An in-depth review of the phantasmic-ly eclectic album "2112" by the star-striking Canadian trio, Rush!
Howdy Folks! It's been a hot minute (literally a month???) since the last album review! With life and college hurling itself full-force at my feeble stature, I feel as though y'all can use another review in this time of change! The flowers are in full bloom again, days are longer (praise be, seasonal depression was KILLING me), and my playlist is changing with the times! I'm sure y'all feel a little change in the music too.
We're going to hop right back into things with a classic album by a band that really revolutionized and were really the first of their kind. That's right, we're going to talk about Rush's iconic album, 2112. The forefront of the experimental rock scene and kickstarters to prog-rock, there's no escaping Geddy Lee's iconic vocals and techniques, Alex Lifeson's killer riffs, and Neil Peart's (RIP) eclectic drumming and remarkable lyricism. This Canadian trio paved the way for so many bands after them that they essentially created a new genre within rock itself!
This level of notoriety, as well as their album 2112 being like no other, calls for a somewhat different style in reviewing. Instead of going over each song individually (which would also be kind of impossible as the first track is 20 minutes long), we'll look at the album as a whole. We're going to look at how it blends, mixes, and stands out with itself and other albums from that time.
Without further stalling, I bring to you:
Overview
The very beginning to 2112 is essentially a transformative stance on where Rush decided to head with this album. Of course, they're still experimental in their nature which is truly characteristic of them, but the sound goes from folklore-rock fantasy to straight up sci-fi. However, what made this album more special than just a change in theme or storytelling is that this album was detrimental to the very existence of the trio themselves. The two albums that are the predecessors of 2112, Fly by Nighy and Caress of Steel, really did not do well commercially.
Their choices when making the two pieces were innately risky, as their song-writing and composition were seen as too unusual at the time, the terms "prog-rock" and "experimental rock" still in the stage of conception. Bands like Led Zeppelin definitely did have the upper hand with eclectic lyricism that delved into the fantastical, but that jump into the unknown was really ever present in singles or one of the longer tracks on a given album. Rush's jump was the entire concept of their craft, which hurt them short term but benefitted them long term.
We see this in the starting track that is 20 minutes in duration (hefty, I know). It's more so a compilation of separate tracks that create a story, as discussed before, but the first 3-8 minutes are what I believe honed the identity of Rush and truly put their name on the map. My personal favorites from this track, Overture and The Temples of Syrinx, are the hooks that draw in listeners to sit down and digest. Whether you're listening to the album chronologically or out of order, the space age-ness of this album is what really sets and establishes this Canadian trio as their own entity. A Passage To Bangkok is another must-listen from this album. Highlighting Rush's discography and overall achievements. I believe that this radio-hit (despite the obvious implications of what this song is actually about) is what saved Rush from crumbling apart and helped them jump from potentially formative to downright influential.
I feel as though I have been blabbing on and on about the craftsmanship of 2112 without actually going into depth what makes this album so alluring to all listeners. If you're listening to Side A or Side B, I will have to say that this album is one that you really have to sit down and ~listen~ to truly appreciate the art of it. I feel as though Rush truly upped the ante on the storytelling after being pressured by their label to release what would've been a gaudy, uber-commercially-pleasing piece (now that would've been the final nail in the coffin if they didn't listen to their guts). Tales of prolific wanderers seeking the great unknown in an expansive universe, falling through the grasps of security and safety, and then ultimately descending into galactic madness is truly euphoric. If you want a track that is truly going to take your breath away, I highly recommend giving The Twilight Zone your full attention.
On the note of craftsmanship, I truly have to applaud Alex Lifeson's work on this particular album. While you hear many artists from the 70s play killer riffs and solos on various albums, you can't really hear the soul in it or how it's meant to support the song itself. They're merely there as their own separate entity. As far as effective composition that's meant to strike a listener, you only ever see "pizzazz" from live performances, maybe the occasional track on a more experimental album in the later years of the decade.
This is where Lifeson flips the game on its head. His composition is not only structured in a way that's a missing puzzle-piece to each song, but it's also free-flowing in the sense that he does anything (and everything) on each track. The best way I can describe this style is non-declarative episodic (oh geez, here comes the inner Psych student). *Insert rolling eyes here*. For those who aren't too familiar with memory and psychology: a non-declarative episodic memory is a memory that cannot really be described in words, but rather in doing (non-declarative) and it's an experience rather than straight up factual shenanigans (episodic). Unless you're actively listening and intently analyzing Lifeson's parts on 2112 while you're reading this, you're simply just not going to get it. I promise I'm not pulling nonsense out of my ass.
Overall Rating: 10/10
For someone who is overly-critical on the ways of music, especially prog-rock, this album is completely and utterly worthy of a full rating. Why you may ask? You not only have to look at the work itself, but also the events surrounding that. This level of synchrony in astute story-telling paired with phenomenal composition would make you think that Rush had nothing to lose, that this was done in the confines of a reflective state when in all actuality, this was all written with authenticity and ~fear~. Picture a tour that's not doing great in ticket sales, green rooms and tour buses in which members had maybe 20 minutes max to be with themselves to write, and outside pressure from their label to sell out or their dreams would be no more. This is the album that shaped an entire subgenre that inspired so many other bands in their infancy!
Rush. Did. That. Listen to 2112. Digest it. Embody it. Learn it. Then, you will understand the high rating.
This is 100% Blasphemuse! approved.
コメント