Vapor Trails | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | May 14, 2002 | |||
Recorded | August–December 2001 [1] | |||
Studio | Reaction, Toronto [2] | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 67:15 | |||
Label | Anthem | |||
Producer |
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Rush chronology | ||||
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Singles from Vapor Trails | ||||
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Vapor Trails is the seventeenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush. It was released on May 14, 2002, [6] on Anthem Records, and was their first studio release since Test for Echo (1996), the longest gap between two Rush albums. After the Test For Echo tour finished in July 1997, drummer and lyricist Neil Peart suffered the loss of his daughter and then his wife in separate tragedies. As a result, the group entered an extended hiatus during which it was not certain they would continue. They eventually reunited in January 2001 to rehearse material for a new album, recording for which lasted until December. [7] For the first and only time since Caress of Steel (1975), the group did not use any keyboards or synthesizers in their music, incorporating many layers of guitar, bass and drums instead.
Vapor Trails reached No. 3 in Canada and No. 6 in the United States. "One Little Victory" was released as the album's lead single in March 2002 and went to No. 10 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart in the United States. The next single was "Secret Touch". The album went gold in Canada in August 2002. [8] The Vapor Trails Tour lasted from June through November 2002, which saw the band play to the largest crowds of its career in Brazil. Following the band's dissatisfaction with the album's overall production, two tracks were remixed for the Retrospective III: 1989–2008 compilation album. The positive feedback from this resulted in the entire Vapor Trails album being remixed by David Bottrill and released on September 30, 2013, as Vapor Trails Remixed, [9] both as a separate release and as part of The Studio Albums 1989–2007 . [9]
After Rush finished their Test for Echo Tour in July 1997, the group entered a five-year hiatus following the personal tragedies in drummer Neil Peart's life, losing his daughter Selena in August 1997 and wife Jackie in June 1998. Peart took a hiatus and rode around North America on a motorcycle, covering 88,000 km (55,000 mi). At some point in his journey, Peart decided to return to the band. In his book Ghost Rider: Travels on the Healing Road , Peart writes of how he had told his bandmates at Selena's funeral, "consider me retired." [10] However, in October 2000, after a period of recuperation, Lee announced during promotional interviews for his solo album My Favourite Headache that Rush were to get together in the following January with the intention to write and rehearse material for a new studio album. [11] Lee said that the album was not made for simply new music, but for "the psychological health and welfare of all the people who have gone through a very difficult time." [12]
The trio gathered at Reaction Studios in Toronto on January 9, 2001, but did not play anything for three weeks. They discussed what they wanted to achieve and how the album should take shape. Lifeson said it was to get "a feel for each other's frame of mind. We needed to see if everybody was really up for it." [13] Lee and Lifeson said that they chose the studio based on its "artist friendly environment, that was very comfortable and accommodating". [14] Among the topics discussed was the album's musical direction which became a source of difficulty as initially, there was little agreement on what it should be. Upon reaching a consensus, Lifeson said the three found common ground "on every aspect of the recording." [13]
The band started working, adopting a three-week-on, one-week-off schedule with no one present apart from a technical assistant. [12] [14] The group was hopeful there was still chemistry amongst them to make an album. They adopted their usual method of writing with Lee and Lifeson working together on musical ideas in the studio control room while Peart worked elsewhere on the lyrics, this time using a pen, paper and a computer. Peart wrote about their attitude towards the sessions: "We laid out no parameters, no goals, no limitations, only that we would take a relaxed, civilized approach." [11] Peart looked through his scrapbook of notes and phrases he'd collected and explored ways of connecting them together to form a complete lyrical idea. Lee and Lifeson developed ideas largely through jam sessions typically kicked off by setting a pattern on a drum machine and playing along, recording every session using Logic Pro. [11] This was to avoid making a demo tape of a collection of songs and re-record them at a later point. This way, early takes became the basis of the songs which kept the music fresh using as many original takes where possible. [14]
