MOVING PICTURES

Moving Pictures is generally considered the pinnacle of this band's career, but is it really everything that the general public make it out to be? I certainly happen to disagree with that opinion since this is a transitional album which we all know aren't usually all that consistent.

It seems that most people consider hits like Tom Sawyer and Limelight enough to be mesmerized by an album that is actually filled with very few ups and a lot of downs. From an technical instrumental point of view we do indeed get a few minutes of bliss with YYZ but that's basically all the excellent material featured here, which is just not enough to make me believe in the reputation that this album has maintained for over 30 years!

It's true that every time Rush is mentioned in the mainstream media the only material that we get to hear are the tracks Tom Sawyer and Limelight. The most prominent example of this are two recent Hollywood comedies called Fanboys (2008) and I Love You, Man (2009) that both feature leading characters that are huge fans of Rush, still we only get to hear these songs as the only example for their love for the band. I would think that there isn't really a single Rush fan that only listens to Moving Pictures and the reason for this inconsistency has more to do with the expensive music rights that film studios have to pay in order to feature any more of this band's repertoire in their movies.

The lesser material for me begins with the first sounds of Red Barchetta which might not be terrible but instead becomes quite boring after the 3-minute mark. The 11 minute long The Camera Eye might give the impression of another progressive rock compositions but that's really not the case with this track. Instead it can be described as a prolonged rocker without any noteworthy moments from a technical point of reference. Finally Vital Signs features an almost reggae-like sounding chorus which I can't help but cringe at whenever it comes around.

Rush had a good 5-year run of progressive rock releases throughout the second part of the '70s and, wisely enough, decided to progress with their transition into the new decade. Unfortunately this transition also meant that quite a few fans would be left behind wishing for the old Rush to come back and eventually giving up on the band all together. Luckily I discovered the band long after their prime years had passed them giving me the opportunity to be a lot more critical in my discovery of their work. Moving Pictures just wasn't the album I was hoping for and so my rating is good, but non-essential.

***** star songs: YYZ (4:26)

**** star songs: Tom Sawyer (4:34) Limelight (4:20) The Camera Eye (11:01) Witch Hunt (4:46)

*** star songs: Red Barchetta (6:10) Vital Signs (4:46)