Writing profound lyrics with amazing melodies isn't anything new for Rush, yet S&A has a harder edge, as "The Main Monkey Business" will prove. One of three instrumentals, it keeps Rush at that fine edge their fans have come to adore. "Hope" is guitar only and was composed and performed by Lerxst Lifeson (that's what it said in the liner notes). My hats off to Lerxst for this composition is beautiful and brings my mind back to trips into the Arizona desert, as Lerxst's guitar leads the way.
This CD has brought me back into the Rush fold, and even if the band moves into another direction with the next album, this one is a testament to a band that isn't afraid of making rock music with a point. "Faithless" is a song that holds true to that statement. "I don't have faith in faith/ I don't believe in belief./ You can call me faithless/ But I still cling to hope/ And I believe in love/ And that's faith enough for me." These men will stand behind what they believe in and aren't scared of some old crone who challenges others while skirting around the faults of those she supports.
I have to say that Counterparts, Test for Echo, and Vapor Trails left me wondering if Rush was still the same band I was looking for. I know bands change over time, that's a given, they have to if they want to succeed. Snakes & Arrows will go down as another change in the direction of Rush and one that will bring them a legacy of standing up for those who cannot stand up for themselves. The music is pure Rush while the words cut and sting like the lip smack of a cold winter wave. The melodies will keep you moving as the lyrics make you think, and thinking leads to change, and change is what these modern day Tom Sawyers are all about. If you get a chance to see Rush this summer, make it so. Look me up on the lawn at Irvine.
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Article comments
1 - Tom Johnson
Argh! Beat me to a review! Well, mine will be coming eventually, but I just need a little more time. A great album, nonetheless, and a great review. I've got a lot to say, too, but I'm taking some time to sort it all out. It's all jumbled up in this messy brain o' mine.
As for Vapor Trails, you really, REALLY owe it to yourself to devote some more time to that one. It is easily the most powerful, emotionally driven work they've ever done. I used to have a tough time deciding between that and Presto, but there's a special something extra in VT that puts it over the top - a combination of the times for everyone (shortly after 9/11) and events in Neil's life (loss of his wife and daughter certainly inform much of the lyrical narrative, even if not directly). Were it not for the unfortunate mix/mastering problems, it would be the perfect Rush album. As such, I accept it for its minor issues, like the rugs the Navajo Indians weave that have an intentional flaw - because if it were perfect, what else would they have to strive for in the future?
2 - Chris
After living with this disc for a few weeks, I must still admit to being disappointed in it. Too many mid-tempo songs with awkward vocal phrasing and melodies. And Neil is practically non-existent on this album. Vapor Trails was so much better in many ways.