After several weeks Peart presented the ideas he'd formed, but Lee and Lifeson had not put down any concrete pieces of music. Peart recalled they were not yet "serious" and still wanted to play and explore ideas as sifting through what they had put to tape was a tedious process and disrupted their creative flow. [11] Peart had completed six sets of lyrics at this point but was not getting feedback from his bandmates as he had before, so he paused on lyrics and focused on his book Ghost Rider: Travels on the Healing Road . [11] [15] The three became dissatisfied with what they'd come up with and thought it was too forced, which led to their decision to take some weeks off. They felt refreshed and more focused upon resuming and were able to work out complete songs and not just sections. [13] The songs that emerged from these early jams were "Peaceable Kingdom," "Ceiling Unlimited" and "Nocturne," and they contain some parts put down from the original takes. [13] According to Lifeson, no tracks were completely re-recorded. [13]
Vapor Trails is the first album since Caress of Steel (1975) not to feature a keyboard instrument. This was an important factor for Lifeson, who often worried about their presence on previous Rush albums, but Lee agreed not to use them. Instead, Lifeson spent a greater amount of time devising guitar parts that were "richer on tonality and harmonic quality" that were adequate enough for the background tracks. [14] Lifeson avoided sound effects on his guitar to achieve a more raw sound. [14] At certain points in recording his drum parts, Peart had been influenced by Who drummer Keith Moon and played in his style. [15]
After taking a break in June 2001, [14] Rush began to record their new songs in mid-August. [16] Initially they decided to write 13 tracks for the album and pick the best 10 or 11 for the final selection, but when the time arrived they agreed to include all of them. [17] They were joined by English producer Paul Northfield, who had worked on several previous Rush albums and assisted in the arrangement to some tracks when the group felt stuck. [16] [17] The band are credited as co-producers. In December 2001, the group left the Reaction Studios and started mixing the album at Metalworks Studios with David Leonard. [14] [18] The mixing was complete in March 2002, after which it was sent to Masterdisk in New York City for mastering by Howie Weinberg. Rush chose him having liked the sound of the other albums that Weinberg had worked on. [14]
Aggregate scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 75/100 [19] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [20] |
The Austin Chronicle | [21] |
Billboard | (favorable) [5] |
Blender | [19] |
E! Online | B+ [19] |
Entertainment Weekly | B+ [3] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [22] |
PopMatters | 9/10 [19] [23] |
Q | [19] |
Rolling Stone | [24] |
The production of Vapor Trails has been criticized by the band themselves, critics and fans alike because of the album's "loud" sound quality. It has overly compressed (clipped) audio levels during mastering, which generates additional digital distortion during the CD production. The trend, known as the loudness war, was very common on modern CD production at the time. [25] [26] Alex Lifeson stated:
It was a contest, and it was mastered too high, and it crackles, and it spits, and it just crushes everything. All the dynamics get lost, especially anything that had an acoustic guitar in it. [27]
Vapor Trails Remixed is a remixed version of Vapor Trails mixed by David Bottrill. The album was released by Atlantic Records and Rhino Entertainment on September 30, 2013, and entered at No. 35 on the Billboard 200 chart. [9] The band had been unhappy with the original album's overall sonic production. Influenced by the positive reaction to the remixes of "One Little Victory" and "Earthshine" featured on Retrospective III by Richard Chycki, Rush and Bottrill remixed the entire album. In an interview with Modern Guitars, Lifeson remarked that, since the remixes were so good, there had been talk of doing an entire remix of the album. [27] Vapor Trails Remixed peaked in the US Billboard Charts at number 35. [28]
Vapor Trails Remixed is also included in the box-set of Atlantic Studio Albums called The Studio Albums 1989–2007 , in lieu of the original version. [29]
All lyrics are written by Neil Peart; all music is composed by Alex Lifeson and Geddy Lee
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "One Little Victory" | 5:08 |
2. | "Ceiling Unlimited" | 5:28 |
3. | "Ghost Rider" | 5:41 |
4. | "Peaceable Kingdom" | 5:23 |
5. | "The Stars Look Down" | 4:28 |
6. | "How It Is" | 4:05 |
7. | "Vapor Trail" | 4:57 |
8. | "Secret Touch" | 6:34 |
9. | "Earthshine" | 5:38 |
10. | "Sweet Miracle" | 3:40 |
11. | "Nocturne" | 4:49 |
12. | "Freeze" (Part IV of "Fear") | 6:21 |
13. | "Out of the Cradle" | 5:03 |
Credits taken from the 2002 liner notes. [30]
Rush
Production
Chart (2002) | Peak position |
---|---|
Canadian Albums (Billboard) [31] | 3 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [32] | 47 |
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista) [33] | 11 |
