A FAREWELL TO KINGS

Contrary to popular opinion, I don't think 'A Farewell To Kings' is that amazing of an album. Rush have certainly done alot better, and there are only two songs on here that stand out as being masterful (the mystical and textured 'Xanadu,' and the very progressive sci-fi epic 'Cygnus X-1.') The rest of the songs are good, but aren't necessarily the sort of stuff that would be found in the ideal masterpiece.

'A Farewell To Kings' is good enough, and has a very pleasant acoustic introduction. But the rest of the song only ranks as being 'alright.' Listenable and energetic, but there's definately better stuff out there.

'Xanadu,' as I've stated before, is one of the two highlights. This is an amazing song, and somehow conveys a very strong feeling of oriental phantasm, without using far-east instrumentation. There are alot of references to the Coolridge poem the song is based off of. The keyboard work by Geddy Lee here is fantastic, as well as the atmospheric soundscaping Alex Lifeson does at the beginning.

'Closer To The Heart' is a song that I've never liked. It's Rush's 'hit single' but I think it's annoying; especially Geddy's vocal delivery. The optimistic guitar intro is a nice touch, but the majority of the song is disposable for me. The guitarwork is the only thing that makes this song enjoyable at all. This is the sort of song that you might find on a two star, or three star Rush album, not a record that is considered by many to be one of the greatest Prog-Rock masterpieces of all time!

'Cinderella Man' is pretty forgettable, but pleasant enough. It's a bit of a weak track. Even now, after a few hours after, I'm having a hard time remembering it, besides it's chorus, which has an interesting melody.

'Madrigal,' despite being about two minutes long, is probably the third best song on the album. The vocal melody is gorgeous! Geddy's voice is in top notch here. Amazing.

'Cygnus X-1' is very proggy, and verges on being metal. It's even better than it's 'Hemispheres' counterpart! It builds up with some great sci-fi textures into an epic finale to close the album.

I'll probably get hung by other ProgArchives fans for this, but this isn't that amazing of an album. It's good, but I'd rather listen to a better album, like 'Moving Pictures.' Worth checking out if you're a Rush fan, though.

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