The July/August 2013 issue of Fireworks Magazine includes an interview/article with Alex Lifeson titled Rush: Fame at Last . Among numerous questions about the current tour, the making of Clockwork Angels and Rush's longevity, Alex is asked about how the band might celebrate their 40th anniversary next year: You celebrated your 30th anniversary with the covers album, 'Feedback'. Have you thought how you'll celebrate your 40th next year? We'll do a special tour and we'll look closely at some of the songs we haven't played for a long, long time. As for a new record we haven't really thought that far ahead yet. A follow-up question centers around Caress of Steel : Would 'The Fountain of Lamneth' be in contention for that tour? That might be stretching it a bit. That's no comment about the 'Caress of Steel' record. I hear things that we are embarrassed about that record but I'm very proud of it. It was a major stepping stone

The latest update from Neil Peart and his "News, Weather, and Sports" website blog is now online . Neil's entry for June 2013 is titled Shunpikers in the Shadowlands and it deals largely with his adventures and travels in Europe during Rush's European leg of their Clockwork Angels tour. Neil, and his riding partner-in-crime, Brutus made good use of the United Kingdom countryside as they traversed from show to show at a very 'steady' pace: Before our first few motorcycle rides on the Clockwork Angels tour of Britain, in May, 2013, I would ask Brutus about the next day, maybe how far the ride was. ...In answer to my query, Brutus would just nod his head thoughtfully, and say, “It will be . . . a full day.” Soon that became a joke between us, understanding that the day’s journey had nothing to do with distance. On many rides, in the mountains of Wales, Scotland, or the Yorkshire Dales, say, we could easily spend seven hours puttering around little single

With Rush about to play a number of shows in Canada during July, the band have just announced that they will donate $1 from every ticket sale from five of those Canadian dates to benefit the Unison Benevolent Fund : Long known for their support of various philanthropic causes, Rush have generously offered to support Unison by donating $1 from each ticket sold at 5 of their upcoming Canadian dates. Those dates are: July 6 Hamilton, Ontario - Copp's Coliseum July 12 & 14 Halifax, Nova Scotia - Metro Centre July 24 Calgary, Alberta - Scotiabank Saddledome July 26 Vancouver, British Columbia - Pepsi Live at Rogers Arena The Unison Benevolent Fund is a non-profit charitable organization that provides counselling, emergency relief, and benefit programs for those in the Canadian music community who face personal or professional challenges due to hardship, illness, unemployment or economic difficulties. Whether it’s a favourite song or an album by a treasured artist, music i

Update: (06/24/2013): Click HERE for a massive gallery of photos that I snapped off during the show in Hershey. Enjoy- Back on September 7th, 2012, nearly 290 days ago, Rush embarked on their Clockwork Angels World Tour, celebrating the release of their critically acclaimed album of the same name. The tour, which has covered most of North America as well as parts of Europe, is now set resume tonight in Hershey Park, Pennsylvania. Tonight's show marks the beginning of the final major leg of the band's 73-date tour. Including tonight, a mere 18 dates remain with one final 10-day break taking place in the middle of July. Before that break, Rush will be playing in stops across the Eastern and Central portions of the US and Canada. After the break, on July 24th, the band will close out the tour with stops in Western Canada, Oregon, Utah, Colorado and, finally, Kansas City, Missouri on August 4th. The band will then take a well-deserved break. Interesting to note is the fa

For years, HDTracks.Com has been offering audiophiles access to Master Quality music downloads that far surpass the quality of today's MP3 files and even most CDs. With file formats of either 96kHz/24-bit or 192kHz/24-bit, HDTrack music downloads have up to twice the bit depth of CDs and up to 9612Kbps of sonic information! "An HDtracks file is a one to one exact digital copy of the master tape. There is no better way to hear recorded music on this planet than hearing an HDtracks hi resolution file played back via your computer or your digital music server with a good pair of speakers." Now, HDTracks is offering up an expanded collection of Rush albums available in the 96kHz/24-bit format. Available albums and compilations include: The Studio Albums 1989-2007 Presto Roll the Bones Counterparts Test for Echo Vapor Trails Feedback Snakes & Arrows Clockwork Angels Sector One Sector Two Sector Three Ordering of any Rush album/compilation is available at