French Albums (SNEP) [34] | 150 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [35] | 20 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [36] | 18 |
UK Albums (OCC) [37] | 38 |
US Billboard 200 [38] | 6 |
Chart (2002) | Position |
---|---|
Canadian Albums (Nielsen SoundScan) [39] | 172 |
Canadian Metal Albums (Nielsen SoundScan) [40] | 27 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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Canada (Music Canada) [41] | Gold | 50,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Rush was a Canadian rock band formed in Toronto in 1968 that primarily comprised Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson (guitar) and Neil Peart. The band's original line-up comprised Lifeson, drummer John Rutsey, and bassist and vocalist Jeff Jones, whom Lee immediately replaced. After Lee joined, the band went through a few line-up changes before arriving at its classic power trio line-up with the addition of Peart in July 1974, who replaced Rutsey four months after the release of their self-titled debut album; this line-up remained unchanged for the remainder of the band's career.
Signals is the ninth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released on September 9, 1982 by Anthem Records. After the release of their previous album, Moving Pictures, the band started to prepare material for a follow-up during soundchecks on their 1981 concert tour and during the mixing of their subsequent live album Exit...Stage Left. Signals demonstrates the group's continuing use of synthesizers, sequencers, and other electronic instrumentation. It is the last album produced by their longtime associate Terry Brown, who had worked with them since 1974.
2112 is the fourth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in March 1976 by Mercury Records. It reached No. 5 in Canada and became the band's commercial breakthrough in the US, peaking at No. 61.
Fly by Night is the second studio album by the Canadian rock band Rush, released on February 14, 1975, by Mercury Records. It was the first Rush album to showcase elements of progressive rock for which the band has become known. It was also the first to feature lyricist and drummer Neil Peart, who replaced original drummer John Rutsey the previous summer just prior to the band's first North American tour. Peart took over as Rush's primary lyricist, and the abundance of fantastical and philosophical themes in his compositions contrasted greatly with the simpler hard rock of the band's debut album.
Roll the Bones is the fourteenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released September 3, 1991, on Anthem Records. The band began working on the album after a brief creative hiatus following the tour promoting their previous release, Presto (1989).
Moving Pictures is the eighth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released on February 12, 1981, by Anthem Records. After touring to support their previous album, Permanent Waves (1980), the band started to write and record new material in August 1980 with longtime co-producer Terry Brown. They continued to write songs with a more radio-friendly sound, featuring tighter and shorter song structures compared to their earlier albums.
Permanent Waves is the seventh studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released on January 14, 1980, through Anthem Records. After touring to support their previous album, Hemispheres (1978), the band began working on new material for a follow-up in July 1979. This material showed a shift in the group's sound towards more concise arrangements and radio-friendly songs, though their progressive rock blueprint is still evident on "Jacob's Ladder" and the nine-minute closer "Natural Science." Bassist/vocalist Geddy Lee also employed a more restrained vocal delivery compared to previous albums. Permanent Waves was the first of seven studio albums that the band recorded at Le Studio in Morin-Heights, Quebec with production handled by the group and Terry Brown.
Grace Under Pressure is the tenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released April 12, 1984, on Anthem Records. After touring for the band's previous album, Signals (1982), came to an end in mid-1983, Rush started work on a follow-up in August. The band had decided not to work with longtime producer Terry Brown, who had collaborated with Rush since 1974. The new material accentuated the group's change in direction towards a synthesizer-oriented sound like its previous album. After some difficulty finding a suitable producer who could commit, the album was recorded with Peter Henderson.
Exit... Stage Left is the second live album by the Canadian rock band Rush, released as a double album in October 1981 by Anthem Records. After touring in support of their eighth studio album Moving Pictures (1981), the band gathered recordings made over the previous two years and constructed a live release from them with producer Terry Brown. The album features recordings from June 1980 on their Permanent Waves (1980) tour, and from March 1981 on their Moving Pictures tour.
