4    Second Nature    4:36
5    Prime Mover    5:18
6    Lock And Key    5:09
7    Mission    5:15
8    Turn The Page    4:55
9    Tai Shan    4:15
10    High Water    5:33
Credits :
Brass Band – The Williams Fairey Brass Band
Brass Band, Conductor, Arranged By – Andrew Jackman
Drums, Lyrics By – Neil Peart
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Music By, Engineer [assistant] – Alex Lifeson
Keyboards [additional] – Andy Richards
Keyboards, Bass, Synthesizer, Music By, Vocals – Geddy Lee
Strings, Arranged By, Conductor – Steve Margoshes
Vocals [additional] – Aimee Mann

RUSH = ラッシュ – Presto = プレスト(1989-2013) RM | SHM-CD | Serie Rush Atlantic Years 紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 13 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Throughout their career, Rush have always been a band that you could count on to push the boundaries of what rock was capable of, and their discography contains a laundry list of ambitious albums that helped to bring prog to a wider audience. Having said that, Presto is not one of those albums. On this return to a more guitar-oriented sound after the synth period that dominated the '80s, the bandmembers emerge from the electronic fog and try to reorient themselves to once again working with their more traditional setup. While none of the songs here are out-and-out terrible, listening to the album definitely gives you the sense that things just aren't quite clicking, as if the band is just a little bit rusty after stepping away from this kind of songwriting for nearly a decade. This makes Presto a perfectly workmanlike album from a band that made a name for itself with its creativity, containing all the ingredients of a Rush album minus the sense of ambition and fun that ran through the veins of the group's earlier work. And though this isn't an album you necessarily need to run from, a brisk walk to their work from the '70s is advisable. Gregory Heaney
Tracklist :
1    Show Don't Tell = ショウ・ドント・テル    5:01
2    Chain Lightning = チェイン・ライトニング    4:33
3    The Pass = ザ・パス    4:51
4    War Paint = ウォー・ペイント    5:25
5    Scars = スカーズ    4:07
6    Presto = プレスト    5:46
7    Superconductor = スーパーコンダクター    4:47
8    Anagram (For Mongo) = アナグラム (フォー・モンゴ)    4:00
9    Red Tide = レッド・タイド    4:30
10    Hand Over Fist = ハンド・オーヴァー・フィスト    4:11
11    Available Light = アヴェイラブル・ライト    5:02
Credits :
Bass Guitar, Vocals, Synthesizer [Synthesizer] – Geddy Lee
Drums, Percussion [Electric] – Neil Peart
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar – Alex Lifeson
Arranged By [Arrangements] – Rupert Hine, Rush
Backing Vocals [Additional] – Rupert Hine
Keyboards [Additional] – Jason Sniderman, Rupert Hine

RUSH = ラッシュ – Roll The Bones = ロール・ザ・ボーンズ (1991-2013) RM | SHM-CD | Serie Rush Atlantic Years 紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 14 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless|

From a lyrical perspective, 1991's Roll the Bones is quite possibly Rush's darkest album (most of the songs deal with death in no uncertain terms), but from a musical point of view, the record treads territory (highbrow melodic hard rock) similar to its recent predecessors, with only a few surprises thrown in for good measure. These include an amusing rap section in the middle of the title track, a welcome return to instrumentals with "Where's my Thing?," and one of the band's finest songs of the '90s in the gutsy "Dreamline." "Neurotica" is another highlight which lives up to its title, and though their negative subject matter can feel stifling at times, fine tracks like "Bravado," "The Big Wheel," and "Heresy" feature wonderful melodies and arrangements. Eduardo Rivadavia
Tracklist :
1    Dreamline = ドリームライン    4:37
2    Bravado = ブラヴァード    4:36
3    Roll The Bones = ロール・ザ・ボーンズ    5:30
4    Face Up = フェイス・アップ    3:54
5    Where's My Thing? (Part IV, "Gangster Of Boats" Trilogy) = ホエア・イズ・マイ・シング?    3:50
6    The Big Wheel = ザ・ビッグ・ウィール    5:13
7    Heresy = ヘラシー    5:25
8    Ghost Of A Chance = ゴースト・オブ・ア・チャンス    5:19
9    Neurotica = ニューロティカ    4:40
10    You Bet Your Life = ユー・ベット・ユア・ライフ    5:01
Credits :
Bass Guitar, Vocals, Synthesizer – Geddy Lee
Drums, Cymbal [Cymbals] – Neil Peart
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Backing Vocals – Alex Lifeson

