TIME MACHINE 2011: LIVE IN CLEVELAND

I'd like to start by saying that I saw Rush three times on their Time Machine Tour and the dates were all spread apart. I saw them in Atlanta, GA, Greensboro, NC, and Greenville, SC. The Greensboro show was actually a day or two before this concert was recorded. That being said, let me continue on...

Yet again we have another Rush live album. Overall this release is average at best. It has it's problems but they will be addressed later. Let's begin with the good news first. Musically, this album is wonderful and really shows that Alex, Neal, and Geddy can still rock out and play with technicality and precision that is remarkable. And having seen all of these songs performed on three separate nights I can say that they still have the energy on stage and were quite entertaining to watch as well as listen to. Any Rush fan knows what to expect from this, but for those that for some unknown reason know nothing of this power trio then simply expect to be blown away by three guys in their mid to late 50s rocking out as if they're in their mid 20s. Lifeson was on fire especially and his solo during "Working Man" was really energetic and electrifying.

Aside from the level of musicianship, there are quite a few things that could be said negatively about this album. There are two big ones that everyone has already mentioned. The mixing isn't that great and Geddy's vocals sound kind of bad. The mixing seems to be a running issue with Rush live releases, but even so there are times when it's difficult to hear Geddy on bass (which was surprising). Regardless of the mixing issue on whichever live release you care to look the fact of the matter is that it's fairly easy to overlook and really doesn't hinder the album overall though it could be slightly annoying to some. Now on to the issue of Geddy's vocals. As I mentioned before, I had seen them several times and Geddy is obviously sick or something else was ailing him because at both the Atlanta and Greenville show he sounded fine! I thought at the Greensboro show the mixing was bad which was why he sounded as he did, but this confirms that something was wrong with Geddy. Do not take this release as a good representation of what Geddy sounds like nowadays!

My biggest issue with this live album is the track listing. I'd love to hear some really random songs from days past or even from more recent releases. I just feel like they cycle through a small selection of songs with each tour. They also could have teased the audience with something other than the singles they released from way back over a year ago. Also, why on earth did they split up Moving Pictures on the CD release?! Seriously? The big selling point of the tour and you split it up on the album? That's a barrel of bananas if I've ever heard of one. Speaking of Moving Pictures, the fact that they play most of the songs on here anyways really killed the special value of seeing it performed start to finish. Seeing "The Camera Eye" was probably the most "special" from the album and personally it bores me to tears from the studio and on the stage.

Overall I'd say this album is average. The mixing and Geddy's vocals are the worst parts but both are fairly easy to overlook in my opinion. The track listing isn't anything to get overly excited about unless you don't have any other Rush live album, in which case immediately pick up Different Stages. Decent release but don't blow the doors of the store trying to get in and pick up your copy.