FLY BY NIGHT

This album marks the beginning of the Rush sound. I will still only award it three stars, even if it's better than Rush in many ways.

Personally, I find this album very different from their '74 album. Gone is that Zeppelin tribute feeling so very present there, and the listener is served a more mature listening experience. The band is clearly more confident now and - with the hard rock sound still very prevalent - things are starting to happen...

Anthem starts the album with a boom. Wow, this is powerful! One can immediately recognise Geddy's bass melody in this song (check out 2:25 to 2:55). And the lyrics? Well, have no fear, Neil is here! The individualistic, Rayn-inspired text promises great things for the future. You can't possibly miss the improved muscle of the drumming, which seems to have been moved more up front on Fly by Night.

I won't write a song-by-song review, but some of them deserves some extra mentioning:

Beneath, Between and Behind/Fly by Night - prime examples of Rush's signature hard rock sound. Originality.

By-Tor and the Snow Dog/Anthem - the mini-epic By-Tor marks the beginning of progressive Rush, even though i wouldn't consider it a progressive effort. Or...what the hell! I'll call it progressive. It features enough experimentation, shifts in the music, sound effects, skill and sci-fi imagery for that. Anthem is just great,'nuff said.

Not a single BAD song here, but some of the songs just don't resonate with me like the ones mentioned above. As an example, Rivendell is beautiful, but not essential for the album experience.

//Linus W

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