RUSH = ラッシュ – Counterparts = カウンターパーツ (1993-2013) RM | SHM-CD | Serie Rush Atlantic Years 紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 15 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless |

By 1993, alternative rock had arrived in a big way, and surprisingly, Canadian veterans Rush were game, releasing their most honest and organic rock & roll record in over a decade with Counterparts. Opener "Animate" is straightforward enough, but doesn't even hint at the guitar ferocity and lyrical angst of "Stick it Out," a song which undoubtedly polarizes Rush fans to this day. Intellectual melodic rockers like "Cut to the Chase," "At the Speed of Love," and "Everyday Glory" are also present (and less shocking), but diversity continues to rule the day with Geddy Lee's bass taking charge on the amazingly somber "Double Agent" and the giddy instrumental "Leave That Thing Alone." Pure hard rock resurfaces on "Cold Fire," but it is the largely acoustic "Nobody's Hero" which provides the album's most gripping moment with an impassioned plea for HIV consciousness and understanding. Eduardo Rivadavia
Tracklist :
1    Animate = アニメイト    6:03
2    Stick It Out = スティック・イット・アウト    4:31
3    Cut To The Chase = カット・トゥ・ザ・チェイス    4:49
4    Nobody's Hero = ノーバディーズ・ヒーロー 4:55
Arranged By [Orchestration], Conductor [Orchestration] – Michael Kamen
5    Between Sun & Moon = ビトウィーン・サン・アンド・ムーン    4:38
6    Alien Shore = エイリアン・ショアー    5:48
7    The Speed Of Love = スピード・オブ・ラヴ    5:03
8    Double Agent = ダブル・エージェント    4:53
9    Leave That Thing Alone = リーヴ・ザット・シング・アローン    4:06
10    Cold Fire = コールド・ファイヤー    4:27
11    Everyday Glory = エヴリデイ・グローリー    5:11
Credits :
Bass Guitar, Vocals, Synthesizer [Synthesizers] – Geddy Lee
Drums, Cymbal [Cymbals], Percussion [Electronic] – Neil Peart
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar – Alex Lifeson

RUSH = ラッシュ— Test For Echo = テスト・フォー・エコー (1996-2013) SHM-CD | Serie Rush Atlantic Years 紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 16 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

After flirting (albeit mildly) with alternative rock on Counterparts, Rush returns to classic progressive rock on Test for Echo. Cutting back many of the AOR production flourishes that hampered most of their late-'80s and early-'90s releases, the band concentrates on the sounds and styles that made albums like Moving Pictures huge successes in the late '70s and early '80s. Test for Echo is all instrumental gymnastics and convoluted song structures, all of which demonstrate each member's skills. And the key to the album is the individual performances, since each song isn't particularly memorable as a song, only as a way to showcase the solos. With Rush, such a tactic isn't necessarily a bad thing, since they have always been better at playing than writing, and they have rarely played better in the past ten years than they have on Test for Echo. Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Tracklist :
1    Test For Echo = テスト・フォー・エコー    5:56
2    Driven = ドリヴン    4:27
3    Half The World = ハーフ・ザ・ワールド    3:43
4    The Color Of Right = カラー・オブ・ライト    4:49
5    Time And Motion = タイム・アンド・モーション    5:01
6    Totem = トーテム    4:59
7    Dog Years = ドッグ・イヤーズ    4:55
8    Virtuality = ヴァーチュアリティー    5:44
9    Resist = リジスト    4:23
10    Limbo = リンボ    5:29
11    Carve Away The Stone = カーヴ・アウェイ・ザ・ストーン    4:08
Credits :
Bass Guitar, Vocals, Synthesizer [Synthesizers] – Geddy Lee
Drums, Cymbal [Cymbals], Dulcimer [Hammer] – Neil Peart
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Mandola – Alex Lifeson

RUSH = ラッシュ — Vapor Trails Remixed = ヴェイパー・トレイルズ (2002-2013) SHM-CD | Serie Rush Atlantic Years 紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 17 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

