Clockwork Angels Full Album Reviewed Track by Track

Rush Clockwork Angels Album Cover
Though the album hasn't officially been released yet, Joe Bosso from MusicRadar.Com has just posted his full-album, track-by-track review.

Warning: There are obviously some spoilers in the review and parts of the remaining story below. Read at your own risk :)

Bosso's introduction to his review is humorous and reflective of his deep appreciation for not only Clockwork Angels, but Rush as a creative, musical force:
Somebody has got to sit Rush down and read them the rules – you know, the ones that state that they have to act their freaking ages and stop jamming around so damn much; that six and seven-minute songs with lots of badass musicianship are out; that there can’t possibly be new sounds to discover; that concept albums are so, like, Hemispheres; that songs are supposed to be verse, chorus, verse – c’mon, call in the pro LA tunesmiths already!

And don’t forget to tell them to get at least five or six backing musicians on stage – that’s what all the really big bands do; that they need to write some tunes about chicks, for chrissake; that the drummer must play to the song – knock it off with all that, you know, “extra stuff.”

And most of all, won’t somebody please tell these guys that groups that have been together for 38 years are supposed to suck? They’re not meant to have breakthroughs and keep getting better and better. Can't anybody send them the memo?

But wait… hold on a second. If Rush decided to buckle down and behave, if they adhered to the standards and practices of Music 101, that would make them sound like practically every other band out there. They would become safe, predictable and oh so un-Rush-like.

Fortunately, the three men (bassist-vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson and drummer Neil Peart) who power their way through the sprawling, open-hearted and wildly alive Clockwork Angels know that the best way to avoid creative stasis is to simply be themselves, and in doing so they’re growing in sophistication and revealing new depths of feeling at an astonishing rate.
Booso gives a short, yet detailed description of each of Clockwork Angels' twelve tracks in his review. One of the stand-outs that caught my attention was his write-up on the album's sixth track Halo Effect:
Can you possibly tell that a song is destined to become a classic the first time you hear it? Possibly - and if, for some reason, Halo Effect doesn't make it into the pantheon of all-time Rush greats, it'll come damn close.

Over a gorgeous, double-tracked acoustic guitar figure, Geddy Lee sings richly, even-tempered and marvelously expressive. The track surges into a section of stomping power trio goodness, but the overall framework is acoustic, soon laced with elegant strings. "What did I do before there were words?" Lee asks, bathed in a breathtaking glow of cellos that carry him - and us - away.
To read Bosso's complete review, please click HERE.

Thanks to reader RushFanForever for passing along the news.

Related News Stories
[Clockwork Angels to be Released in Lossless 96kHz/24-bit via HDTrack.Com - April 12th, 2012]
[Rush Clockwork Angels Tracklist, Trailer and Official Announcement Now Available - April 11th, 2012]
[Headlong Flight Single from Clockwork Angels Release Update - April 4th, 2012]
[Rush Clockwork Angels Album Cover and Tour Book Artwork Revealed? - April 3rd, 2012]
[Clockwork Angels Update - First New Song Title Revealed - Headlong Flight - March 28th, 2012]
[First Single from Clockwork Angels Coming Friday, March 30th? - March 15th, 2012]
[Clockwork Angels Release Date: May 29th, 2012 - March 2nd, 2012]
[Clockwork Angels Due Out in May According to PROG Magazine - February 20th, 2012]
[It's A Wrap: Rush Finish Recording Clockwork Angels - December 20th, 2011]
[New Guitar World Interview with Alex Lifeson - Talks Clockwork Angels - December 13th, 2011]
[New Geddy Lee Interview With Billboard Magazine - Update on Clockwork Angels - December 5th, 2011]
[Geddy Lee Update on Clockwork Angels - October 29th, 2011]
[Clockwork Angels Update from Rush Producer Nick Raskulinecz - September 21st, 2011]



Comments

  1. Greatest Band Of All Time. Counting down the days until i can go out and buy 12 more favorite songs. I'm 33 years old, so i missed a bit of the boat, but Rush is the soundtrack of my life and i feel priveledged to have another act coming up.

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  2. I hope they find some melody on this album,it's been lacking for a while!!

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  3. im 53 and was 18 the first time i heard them back in 1976 these guys just keep going keep it up!

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