FEEDBACK

Feedback, an eight-song EP of covers of Sixties classic rock tracks, is Rush's homage - and many Rushians' dream come true - to the music of their formative years, songs that Geddy, Alex, and Neil played as teenagers in garage bands in the late Sixties. The songs represent the harder- rocking groups of that era - The Who, Love, Buffalo Springfield, Cream, Blue Cheer, and the Yardbirds - and are faithfully delivered by Rush. All the songs remain true to their original forms, brief and crunchy with minimal embellishment, save the ringing sound of Lifeson's mandola. The sound is a fine mix of My Favorite Headache and Vapor Trails; co-producer David Leonard brings a loose, almost jam-like feel to the near- empathic ensemble playing of Rush that lends an earthy quality - a quality that Rush has sometime lacked - to Feedback's tracks and recalls the coarser sound of the original releases. And the choices themselves, out of a thousand others, are significant because they reveal the foundations upon which Rush built their early sound. Hints of Rush, Fly By Night, Caress Of Steel, and 2112 are everywhere, particularly noticeable in the chunky chord changes of "For What It's Worth" and "The Seeker" and the "Grand Finale"-style ending of "Seven And Seven Is," which itself reminds a lot of Ted Nugent and The Amboy Dukes' "Journey To The Center Of The Mind." Occasional but nifty surprises add extra fun to the proceedings, most notably the feedback intro from Jimi Hendrix' "Foxy Lady" that opens "Summertime Blues" and the 12-string runs from the Byrds' "Eight Miles High" included in Lifeson's solo for "Mr. Soul".

Fun, refreshing, insightful, but mostly fun, this is one time trip that you really shouldn't miss. So, don't bother covering your ears - pick up on Feedback.