In 2002, after a six-year layoff from the recording studio, Canadian prog rock heroes Rush returned with the album Vapor Trails, the group's first album of the new millennium, and a return to the business of making music after drummer Neil Peart struggled with the death of his wife and daughter. While the group's loyal fans embraced this new batch of songs, not everyone was happy with the way the album sounded -- including the members of Rush. Bassist Geddy Lee told a reporter in 2013, "We overcooked it...the mixes were really loud and brash. The mastering job was harsh and distorted." When Rush released the compilation Retrospective, Vol. 3 in 2009, they included newly remixed versions of two tracks from Vapor Trails, "Earthshine" and "One Little Victory." The group and their fans were pleased with the sound of the new mixes, and Rush invited producer David Bottrill to give the full album a new mix that would correct the harsh, compressed tone of the 2002 release. Presented with Rush's full approval, Vapor Trails: Remixed features the same songs and same sequence as the original album, but with a sound that better suits the group's original intentions. "(David Bottrill) understood what it should sound like," Lee said, "so I'm very pleased with the end result. I think he's finally brought some completion and some justice to some of those songs we'd put so much of our heart and soul into." Mark Deming
Tracklist :
1    One Little Victory = ワン・リトル・ヴィクトリー    5:09
2    Ceiling Unlimited = シーリング・アンリミテッド    5:28
3    Ghost Rider = ゴースト・ライダー    5:41
4    Peaceable Kingdom = ピーサブル・キングダム    5:24
5    The Stars Look Down = スターズ・ルック・ダウン    4:28
6    How It Is = ハウ・イット・イズ    4:05
7    Vapor Trail = ヴェイパー・トレイル    4:58
8    Secret Touch = シークレット・タッチ    6:35
9    Earthshine = アースシャイン    5:38
10    Sweet Miracle = スウィート・ミラクル    3:41
11    Nocturne = ノクターン    4:49
12    Freeze (Part IV Of "Fear") = フリーズ(パート4・オブ "フィアー")    6:21
13    Out Of The Cradle = アウト・オブ・ザ・クレイドル    5:04
Credits :
Bass Guitar, Vocals – Geddy Lee
Drums, Cymbal [Cymbals] – Neil Peart
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Mandola – Alex Lifeson

RUSH = ラッシュ – Feedback = フィードバック(2004-2013) EP | SHM-CD | Serie Rush Atlantic Years 紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 18 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

This is a riot! Rather than put out some windy and dreary box set to celebrate their 30th anniversary, Canada's seminal power prog band and one of big rock's most enduring units turns the tables and lays out hot and heavy covers of eight classics from the annals of rock & roll history. The track list is amazing, and the cool thing is that the arrangements of these nuggets are not all ripped up and mutated, either. "Summertime Blues" may begin as a nod to Jimi Hendrix's "Foxy Lady," but it comes roaring back as an acknowledged homage to the Who's Live at Leeds version. The version of Stephen Stills' "For What It's Worth" begins as a slippery little acoustic tune but quickly turns into a heavy, droning rock orgy. "The Seeker" goes for the jugular in the same way that the Who's did; Geddy's sneer has a little less contempt than Daltrey's but it's just as hungry and desperate. "Heart Full of Soul" is pure psychedelic Yardbirds elegance with a bunch of space and dimension added to redeem the track for the 21st century. The backmasked guitars on "Mr. Soul" and Neil Peart's deliberate mix of thud and snap give the cut a solid footing for Alex Lifeson to unhurriedly coax Lee's vocal along the lyric. The ringing of Lifeson's chords that barely hold this side of overblown feedback is masterful in keeping the original spirit of the song while future-dating its sonics. Rush's read of "Seven and Seven Is" is much faster that Love's original, but its barely-on-the-rails tempo is welcome in lieu of the fact that these guys are all in their fifties and play like they're kids. "Shapes of Things to Come" is fun, and a real attempt to provide nuance to a great song, especially the cross-channel fading in the guitar mix. But on "Crossroads," the other bookend of this EP, Rush give a romper-stomper wailing performance of Cream's arrangement of Robert Johnson's seminal blues tune. Lifeson leaves Eric what's-his-name in the dust. Lee may not be the vocalist that Jack Bruce is but he kicks his ass as a bass player, and his moment of glory in this cut tears the roof off the song. None of these tunes are done with an ounce of camp. What the listener encounters is a Rush that has never ever been heard before: they indulge in the hero-worship and dream roots of the garage band that eventually became Rush, and they simultaneously search for the young garage band whose members never dreamed they'd be playing these tunes 30 years later as Rush. Anyone who thinks that there is no life left in the classics of the genre needs to hear this. That something this wild and freewheeling could only be pulled off by a band with 30 years experience is not only worth noting, but celebrating.
-> This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa' <-
Tracklist :
1    Summertime Blues = サマータイム・ブルース 3:53
Written-By – Cochran, Capehart
2    Heart Full Of Soul = ハートせつなく 2:53
Written-By – Gouldman
3    For What It's Worth = フォー・ホワット 3:31
Written-By – Stills
4    The Seeker = シーカー 3:27
Written-By – Townshend
5    Mr. Soul = ミスター・ソウル 3:51
Written-By – Young
6    Seven And Seven Is = セヴン・アンド・セヴン・イズ 2:53
Written-By – Lee
7    Shapes Of Things = シェイプス・オブ・シングス 3:16
Written-By – McCarty, Relf, Samwell-Smith
8    Crossroads = クロスロード 3:27
Written-By – Johnson
Credits :
Bass Guitar, Vocals – Geddy Lee
Drums, Cymbal [Cymbals] – Neil Peart
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Mandola – Alex Lifeson

