The Canadian trio have never been a particular favourite, but some of their albums crept into that list once I explored beyond the ones I was supposed to like to discover the ones I really did.
I'm still not clear on it, so I'd better write it down. Here are My The Top 19 Rush Albums.
Generic '90s rock with someone who sounds like Geddy Lee singing over the top. Maybe some kind of side project?
Fave: Leave That Thing Alone
The inevitable and inevitably disappointing factory-settings reboot from a formerly forward-thinking band, it's like they've never taken notes through a multi-decade discography before. There may be some hidden gems once you get over the disappointment and if you're not facing the prospect of spending your day powering through the rest of the decline.
Fave: The Pass maybe, I zoned out
This is probably more rewarding if you haven't spent the weekend listening to all the good Rush albums. Some songs stood out and there are nice guitar solos, but I won't listen to it enough to get to know them. That's sure a handy reference for future me.
Fave: Dreamline
I'm not going back to confirm whether this was really the least worst of the '90s albums, but its more upbeat sound and goofy lyrics made it the smoothest ride. It sounds the most like Rush too, even if modemed-in.
Fave: Time and Motion
The same story as every album since 1989: some nice melodic parts, but not enough to justify sitting through it, now twice the length of the old albums. I hope they've got something more interesting lined up for the grand finale.
Fave: The Main Monkey Business
A grief-fuelled fresh start, that background knowledge and this being the current album when I started checking the band out no doubt sway my judgement, but it sounds modern and comes off like their most worthwhile effort since the mid-80s. It's not one I'd put on for fun, but if I do, I'll check out the remaster.
Fave: Ghost Rider
Neil Peart brings ambition and a library along to confuse everyone, resulting in a commendably diverse but messy selection with few standouts. They probably should've taken more time to process the transition from working men's band into prog act whose suites are divided into sub-movements of movements, but it's not like they wouldn't promptly get on with a classic discography. It could do with some keyboards too, dodges flying shoes.
Fave: Anthem
Proto-Rush's generic hard rock bandwagon debut is serviceable, but Led Zeppelin's better. Some indulgent solos are the only sign of things to come.
Fave: Before and After
I don't miss the bloated 'epics,' and tightening up the song lengths would prove to be a wise move, artistically as well as commercially, but they don't make the case well in this disposable placeholder. There are some nice synthscapes.
Fave: The Spirit of Radio
Even the cheesiest sci-fi prog rock concept suite is going to sound tame if you've ruined yourself with Ayreon, but even for the time, it's lacking compared to the likes of Bowie, the space rockers and The Who's down-to-Earth efforts. The other half of the album always came off like a bland apology for the excess and wouldn't be worth turning over for.
Fave: 2112, obviously
They held out for longer than expected before wimping out. This would probably be pretty disappointing if I'd been 15 in 1987, rather than a toddler, but now I've got my own toddler, I find its melodic dad rock comforting. Though like their similarly reasonable debut, it's not something I'd ever feel like putting on when I feel like listening to Rush.
Fave: Time Stands Still
The crazy, captivating instrumental does the heavy lifting here and is the only one I've sought out separately. Its self-deprecating subtitle suggests that the pompous excess of 'Cygnus X-1 Book II' (and the brainy art direction in general) was conceived with tongues in cheeks, but that doesn't make it any more fun to sit through. Listening to both 'Books' together is like when a science fiction writer spoils a strong novella by padding it out novel length.
Fave: La Villa Strangiato (An Exercise in Self-Indulgence)
Maybe not worth the wait in real time, but a classy one to bow out on, updating their classic sound with extra heaviness and going all in with a swotty Dream Theateresque concept. I didn't really pay attention to the lyrics, let alone read the tie-in novel, but kudos for putting in the effort. It's a good sign when I keep updating the favourite pick as it goes along.
Fave: The Garden
I can well imagine that sparkly synth intro sounding like a death knell to fans of the time, but I adore that shit, along with the squeaky-clean guitar tone. Any fears of the band going soft would soon be dispelled when this proved to be their least accessible release since the prog days, though I can't put my finger on why. It's in the rotation now, so maybe I'll get to the bottom of these depths or find out it was shallow all along.
Fave: Countdown
The trio stride confidently into an age of side-long epics (plus another halfie for good measure). 'The Fountain of Lamneth' would end up being the most palatable of those in its comparative restraint, but the other half's even better, and some of the best stuff they ever did.
Fave: The Necromancer
Spacey synthesiser completes the classic Rush sound, joining other, more fleeting instruments in their most experimental and diverse album since Fly By Night, and a lot more successfully. Every song's a keeper, the long ones being reined in and even the conspicious commercial centre having enough going on to be worthwhile.
Fave: Xanadu
Maybe I was freaked out by the cover or there was just too much going on to take in, but this is another I never really gave the time to appreciate that suddenly sounds incredible. The resilient synths and sing-along power choruses about corporations and nuclear anxiety make this a product of its decade to an extent that would be laughable if it wasn't still depressingly relevant, but it's a sound all of their own.
Fave: Manhattan Project
I don't think much of the first song, but skip that and the album's catchy first half and synth-soaked second are the band at their tighest. They've learned to be subtly sophisticated without showing off, though the morse code instrumental is pushing it.
Fave: Limelight
Rush was one of the later prog bands I checked out, so by that point I likely preemptively wrote off most of their post-70s material as a reflex action. It's a shame it took me so long to find this, but I've made up for lost time by listening to it probably more than any other album in the last few years. Compared to their more revered classics, it's not particularly clever, but rousing as hell.
Fave: Afterimage
