What did those of you who went think of the Houston show? I heard you had a couple dancing ladies on stage for a brief stint in Houston. Nice. I also heard the band was a little more into it at the show...likely due to the nine day break after this show before their next show. Of course, they have always liked Houston in my experience. Edit: I just read the Pavillion stage is air-conditioned. That will definitely affect how the band performs. The Smirnoff stage is not air-conditioned. The Dallas show was awesome. The crowd was big and into it. No comparison to the last couple of tours at the Smirnoff. The show occurring on a weekend probably helped. The crowd stood throughout and were into it all show. The only problem I had with it was the sound mix wasn't the best and the guitar...at times...was drowned out by the low end bass of the drums and bass guitar causing the guitar to sound muddy at times. That's a shame because everyone wants to hear Alex in perfect clarity. This seems to be going on at almost every show with people complaining about the mix. 10th row floor on Alex's side wasn't too bad. But, it's nowhere near close enough for me going forward after front row last tour. Hell of a show, though. Powerful energy throughout the show and I didn't feel any real letdowns were present. The new stuff came across very well and the crowd responded. How was your experience at the Houston show?
Wish I could've gone. I'm just not in a position to put the money into it, and get a sitter... etc. Also I wish they'd play at an indoor location. Last time I saw them was for the Signals tour. Great show.
If you haven't already, then go check out the little South Park video made for the Tom Sawyer intro over at YouTube. It's pretty funny while it lasts. Just search on South Park Rush. You may be in luck, WildSweet&Cool. There are reports that when Rush gets back from their tour dates through Europe...that they will do a smaller tour in North America. This may be early next year. I'm not clear if this will be an arena tour but I hope so. Alex said they were going to swing back around in an interview. I didn't see the Signals tour. That is when I got into them. Most of the kids at Clear Lake Intermediate School (shout out) were wearing the infamous Rush Signals long sleeve tour t-shirts the day after that show. I remember walking to school with them thinking I had to check this band out. From sixth grade up until now, I've been a huge fan.
Awesome concert. The sound was fine as far as I could tell. I could hear everything very clearly and we were on the back of the hill (near the beer stand ). I was actually surprised how good the sound was because I don't like outside concerts. Yeah, the crowd was really into it even though we were sweating our ASSES off. Good to know the stage was air conditioned. I thought they were really having fun. Geddy and Alex did a lot of jumping around and Neil was his usual serious self, save for the stick twirling. Man, I was surprised that Geddy was still able to hit those high notes! Even during the last verse of Freewill when he takes it up an octave. Drum solo was about 8 minutes. He incorporated a lot of different toys this time around. He has always been great at building his solos. He even mixed in some big band stuff at the end which, judging by the video playing behind him, was sort of a tribute to that era of music. From what I've read, he's been really trying to broaden his style of playing as of late to include different types of music that have nothing to do with Rush. He was even playing traditional grip for several songs. Very well done solo, as usual. Great set list. I gotta tell you, Surfguy... I'm really not into their new stuff besides Far Cry and Monkey Business. But they really ended it with a bang (Distant Early Warning, Spirit of Radio, Tom Sawyer, Passage to Bangkok and ending with YYZ). I haven't seen Rush live in 20 years, so this was really a treat for me. Honestly, those guys haven't missed a beat. They are so tight, it almost sounds like you're listening to the album. They've always been like that. BTW, they played WITCH HUNT!! Freakin' WITCH HUNT!! Talk about a blast from the past! Another BTW.... Neal broke his snare head. Geddy said something like "our drummer is so strong, he broke his snare head." By the time he finished saying that.... new snare head. Must be nice to have roadies.....
Yea...I heard he broke his snare drum head during "Secret Touch" from the album Vapor Trails. How did he finish the song with a broken snare drum head? lol That's cool if your not totally into the new album. I, however, dig the hell out of it. You like the two best songs on the CD so at least you dig something about it. I still think you should like "The Way the Wind Blows" (the last song they played from their new album prior to "Subdivisions") or even "Armor & Sword". Dammit. lol. I know fan position is a big factor in how the sound mix comes across. I bet the lawn (near the front center) wouldn't be a bad listening point. The best is obviously right near the mixing console. There is definitely something going on with the mix as too many people are drawing WTFs. I've been to enough shows over the years to tell when something is up. I can't remember ever having a problem with the mix prior. I can't say it was every song. I also thought there were some problems with the guitar mix in some of the new stuff at the beginning of the second set. I would really need to go to some more shows to see how pervasive the problem is. It wasn't a huge issue...just a minor annoyance. The bass, drums, and vocals were always good in the mix. Just something going on with the low end frequencies which made the guitar sound soft at times. Anyway, glad you enjoyed it. Did you get a good laugh out of the South Park video? "I'm Geddy freaking Lee dammit...I will sing the lyrics however I want!".
They played Freewill ?!?!?!? Witch Hunt?!?!?!? damn.. I missed out. LOVE THOSE SONGS! South Park video was hilarious! I honestly don't like what Neil has done with the digital drums (I've seen clips of it on Youtube). When I hear the "big band" sounds that he triggers, I lose comprehension of when he is or is not hitting the drums. When he's smackin' away the tom toms or the woodblocks, I can hear the speed and precision that he puts into it, but (for me) that gets lost with the elaborate samples he's got hooked up to the digital drums. I like his drum solo from Exit Stage Left best of all. But .. hey..what am I saying? It's Neil Friggin' Peart. He's da best! Really, they've gotta be the best group ever. Other groups have had their greatness come and go, but Rush just keeps going strong.
Awesome show and awesome play list. (Witchhunt, I still can't believe that) They are , without a doubt one of the best live show bands ever. I have seen many and Kiss ranks up there too but Rush is just so deep and precise. Kiss is one big party. I took my daughter and it was her first live concert ever, She was in awe of them and can't stop telling people how awesome they were and how they rocked the house.
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Im pissed that I missed the Rush show. Ive seen them a total of 4 times (Vapor Trails, Test for Echo (twice), and Counterparts) I really dig the new album quite a bit - just sounds fresh to me. I never really embraced Vapor Trails for some reason - just never struck a chord. Hopefully they will swing around Texas again sometime soon. I miss Rush.
Well, I just watched some youtube bootlegs of Rush's performance of Freewill and.... damn.... they sounded GREAT. I MUST go to their next show.
just ran across this last night, seems it would fit in here <a href="http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=870073">Neil Peart Animated YYZ Rush</a><br><embed src="http://lads.myspace.com/videos/vplayer.swf" flashvars="m=870073&v=2&type=video" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="430" height="346"></embed><br><a href="http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.addToProfileConfirm&videoid=870073&title=Neil Pert Animated YYZ Rush">Add to My Profile</a> | <a href="http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.home">More Videos</a>