RUSH = ラッシュ — Snakes & Arrows = スネークス&アローズ (2007-2013) SHM-CD | Serie Rush Atlantic Years 紙ジャケットSHM-CDコレクション – 19 | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

When Rush issued Vapor Trails in 2002, they revealed that -- even after Neil Peart's personal tragedies in the 1990s had cast the group's future in doubt -- they were back with a vengeance. The sound was hard-hitting, direct, and extremely focused. Lyrically, Peart went right after the subject matter he was dealing with -- and it was in the aftermath of 9/11 as well, which couldn't help but influence his lyric writing. In 2004 the band issued a covers EP that was in one way a toss-off, but in another a riotous act of freewheeling joy that offered a side of the band no one had heard for 30 years. There were a couple of live offerings and a 30th anniversary project as well that kept fans happy perhaps, but broke -- though Rush in Rio was the kind of live album every band hopes to record. Snakes & Arrows represents the band's 18th studio album. Produced by Nick Raskulinecz (Foo Fighters, Velvet Revolver, Superdrag), the record is another heavy guitar, bass, and drums...drums...and more drums record. The title came -- unconsciously according to Peart -- from a centuries-old Buddhist game of the same name about karma, and also from a play on the words of the children's game Chutes and Ladders. Its subject matter is heavy duty: faith and war. From the opening track (and first single), acoustic and electric guitars, bass hum, and Peart's crash-and-thrum urgency in the almighty riff are all present. When Geddy Lee opens his mouth, you know you are in for a ride: "Pariah dogs and wandering madmen/Barking at strangers and speaking in tongues/The ebb and flow of tidal fortune/Electrical charges are charging up the young/It's a far cry from the world we thought we'd inherit/It's a far cry from the way we thought we'd share it...." At the same time, inside the frame of the refrain, Lee refuses to be conquered in the face of chaos: "One day I feel like I'm ahead of the wheel/And the next it's rolling over me/I can get back on/I can get back on." Alex Lifeson's guitars swell and Peart's crash cymbals ride the riff and push Lee to sing above the wailing fray. Great beginning.

