Rush at 40: The geeky Canadian rockers are still at the top of their game

Rush R40

Rush, the Canadian rock trio, played to a sold-out crowd of music geeks at Key Arena in Seattle last night as part of their R40 40th Anniversary Tour. Rumored to potentially be their last tour, the band delivered an electric show, with a 25 song, 3+ hour reverse chronological history of the band spanning four decades of obvious radio hits to lengthy, complex and obscure gems.

Being a Rush fan has never been particularly cool, and you either get their music or you don’t. If you are a fan, chances are you are pretty nerdy about them. Neil Peart’s erudite lyrics sometimes need a literature degree to decipher, covering topics like fantasy, sci-fi, alienation or philosophy.

The band’s musical virtuosity is still unrivaled, but seemingly requires a math degree to follow their syncopated rhythms and countless time signature changes. They are also a goofy bunch of guys that seem like they’d be more comfortable playing a game of Settlers of Catan after a show than having a raging party. They are the ultimate rock music nerds and the nerdy connection to their fans is what has kept them going for four decades.

Rush R40

There is a reason that other musicians idolize these guys. Neil Peart is arguably the best rock drummer of all time, and his drum solos from last night were tight and mind-blowing. Geddy Lee’s was “slapping the bass” like only he can, and his vocals were surprisingly strong, even if he can’t quite hit the upper octaves from his younger days. Alex Lifeson brought the precision and intensity that has influenced countless other rock guitarists, with my personal favorite being the lick in Spirit of Radio.

Despite the seriousness of their music, the band’s wry sense of humor was evident throughout the show. Rush has some celebrity uber-fans, with Paul Ruud, Jason Siegel and Peter Dinklage providing a rap track on Roll the Bones. South Park’s Cartman, Kyle and Stan intro’d Tom Sawyer, and Eugene Levy did a send up of the band to introduce the encore, mocking them for only being a 3-piece and saying how impressive it was that they’ve opened for KISS.

Geddy then proceeded to play the first song of the encore in front of a cardboard cutout of KISS. Self-deprecation was also in abundance in their Intermission video “No Country for Old Hens,” along with a video of the band as monkeys that morphed in the three of them playing the wrong instruments.

Rush-KISS

The highlight of the show was 2112, one of their longest and most complex songs. It felt like the whole audience picked up their air drums to try to follow Peart’s drum fills and rolls, and chanted in unison to Lifeson’s licks in Overture. 2112 fittingly ends with the ominous voice repeating “We have assumed control. We have assumed control.” Seattle Rush fans will agree that they assumed control last night.