Rush 2112

Originally released in 1976. Luckily for us kids of the 70’s, back then we had “The Tape of the Month” Club and that album was one of the 8 track tapes you were sent automatically if you didn’t return the “mail in” cancel card on time … Come to think of it, we never returned any of those cards and got “The tape of the month” every month and never paid for any of them and got a shit load of good music!!! … Hey, we were just kids, we didn’t know any better 🙂 Ok, back to the Album, if you don’t have this one, you are a tool for real … First off, it’s a concept album now considered to be a classic. Meaning, each song ties into the next one and the whole album is based on a story. This album is one of the last albums that RUSH came out with that was progressive rock and was real heavy and kicked major ass. From the opening “2112 Overture” laced with thundering sci fi keyboards to the power guitars chords and drums that shortly follow, one can tell the journey is about to begin and you had better hang on. It is an air guitarist’s wet dream album too!!! The lyrics don’t even start until 3:45 minutes into the album. No one does that anymore. These days it’s hurry up and get to the “hook”. Well, the music here is the “hook” and the lyrics are more than just the icing on the cake!! They are about a futuristic civilization that is run by Priests and computers. They control everything. “All the gifts of life are held within our walls” as the song “The Temples of Syrinx” goes. Get the picture? Of course not, I understand. You gotta hear it to understand it. But as the album continues on, it tells the story of a man that finds an ancient instrument (Discovery) hidden behind a waterfall. The instrument he found is a guitar and he slowly teaches himself to play it before he takes “this ancient miracle” (Presentation) to the High Priests to see if he can share it with the common people to bring happiness to them. And that is were the conflict begans. The Priests destroy the guitar and, well, I can’t give the story away. Look, go buy it. It is well worth the money. If this album isn’t in your collection, your not even worthy of being called a tool … I rate it four out of five guitars …
chuck