"Armor and Sword" contains an instrumental surprise. After an initial ride-cymbal clash, the guitar and bassline sound exactly like King Crimson playing something from Red or Larks' Tongues in Aspic. The theme is repeated on an acoustic guitar before Lee begins singing about the shadowy side of human nature brought on by the many times children are scarred in development. The boom and crackle of electric guitars and bass are all there, but so is that sense of melody that Rush have trademarked as Lee states, "...No one gets to their heaven without a fight/We hold beliefs as a consolation/A way to take us out of ourselves...." There is no screed for or against religion per se, but a stake in the claim of hope and faith as absolutely necessary to accomplish anything, hence the refrain. Peart beautifully articulates the dark side of life's undersurface; he has been writing the best lyrics of his entire career on the band's last two studio records -- only two in the last ten years. The dynamic works against the melody and Lifeson's brief but screaming solo is a fine cap on it. "Workin' Them Angels" blends the acoustic against the electrics gorgeously, and Lee sings counterpoint to the guitars. "The Larger Bowl" is one of those Rush tunes that builds and builds both lyrically and musically, beginning with only Lee's voice and Lifeson's acoustic guitar. Its shift-and-knot rhythms and spatial dynamics offer the impression -- as does the rest of the album -- that the bandmembers are playing in the same room at the same time (it happened to a lesser degree on Vapor Trails, but here the impression is constant). The sounds -- both hard and soft -- blend together wonderfully. The live feel of the record with its sonic washes and overdubbed guitars and vocals creates near chaos without loss of control. It's like teetering on the edge of an abyss with one eye on both sides of it. Song by song, the notions of tension build, taking the listener to a place where hope and faith are challenged continually, not only in the face of the entire world, but in one's personal relationships -- check "Spindrift." Echoes of T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land, Robert Frost, Matthew Arnold, and The Odyssey are glanced upon, as is The Dhammapada in the Buddhist scriptures -- with more of a thematic than referential purpose.

Amid all this seriousness, there is a bit of humor. The instrumental track "Malignant Narcissism" references a line in the comedic film Team America: World Police from Matt Stone and Trey Parker of South Park fame. It comes from a line in the film that reveals how terrorists think. It's one of three absolutely stunning instrumentals; another is "The Main Monkey Business," which sounds like the closest Rush have gotten to jamming in the studio in over 20 years. Think of the intensity of 2112 with the musicianship of Vapor Trails, and you begin to get a picture: screaming guitars, deep bass thrum, soaring keyboards, and all those pop-and-boom drums from Peart's massive kit. "The Way the Wind Blows" is Rush taking on the blues in massive metallic style, and it feels more like Cream in the intro. Lee's vocal drives deep inside the lyric -- it's tense, paranoid, yet revelatory. It's about the perverse magnetism of religion and war, and how both are seemingly designed to be cause and effect: fanatical religiosity leads to war. There are different theories on this, but Peart distills them well, as if he's read (but not necessarily completely understood) René Girard's seminal work Violence and the Sacred. The album changes pace a bit with the instrumental "Hope," a largely 12-string acoustic guitar piece played off a medieval theme by Lifeson. "Faithless" is anything but. It's one of those Rush tracks where counterpoint vocals against the guitars and basslines create that unique welling of sound that occurs when the band is at its peak on-stage. The set ends with "We Hold On," a track that expresses the sum total of all the struggles life offers and holds. Here Eliot the poet is quoted directly at the end of the third verse. It's anthemic, with backmasked guitars, Peart playing actual breaks, and Lee's bass holding the chaos together with a constant pulsing throb, guiding the various knotty musical changes back to the center of the verse and refrain, which is the place where the cut just explodes in sonic fury. Snakes & Arrows is one of the tightest conceptual records the band has ever released. Musically, it is as strong as their very best material, without a lapse in texture, composition, production, musicianship, or sheer rock intensity. There are real heart and fire in this album. It was well worth waiting for
-> This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa' <-
Tracklist :
1    Far Cry 5:18
Alex Lifeson
2    Armor and Sword 6:36
Alex Lifeson
3    Workin' Them Angels 4:46
Alex Lifeson
4    The Larger Bowl 4:07
Alex Lifeson
5    Spindrift 5:23
Alex Lifeson
6    The Main Monkey Business 6:01
Alex Lifeson
7    The Way the Wind Blows 6:28
Alex Lifeson
8   Hope 2:02
Alex Lifeson
9    Faithless 5:31
Alex Lifeson
10    Bravest Face 5:11
Alex Lifeson
11    Good News First 5:11
Alex Lifeson
12    Malignant Narcissism 2:16
Alex Lifeson
13    We Hold On 4:12
Alex Lifeson
Credits :
Bass Guitar, Effects [Bass Pedals], Mellotron, Vocals – Geddy Lee
Drums, Cymbal [Cymbals], Percussion [Electronic], Tambourine – Neil Peart
Electric Guitar [Six- And Twelve-String], Acoustic Guitar [Six- And Twelve-String], Mandola, Mandolin, Bouzouki – Alex Lifeson