What ever happened to Geddy Lee's giant Oberheim/Moog Synth?

[calaverasgrande]

I was under the impression that it was the rest of the band that pushed to do away with the synths.
Apparently poor Alex thought they were burying the guitar.

[Bitexion]

I can imagine the rest of the band were protesting every time Geddy wanted a new $7000+ synth.."but my bass guitar only cost like..$1000"
Then Neil : "And my whole drumset costs less than that"

[Bitexion]

I can imagine the rest of the band were protesting every time Geddy wanted a new $7000+ synth.."but my new guitar only cost like..$1000"
Then Neil : "And my whole drumset costs less than that"
Alex : "Time to print out more t-shirts, then"

[AnalogKid]

I was under the impression that it was the rest of the band that pushed to do away with the synths.
Apparently poor Alex thought they were burying the guitar.

When it comes to synths, who cares about Rush anymore? You can pay a lot of money to go to a Rush concert and hear most of the synth parts being played by backing tracks.

Yeah, in that Rush documentary, Alex Lifeson said that synths "aren't real." Also, as others have already mentioned here, Geddy Lee has downplayed Rush's previous more prominent use of synthesizers, as if there was something wrong-headed with doing so.

I'd venture to say that most people on this site think that when Rush made greater use of synths, Signals through Hold Your Fire (maybe even Presto and Roll the Bones) they created their best albums. I for one do.

So, until Rush gets back to using more synths (and actually playing them again) and doesn't diss them, who cares about Rush?

[tekkentool]

No. Rush's synth usage was always cheesy as f**k and over the top anyway. Distant early warning was a pretty neat pop song but aside from that euch.

Subdivisions sounds like joke elevator music these days. Father time sucker punched that one in the stomach.

[redchapterjubilee]

I'd venture to say that most people on this site think that when Rush made greater use of synths, Signals through Hold Your Fire (maybe even Presto and Roll the Bones) they created their best albums. I for one do.

Yeah, but for every one of us there are a dozen Rush fans who absolutely HATE the synthesizer period. Some of the sounds are dated. I don't think the 1977-1984 use of synths is dated at all to me, but their use from 1985-1992....a lot of the super fast running sequences and the still awful "Tai Shan" (hated that one 25 years ago and still can't stand it) are seriously dated.

[calaverasgrande]

and the still awful "Tai Shan" (hated that one 25 years ago and still can't stand it) are seriously dated.

Jeez that song is horrible. Never heard it before (I kind of got out of Rush after Grace Under Pressure).
This should remind us all that synthesizers are a great power. Whether it is a power for good or evil is your choice. Don't make cheesy dated music with your synth (I'm talking to you dubstep guys).

[Solderman]

Subdivisions sounds like joke elevator music these days.

So does alot of old electronic music, but you still find fans of it. I've recently been getting into Perrey and Kingsley, for example, and that s**t is so incredibly cheesy, the speakers blow Cheetos dust. Just another style that was tried and abandoned for the ever-changing artist trying to embrace technology, I guess. I listen to Subdivisions frequently and still enjoy it, but I had to remaster from vinyl before I was really satisfied. Actually my only complaint was how many times the lyrics use the word "restless".

[calaverasgrande]

Subdivisions sounds like joke elevator music these days.

So does alot of old electronic music, but you still find fans of it. I've recently been getting into Perrey and Kingsley, for example, and that s**t is so incredibly cheesy, the speakers blow Cheetos dust. Just another style that was tried and abandoned for the ever-changing artist trying to embrace technology, I guess. I listen to Subdivisions frequently and still enjoy it, but I had to remaster from vinyl before I was really satisfied.

I was pretty shocked when I looked up some old YMO tunes. I used to be into that band in the early 80's!
It's pretty much straight up Sonic the hedghog-elevator music!

[Bitexion]

I die a little bit inside every time I listen to JM Jarre or Tangerine Dream at work and someone tells me to shut off that "nintendo music".

I'm a lover of cheese. I'll happily run out and buy the latest Iron Maiden album just because I know what I get. I'd never buy a Rihanna album.

[shaft9000]

the history of electronic popular music is cheese piled on top of sugar,
all based on a cheeky bloop...and a little later came a boom-boom...then a whump-wump....

[Dr. Phibes]

Distant early warning was a pretty neat pop song but aside from that euch.

I think that would be Rush's pattern with or without synths: one good song per 5 albums.

however...

I was pretty shocked when I looked up some old YMO tunes. I used to be into that band in the early 80's!
It's pretty much straight up Sonic the hedghog-elevator music!

..you're worse than Hitler.

[AnalogKid]

I was pretty shocked when I looked up some old YMO tunes. I used to be into that band in the early 80's! It's pretty much straight up Sonic the hedghog-elevator music!

Well, it's more accurate to say that Sonic the Hedgehog sounds like YMO. However, much of YMO does not sound like video game music:

[tekkentool]

Don't make cheesy dated music with your synth (I'm talking to you dubstep guys).

Come at me bro.

[OB-XaMinimoog]

No. Rush's synth usage was always cheesy as f**k and over the top anyway. Distant early warning was a pretty neat pop song but aside from that euch.

Subdivisions sounds like joke elevator music these days. Father time sucker punched that one in the stomach.

Subdivisions is my favorite song by them, how dare you!

If theres anything thats cheesy its those Pop/Synthpop/Dance(?) songs from back then. Good lord.

Rush's use of synths was really good I think. Sure it started to go overboard on Hold Your Fire, even a bit on Power Windows but I love the synth stuff. To me its some of their most melodic and emotional work, musically and lyrically. Plus the synth sounds on Signals, specifically Subdivisions and Countdown, is a big eason the two synthesizers I want to own the most are the Oberheim OB-X and a Minimoog D. I honestly feel the people who only like up to Moving Pictures are really missing out (Moving Pictures is actually starting to become overrated, to me)

I'm not just saying that just because oh "its Rush and if its Rush I automatically like it", no I really do like that stuff lol. There are plenty of Rush songs I don't care for. Entre Nous, Cyngus X-1/Hemispheres I'm trying to get into but not really, Presto album I haven't been able to get into, all but 3 songs off Counterparts I don't care for, etc etc. I enjoy all musically periods of Rush.