In a year full or reunions, anniversaries, and final tours it was easy to let Rush’s 40th anniversary slip through the cracks. Billed largely as their final tour, the Canadian prog rock Hall of Famers took on the really difficult task to cull down four decades of beloved music into one concert – which is probably why Rush does three sets a night.
Unfortunately, this means not all of your favorites or even the most commercially successful songs from the catalog make the cut. The setlist fluctuates slightly each night – A different track off of Moving Pictures seems to swap in after “Tom Sawyer,” “Distant Early Warning” for “Between the Wheels” on some nights.
Rock god status – double neck guitars
YYZ
The concept was simple: Start with their most recent album and work backwards, playing a track or two (or 4) from each record in their catalog. The execution was fantastic. Using three giant digital screens, smart lighting, pyrotechnics, and a few hilariously dressed stagehands, the multimedia experience transformed the three piece into a larger than life production. Small details in the production included throwbacks to past tours, such as the washing machines behind Geddy Lee or the removal of the large stacks of “amps” as time regressed, hearkening back to Rush’s small gig roots. All the world was indeed their stage tonight.
But how did the crowd react? Well, the “time machine” concept had been done before – by Rush, only 4 years ago. Fans definitely were on hand to hear the hits, though the occasional deep cut or rarely played tune heard bursts of cheers. The first set, which started off the show with “The Anarchist” off of 2012’s Clockwork Angels album, set a very different tone than when I saw the Time Machine tour in 2011, where “Spirit of Radio” instantly drew crowds to their feet, air guitars all around.
Drum Solo TIme
The reverse chronology of the setlist led to a slow build, where “Subdivisions” closed the first set, and the seminal “Tom Sawyer” opened set two. Concertgoers were definitely standing for more of set two, rocking out to “YYZ,” “Xanadu” (with Lifeson and Lee brandishing double neck guitar and bass), and a rendition of “Jacobs Ladder” which sounded like it was lifted directly from the Exit Stage Left live album. Set two ended with a near complete rendition of 2112, with the crowd adding their “hey’s” in appropriately.
The modern staple of any Rush concert is the hilarious video intros. Featuring a gamut of celebrities including The Trailer Park Boys and Paul Rudd and Jason Segal (of I Love You Man fame) the video segments showed the band’s less-than-serious side of their act.
Working Man
The evening ended on a high note (though given Lee’s vocal range, most of the evening were high notes) as the band played on their extended version of “Working Man” in front of a high school gym scene. Complete with disco ball, it was a nice homage to the roots of which Rush sprung from.
The biggest problem of the evening was sadly out of the band’s hands. The SAP Center as a concert venue is severely lacking in the most crucial department: the sound. In a nearly center seat in the lower bowl, sound was nothing but high end with minimal low end frequencies – and distortion on Geddy’s vocals. A poor mix amplified by a less than ideal sound system and acoustic setup left this fan disappointed if this truly is the final tour.
Unfortunately it’s looking like this is it for Rush. They are nearing the tail end of their final tour, and they are showing it a bit. There were several moments tonight where Alex flubbed on a solo or Geddy seemed to forget a lyric. Still, after 40 years (and with a sub-par sound system), these guys sound better than bands a quarter of their age.
