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ByDtlPW Fri£ke album, the cheering and applause seem to shake the Forum to its foundation. And by the end of the MONTREAL lengthy encore, "La Villa Strangia­ here are two schools of to," the audience looks almost as thought on the Canadian exhausted as the musicians. power trio Rush-for and But one fan's meat is another against. Tonight, at the man's poison. In the next morn­ massive Montreal For­ ing'S' Montreal Gazette, reviewer um,Rush are playing toyet another John Griffin roasted the group sold-out house and the lines are mercilessly: singer Geddy Lee­ clearly drawn. whose banshee wail could pass the Taking the affirmative position Memorex test - "sounds like a are 14,000 French-Canadian fans, guinea pig with an amphetamine many of them wearing Rush T­ habit"; axeman Alex Lifeson, a shirts and scruffy denim jackets master of high-volume licks, "is with the band's logo stitched ordinary at best"; and Neil Peart's across the back. They are vig­ heady philosophical lyrics are orously pumping the sweaty, summarily dismissed as "cosmic." smoky air with their fists and yell­ Griffm signs offwith one last slap, ing themselves hoarse as guitarist describing Rush as "one of the Alex Lifeson, drummer Neil Peart, most tedious rock bands working and bassist-singer Geddy Lee roar the arena circuit today." The fans through a two-hour set packed at that concert must have found it high-school buddy Lifeson ­ racing across the Quebec-Ontario Two out0/ three: RuJbJAlex with tracks from nine of the hard to believe this guy was at the whose blond, angelic features border on the way to that night's Li/e.ron (left), GWiJy Lee group's ten Mercury albums-in­ same show. make him look like Botticelli's idea gig in Ottawa, Lee shrugs his cluding their latest best seller, ofa rock star-founded Rush, Lee shoulders. "I saw the headline MoYing Pictures. When Lee an­ eah, I saw that review:' Geddy has seen a lot more like it. Sitting in [RUSH: POMP-ROCK TRIO HOT ON contrast to his bloodcurdling sing­ nounces that the band is recording Lee sneers in disgust. In the the back seat ofNeil Peart's black TEDIUM]and threw it away;' he con­ ing. "1 didn't have to read it to the show for an upcoming live Ythirteen years since he and Mercedes, which the drummer is tinues in a near whisper, a marked know what it said. [Cont. on 58] M U SI C

radio stations ignored them, the Canada. Later that year, though, band took their cause directly to the album began getting consider­ the people, touring America with a able airplay m Midwest heavy­ Rush vengeance and often playing as metal capitals like Cleveland and many as 200 concerts a year. Detroit, and Mercury Records [Conto from 55] Hey, the reviews "At our heaviest," figures Lee, signed Rush in the U.S. we got in Toronto [their home­ "we were touring seven months of Rush's first American tour al­ town] last week were the first fa­ the year and recording two most ended before it began when vorable ones we'd ever gotten months. We'd have maybe a total of John Rutsey quit after a falling out there." Bad reviews have been a a month off-andnever atone time. with Lee and Lifeson. Neil Peart, way of life for Rush since Lee and It was hard, butwe felt we had to do another Toronto native who had Lifeson, both twenty-seven, and that because we weren't getting previously tried his luck as a drum­ Peart, 28, first started touring exposure any other way. Besides, mer in England, stepped in at the America in 1974, hot on the heels we enjoyed playing, and what bet­ eleventh hour, and Rush hit the of their Led Zep-alike debut, ter way to learn your craft - to touring trail with the enthusiasm of Rush. Now, despite the longstand­ refine what you're doing-than to kids given the run of a candy ing scorn ofmany critics, as well as do it?" store. radio station program directors As musicians, Lee and Lifeson "The strategy was, 'There's a who deemed the group's brand of have done all their growing up in gig. We'll go play it,'" says Lee. "If progressive aggro-rock unfit for public. They first met in ninth you look at our routing plans for airplay, Rush are finally enjoying grade and soon became veterans of those first four years, it was totally the fruits of seven years' labor on the local basement-band scene. nonsensical. One time we went the road. Last year's Permanent Together with a friend of Nex', from Gainesville, Florida, straight Waves cracked the Top Five and drummer John Rutsey, they cut up to Nlentown, Pennsylvania." even sired the band's first major hit their teeth at high-school parties "We went everywhere we single, "The Spirit of Radio." and church dances with a reper­ could," says Dannie1s. "I was But the big payoff is Moving toire heavy on CreatT), Hendrix always more concerned with the Pictures, which peaked at Number and Led Zeppelin covers. In the cities we hadn't played than the Three barely a month after its re­ early Seventies, the drinking age in ones we had. My philosophy was, if lease, aced out of the top spot only Ontario was lowered from twenty­ you can drive to it, do it. It was the by REO Speedwagon's Hi Infideli­ one to eighteen, enabling Rush to drive-till-you-die philosophy." ty and Styx' Paradise Theatre. Al­ hit the more lucrative bar and club And Rush did just that. Lifeson ready gold and certain to go plati­ circuit in and around Toronto. remembers renting a car in Toron­ num, the album has also set off a "That was really the point where to on the