Rush gig in São Paulo

Last Friday I attended Rush's concert at the wonderful Morumbi Stadium in São Paulo. I would venture to say that there's never been a better time to watch the band live - their repertoire has reached the right kind of balance between lenghty, progressive rock-oriented pieces and more direct and powerful hard rock tunes, and the guys are in their best shape ever - Alex plays with incredible speed, beauty, accuracy and sophistication, while Geddy Lee is displaying a degree of control over the bass that it's just mind-boggling. Neil Peart is a separate show on his own right - it seems that the harder and faster Rush gets, the more clear the sound he's able to elicit from his drum kit, playing with immense creativity and flare.

Time Machine's been clear a tour for hard core fans - the first part of the gig is all devoted to songs which they hadn't been playing live for a good deal of time already, including "Marathon", "Presto", "Stick It Out" and "Time Stand Still". They got off to an exciting start by playing "The Spirit Of The Radio", and then went on to performe some songs from Snakes & Arrows - "Malignant Narcisism", "Faithless" and "Working Them Angels" before playing one of the latest songs in the catalogue: BU2B. They wrapped up the first part with two absolute classics: "Subdivisions" and "Freewill". 

It was by this time that something completely unpextected happened: there was an actual, real 15-minute intermission for the guys - and us! - to take some rest. They act in almost all the short movies on the big screen and a clock starts running until reaching 1980, at which point the band gets back on stage to play the whole "Moving Pictures" - not one or two songs of it, but the whole thing, from start to finish, in extactly the same order as the album's. Well, the two greatest surprises here are "Vital Signs", just amazingly played, and, of course, the epic 11 minutes or so tune "The Camera Eye". "Limelight" got the audience jumping, screaming and dancing, as well as "Tom Sawyer" and "Red Barchetta". YYZ is always a treat to listen to. One of the hottest moments of the second part of the gig to me, though, was a killing rendition of "Witch Hunt", whose lyrics alone turn a deceivingly simple song into a classic. 

When they had just finished playing "Moving Pictures", I thought that was it - but no! The show goes on and then the most exciting part, as far as my taste is concerned, began - they started playing the heavier tunes, such as "Caravan", from the new single, and "Far Cry", from "Snakes And Arrows", as well as "Working Man", "La Villa Strangiato" and "Temple of Syrinx". The softest tune in the whole gig - "Closer To The Heart" - was played in the beginning of the third and last part of the concert.

I was truly amazed and left the stadium very moved and with a sense of awe - how come are these guys able to play so perfectly for almost three hours after 30 years of intense touring? Not to mention that both the two new songs and the tunes from "Snakes And Arrows" are on a part with some of the best material they have composed. The band is able to sound fresh, exciting, contemporary and venturesome after all these years on the road. For the dedication, shape and skill alone, the show is worth any rock fan's attention.

Some very good footage of the guys playing "Marathon" after quite a long time (the sound is very impressive given the distance and the guy's equipment) - check out Geddy's bass solo at 2:58 !!!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xb2eDV97WZg&feature=related

And here, Witch Hunt (a guy asks for Fly By Night!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQJwa-b6BWU

Great! Was looking forward to hearing about your experience. Glad you had a great time. :)

I want to see Rush!

I told you go see them in Sarnia Greg! I told you!

I couldn't! I couldn't get time off!

I want them to come to Waterford, and play in my backyard!

Glad you enjoyed the show, Yara.  It's probably the best Rush show I've seen, our of 6 or 7 times.  Half the audience in Toronto was under the age of 20.  It seems Rush is more popular now than ever.

I'm waiting for Clockwork Angels to be released! The songs I heard sounded awesome--reminds me of a fusion of Snakes And Arrows and some of Rush's late 70s work (Farewell To Kings/Hemispheres).

Sir GH wrote: Glad you enjoyed the show, Yara.  It's probably the best Rush show I've seen, our of 6 or 7 times.  Half the audience in Toronto was under the age of 20.  It seems Rush is more popular now than ever.
=====================

I'd only seen them once previously - major hazard of not living in the GTA - at Copps on the opening night of the 'Roll the Bones' tour in '91.  I was trying to figure out which one I enjoyed more and I really couldn't.  I think I've changed too much for a direct comparison because you understand and appreciate things differently 20 years on.  Either way, 'Time Machine' was a great, great show.

Thanks, guys. Last time I saw them was in Rio De Janeiro back in 2002 during the Vapor Trails' tour. It was a very different concert both with regard to the performance and the atmosphere. The 2002 show seemed more like a gig intended to garner new fans for the band, while the Time Machine's one seemed to me to have been designed for hard core fans, regardless of age. 

I had the same feeling as SirGH: It seemed there was a whole lot of young people from 20 years-old or so. Well, I was one of them (lol), but I didn't feel like being this age there, I felt older, maybe because I started to go to concerts and got interested in music quite early, or simply because I've been listening to the band for a long time already and had already been at one of their concerts. Either way, there was a lot of young people there!

Technically speaking, I think that they performed better last week than in 2002. The band sounded tighter, and Alex was just on fire, playing with great accuracy and speed, way better than in 2002. He seemed to be in a better shape - physically speaking - as well. Geddy's voice suffered a bit during the gig, but his singing was on the whole better than in 2002. He evolved a whole lot with regard to his skills on the bass - he's always been a great bass player, but he's clear reached a new stage in his musical development. He improved in many different aspects, from the sense of timing to creativity and harmonic repertoire. Neil's the one who seems to have improved the most from 2002 to now, probably because the Vapor Trails' tour had him performing after a several years break. 

Anyway, glad to know about your experiences as well!!!

So fuckin' awesome that they're still banging away.

I Went to see Rush in Glasgow a few years ago. It was great. Prefered seeing Queen + Paul Rodgers though.