The next thing I noticed were the vocals... lots of them. Almost always double tracked... sometimes triple tracked. Seems like all of the acoustical "space" that was once filled by synths is now filled by Geddy going "aaaa-haaaa" or "ooooo-woooo" or "heeeey-yeeeeeaaaaa" or some such ethereal hoo-haa. I'm not crazy about it, I must say.
Next thing that hit me was the bass. I must preface this by saying that I'm a bass player, so a lot of what I say here is just a reflection of my own personal style. I haven't been impressed with the direction that Geddy's bass playing has taken since Counterparts. His playing has moved from very melodic style with lots of harmonic movement to a very staccato, driving style that's still rhythmically complex, but melodically very simple. (Think "Animate") Now on Vapor Trails he's added a lot of chordal playing, and I really don't like it at all. It's just a personal preference, but I think that chords are best left to the guitarist. I think a lot of the "muddiness" that people are complaining about can be attributed to the sound of the bass on this album. I'd almost rather have the synths back!
Next up - the lyrics. I must say that I haven't absorbed the CONTENT of many of the lyrics at all yet. But I have noticed that the phrasing of the lyrics is very different from the past couple of albums. We find a little less of the abruptness and repetition that was starting to overtake Neil's lyrics. (Animate me... Flagellate me... Masturbate me... Here we go... In slow mo... Ho Ho Ho... Test for Echo...) There are some songs on this album that have vocal lines that sound like very old Rush songs, and I think that's in part due to the way that the lyrics are written... a return to writing in SENTENCES. ("A modest man from Mandrake traveled rich to the city. Period") There are so many words squeezed into "Peaceable Kingdom" it almost sounds like he's RAPPING the verses! (The Real Slim Geddy?)
And I should also add that as a scientist, I'm happy to say that "Earthshine" provides us with the best Rush-astronomy-lesson since "Cygnus X-1"!
Finally the guitar. From the few posts I've read on this newsgroup, it sounds like Alex is getting a beating here. I think it's a little unwarranted. I do agree that a few guitar solos would be nice, but apart from that I actually really enjoy hearing some nice thick distortion on a Rush album for a change. God, the opening to "Earthshine sounds like it belongs on a Tool album (ok, well... at least "A Perfect Circle") And why not? Rock on, Alex. The guy's gonna be 50 next year, let him have his fun. We all know the guy can solo, he doesn't have to prove anything anymore. If he wants to play big fat muddy chord instead, I have no problem with that. That being said, I think this album has some of the nicest jangly-arpeggio-stuff we've heard from Lifeson in a long time. (I'm thinking of the title track in particular.) And come on - who here didn't hear the intro to "How it Is" and think - Oh my God, it's "Closer to the Heart!"? How can that be bad?
Article comments
1 - Ian
Fucking Rush.
2 - od
Like the review.. Yes, it is true.. I personally like this album a lot, as they seem to change the way music changes all out. And you can tell actually.