pretense of driving it up chain reaction: older albums like we became professional," says Li­ north for a few gigs. Instead, the 2112 and the live All the Wlrld's a feson, "in the sense that we were all band took it to the States for sever­ Stage have gone platinum in its dedicated to doing that and only al weeks ofshows opening for Kiss wake. Rush has now sold more than that." and Aerosmith. "We brought the 10 million records worldwide. Dedication, of course, was not car back with 11,000 miles on it. It Compared to earlier Rush epics enough to make it in Canada. "It didn't have any hubcaps left, the like 2112,A Farewell to Kings and was ridiculous," Lee grins, recall­ radio was smashed, the mirror was Hemispheres, with their, twenty­ ing some ofthe problems Rush ran gone. It was ruined. They were minute concept pieces and serpen­ into. "We played a pub night at a quite surprised." tine rhythm changes, both Perma­ local college, and they kept telling The pressures ofconstant tour­ nent ~ves and Moving Pictures are us, 'Don't play too loud, we can't ing, overwhelmingly negative re­ paragons ofheavy-metal commer­ hear the beer orders.''' At one gig views and no airplay, and the un­ ciality. Five of Moving Pictures' in Oakville, Ontario, they were spectacular sales of their third Lp, seven songs clock in at under five fired after only half a set when Caress ofSteel, had taken their toll. minutes; the rougher edges have neighbors complained about the "No one could believe it was going been shaved offLee's voice; and on noise. The band's awesome volume so badly," says Lee. "Then we real­ one number, "Vital Signs," the (Lee first developed his Robert ized how stupid we were. Because band even takes a shot at a Police­ Plant-like screech simply so he ofall these people putting pressure style reggae shuffle. could be heard over the instru­ on us, we were looking at ourselves "The difference," Lee explains, ments) and their heavy-metal lean­ through their eyes. From then on, "is in the organization ofthe music. ings won them few friends outside we knew exactly what our direction We learned a lot about composi­ the province. "All the years we were was going to be, and we were deter­ tion and arrangement in making playing bars and schools, we never mined to have success strictly on Hemispheres. Permanen't Waves and left Ontario," Lee says. "We our own terms." Moving Pictures are the result of couldn't even get a club tour of Rush have had their way ever application, of saying, 'Okay, we western Canada. NI ofour prehis­ since, although at no small cost. know we can do this and we learned tory took place in Ontario. We They tour with more than all this. Now let's see if we can couldn't get gigs anywhere else." $600,000 worth ofstage, sound and make a song out of it that'll really They couldn't get a record deal, lighting gear in a caravan of four have a lot happening in it.' It's not, either. The band's manager, Ray trucks, two buses and a camper. just that the songs are four minutes Danniels-who got his start book­ Lifeson says last year's Permanent long so they can get on the radio. ing school dances for Rush when ~ves tour was the first time the It's the quality of those four min­ he was sixteen-released their self­ band came off the road with a utes." titled debut album in 1974 on the profit. More recently, Rush had to But the real secret of Rush's group's own Moon label after' it foot the bill for the cover art for success is'that they simply elimi­ had been turned down twice by Moving Pictures-estimated by de­ nated the middlemen. When FM every major record company in signer' Hugh Syme at $9500- because, according to Ray Dan­ they make the decision on what's niels, their record company re­ valid and what isn't. I think that's fused to pay the full cost. horseshit." "We are not excessive," insists So, apparently, do the fans, who Neil Peart. "Ifsomething has our have made Rush and fellow heavy­ name on it, we try to make it as metal whipping boys REO Speed­ good as we can. We always think of wagon, Styx and ACiDC the the ideal Rush fan. When I'm writ­ rulers of the charts. And, as Ray ing lyrics or when I'm playing on­ Danniels points out, "when it came stage, this ideal fan is watching to conc.ert reviews, critics almost every move I make to see ifI make always made the mistake of also a mistake or ifsomething is not as criticizing the audience. If an good as it should be. You just can't eighteen-year-old reads a review escape that judgment." that says, 'Rush were puke, they were shit, they were garbage, they s Peart pulls his Mercedes be­ have no talent' and ends with some­ hind the Ottawa Civic Center, thing like, 'The audiences were Awhere a sea ofdenim and Rush foolish enough to buy it,' that per­ insignias is forming almost three sonthinks, 'Yeah? Well, fuck you.' hours before the doors will open, And that's what's saved us in most Geddy Lee tries to fmd a few kind cases." words for rock critics. "We know we're doing well "You'd have to be a fool to ig­ when we can sit back and say, nore constructive criticism," he 'That's a good record; the audi­ says. "We've changed things in our ence applauds for it, they like it,'" music that were pointed out to us concludes Lee as he heads for the some years ago, things about feel arena's dressing room. "To make or a tendency to sometimes sound records people enjoy and that we forced. But a lot of critics believe enjoy playing-that's our measure they are the resident experts and ofsuccess." Q