Power Windows [Remaster] - Rush (CD 1997)

Somehow, after two disappointing albums, Rush moved closer to solving the puzzle of their sound with Power Windows. On first listen the subtleties weren t clear and the album didn t sound particularly impressive, but after a few spins on the turn table it becomes clear how much better this album was than the previous two. It is near perfect in a number of ways. At long last, a truce is struck between guitar and synthesizer and both now hold a place of honor in the court of Rush. The songs are far more commercial than anything Rush has ever produced; yet they maintain an unapologetic resolve to deliver truthful and meaningful messages. As usual, there are songs about politics, power, dreams, emotions and more. And even though Rush expelled the eccentric song formats of the past, their sound still defies category. I ve heard them called everything from progressive rock to fusion, but none of those labels fit comfortably. The truth is that Rush is an amalgamation of musical styles, which in turn becomes a style all their own. I think this is partly why they have confounded their critics for so long. Rush doesn t seem to want to find a clich d slot and settle into it. Their form of art is dynamic and constantly demanding the listener to concentrate and figure out what it is they are saying.

For the potential Rush fan who was turned off by the intimidating story-songs and avante guard music of the 70 s, I highly recommend Power Windows as a good way to get introduced to Rush. All of their lyrical sensitivities are here, packaged in a musical form that won t make your friends think you ve converted to heavy-metalism. If you like what you hear, it s very likely you will want to hear more.

Big Money:
This was one of the few songs from this album to make a splash commercially, and that s to bad. But this song has a message everyone should be familiar with that money holds power over the world, and that power is often a force for corruption. The message is delivered with a punch, beginning with the opening hook, which (surprisingly at this point) involves a balance of driving guitar chords and scintillating synthesizer runs. But the force of the song is in the lyrics, propped up amazingly well (as well as any Rush song) by the music.

Grand Designs:
The opening hook is pure synthesizer magic, but quickly backed up by Alex s sharp power chords and some nice harmonics. Not quite the growl he once wielded, but still powerful. The message of this tune was elusive for me, but I see many intrinsic concepts that I can relate to, such as the idea that there is so much style without substance, so much stuff without style, it gets hard to recognize the real thing . That s rampant commercialism and we re all guilty of supporting it at one time or another. There are several other concepts mentioned that bond together well enough to form a central theme of integrity.

Manhattan Project:
For some reason the topic of this piece surprised me. Perhaps it was the still-present cold war that inspired Neil to pen a song about the origins of the nukes. Well, he did it with his usual panache. This isn t the heaviest song Rush has produced, but the sheer emotional power is evident. It truly inspired me to contemplate the men undergoing the fateful journey to create the most powerful weapon on earth.

Marathon:
I took this song to have multiple meanings. One is that life is like a marathon, requiring one to be both persistent and focused to be successful. Another, more indirect, interpretation is that reaching our goals in life is like running a marathon. At any rate, the metaphor of a marathon fits perfectly. Alex gets to grind away on power chords and Geddy adds texture with the synthesizer. The beat Neil develops is persistently up tempo with the exception of a short bridge section that adds some nice dynamics. I love the way this song (and many on this disk) build to a crescendo at the end.

Territories:
This is an exciting song on many levels. It s at once a celebration of diversity and indirectly of Asian history. It is also a statement against the silliness of national pride, as opposed to human pride. Again both the synthesizer and guitar shine here, both with an integral part to the balance of the sound. Alex supplies some powerful and driving harmonies while the keyboards provide texture and electricity. This song challenges the self-preservationist tendencies of nations and asks the question when are humans going to outgrow this? I love the verse:
We see so many tribes overrun and undermined while their invaders dream of lands they ve left behind better people, better food, better beer

Middletown Dreams:
This tune explores the unrealized dreams of the average and it is aptly handled. Rush acknowledges here that people s dreams keep them alive in the drab sameness of life. I have read that the characters mentioned in the song are drawn from real life and works of fiction. The guitar isn t the star here, filling mostly a supportive role to the more active synthesizer runs and chords. A brief solo is included but Alex doesn t take the song to rock status.

Emotion Detector:
This song is ethereal in quality and message. The synthesizer leads most of the melodic interest here, but not without Alex far behind. The message is an analysis of human feelings; something Rush is fond of studying. It points out many elements of our ethos, including how easy it is for humans to get hooked on attention and how we crave power. Neil must have been in a contemplative mood when he penned this one.

Mystic Rhythms:
The positioning of this song in last place on this album is apt. It is the weakest output and would fit comfortably well on either of their previous two albums. It lacks a driving musical force and the lyrical message is sublime and unclear. But with Geddy s vocal and keyboard performances all is not lost. It is yet a decent song and worthy of its spot on this disk. Alex s guitar returns to the reclusive nature it exhibited in both the previous works, turning in a technically impressive but hollow sounding solo.

Clearly the experiments of Signals and Grace Under Pressure paid off. With Power Windows Rush discovered a way to recapture the energy of their previous era and blend it with the technology and grace of 80 s styles, creating a new Rush era, one that would serve them well for at least two albums. One thing is clear; Rush is more serious about the message of their music now than they are rocking down the house. Their approach is more intellectual and subdued, but still full of surprises.

Interestingly enough, this album represents one of Rush s most consistent in terms of song length, clocking in tunes between 5:11 and 6:20. That s pretty steady for a group that once produced 20 minute epics along side 2 minutes quickies. This is a side effect of Rush s newfound devotion to consistent song structure, something they seemed to loath in an earlier time.