The July 2013 issue of the UK's Rhythm Magazine includes a feature on the 25 greatest rhythm sections of all time. The reader's poll placed Rush's rhythm combination of Geddy Lee and Neil Peart at the top of the list . From the issue: Rock's foremost power trio have been locking in perfectly for 40 years, so it's no surprise you voted Messrs Peart and Lee the Number One rhythm section in huge numbers - almost 50% of the overall vote. With every new Rush album, Lee and Peart again push the envelope of what a power trio - in which the rhythm section often shines brightest - can accomplish in rock. Neil Peart admits that this kind of tightness has taken a bit of time to achieve, though, as he told Rhythm recently. "If there is a little train wreck among the three of us, I can suddenly run on two tracks now. I can be playing what I need to be right, but if one of the guys is half a bar out I can say, 'Okay, if I drop that half-bar we'll all be together a

Update (06//11/2013 1:45pm): Click HERE to download the MP4 version of the trailer. Update (06/11/2013): The trailer is now available on Facebook at this LINK . No FB account required to view. Update (06/10/2013): You can now access the trailer at this LINK . Password: clockwork . Enjoy it while it lasts. Update (06/10/2013): It appears that both the original Fadoo trailer and the YouTube trailer have been removed. Apparently, both were release prematurely. Hopefully they'll be made available again in the near future. The trailer for Rush's upcoming Clockwork Angels concert film is now online . The 2-minute long trailer, which was released by Fadoo Productions, does not hint at the official release date of the concert film, however it is expected to be available some time this fall and in time for the holiday season. As the trailer indicates, the November 28, 2012 concert in Dallas, Texas at the American Airlines Center was the primary show for the concert film. Howeve

Update (06/10/2013): Click HERE for a gallery of photos from the Sweden Rock Festival performance. Update (06/08/2013): As expected, Rush did play a shortened set list at the festival tonight. You can check out the set list at this LINK . Rush is set to take the stage at the Sweden Rock Festival tonight as the European leg of their Clockwork Angels tour is almost complete. Rush's appearance at the festival is certainly a rare one. The last time the band played a European festival was back on June 4th, 1979 when they appeared at the Pink Pop Festival during their Hemispheres Tour . Due to the nature of the four-day long festival, it appears that Rush will not perform their usual 3-hour set. According to a posting at the festival's website , Rush will play on the Festival Stage beginning at 9:30PM and playing through to 11:45PM, presumably without an intermission. As usual, we'll have a complete set list for the show once we get a report in. Rumor has it that p

Geddy Lee has donated a custom, one-of-a-kind Fender Jazz Bass Guitar to the Children’s Charity Lonny's Smile . The guitar will be auctioned off during a benefit show fundraiser taking placing in Toronto on June 20th. From the press release : RUSH fans are going to get a chance to own a piece of memorabilia from Geddy Lee; a one-of-a-kind, autographed Geddy Lee Signature Fender Jazz Bass Guitar . Children’s Charity Lonny's Smile ( www.lonnyssmile.org ) presents an evening of music and a Live Auction on Thursday, June 20, 2013, 8 p.m. EST, at the Horseshoe Tavern in downtown Toronto. Proceeds will benefit Camp Oki ( www.campoki.ca ), a free weeklong camp for children from Quebec and Ontario who suffer from heart defects and require implanted pacemakers or defibrillators (ICDs). RUSH’s Geddy Lee has personally donated this Signature Fender Jazz Bass Guitar (left) for the auction and will autograph it for the winning bidder with a personalized message of their choosing. Th

Last month we reported that Chad Smith, drummer for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, would be interviewing Alex Lifeson as part of his In Conversation podcast. All four segments of the interview, both in audio and transcript form are now available online. It's a cool, crisp early evening in April, but in just a couple of days Smith and the rest of the Red Hot Chili Peppers will brave pummeling temperatures and near-sandstorm conditions when they play the first of two Coachella gigs. Tonight is something of a work night for the acclaimed drummer – he's launching his MusicRadar podcast series, In Conversation – but it's a kick-back-and-chill night, too, and Smith is looking forward to bonding with a fellow musician he's rubbed shoulders with briefly on tour stops but one he's known longer, like most of the world, as an ardent admirer. Alex Lifeson, brimming with good cheer, dressed rockstar-casual (black trousers and sweater with a dark-brown leather blazer), walks up a