Power Windows is the eleventh studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released on October 11, 1985 in Canada by Anthem Records and on October 21, 1985 in the United States. After touring in support of their previous album, Grace Under Pressure (1984), the band took a break and reconvened in early 1985 to begin work on a follow-up. The material continued to display the band's exploration of synthesizer-oriented music, this time with the addition of sampling, electronic drums, a string section, and choir, with power being a running lyrical theme. Power Windows was recorded in Montserrat and England with Peter Collins as co-producer and Andy Richards on additional keyboards.
Rush in Rio is a three-disc live album by the Canadian band Rush, released on October 21, 2003. The album is also available as a two-DVD set. With the exception of the last two tracks on the third disc, the album was recorded at Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro on the final night of the Vapor Trails Tour. The other two tracks were taken from previous shows on the same tour. "Between Sun & Moon" was recorded at the Cricket Wireless Pavilion, Phoenix, Arizona, on September 27, 2002, and "Vital Signs" was recorded at the Colisée Pepsi, Quebec City, Quebec, on October 19, 2002.
Hold Your Fire is the twelfth studio album by Canadian progressive rock band Rush, released on September 8, 1987. It was recorded at The Manor Studio in Oxfordshire, Ridge Farm Studio in Surrey, AIR Studios in Montserrat and McClear Place in Toronto. Hold Your Fire was the last Rush studio album released outside Canada by PolyGram/Mercury. 'Til Tuesday bassist and vocalist Aimee Mann contributed vocals to "Time Stand Still" and appeared in the Zbigniew Rybczyński-directed video.
Presto is the thirteenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush. It was released on November 17, 1989 by Anthem Records and was the band's first album released internationally by Atlantic Records, following the group's departure from Mercury. After the Hold Your Fire (1987) tour ended in 1988, the group members reconvened in December to decide their next step and agreed to take six months off before starting on a new album. Presto marked another change in Rush's sound, with guitar taking a more dominant role in the writing, a reduction in synthesizers and a return towards more guitar-driven arrangements.
Counterparts is the fifteenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released October 19, 1993, on Anthem Records. After the band finished touring its previous album Roll the Bones (1991) in mid-1992, the members took a break before starting work on a follow-up.
Test for Echo is the sixteenth studio album by the Canadian rock band Rush, released on September 10, 1996, by Anthem Records. It was the final Rush album to be co-produced by Peter Collins. The band supported the album with a world tour in 1996 and 1997, after which they went on a five-year hiatus following the deaths of drummer Neil Peart's daughter and wife, and would not record again until 2001.
"Closer to the Heart" is a song by Canadian rock band Rush. It was released in November 1977 as the lead single from their fifth studio album A Farewell to Kings. It was the first Rush song to feature a non-member as a songwriter in Peter Talbot, a friend of drummer and lyricist Neil Peart. It was Rush's first hit single in the United Kingdom, reaching number 36 in the UK Singles Chart in February 1978. It also peaked at number 45 in Canada and number 76 on the US Billboard Hot 100. It was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame on March 28, 2010.
Snakes & Arrows is the eighteenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released on May 1, 2007, by Anthem Records. After their R30: 30th Anniversary Tour ended in October 2004 the band took a one-year break, during which they agreed to start work on a follow-up in January 2006. The album was recorded in five weeks with co-producer Nick Raskulinecz, a fan of the group who was praised by each member for his approach and technique. It contains three instrumental tracks, the most on any Rush album.
"One Little Victory" is the opening track and first single from Rush's 2002 album Vapor Trails, with music by Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, and lyrics by Neil Peart. The title phrase was inspired by a line from Joni Mitchell's "Sunny Sunday." To herald the band's comeback after a five-year hiatus, the single was designed to grab the attention of listeners with its rapid guitar and drum tempos.
Clockwork Angels is the nineteenth and final studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released on June 8, 2012, on Roadrunner Records. During the band's year-and-a-half break following its Snakes & Arrows Tour, the group decided to write a new studio album. Most of the album was recorded between October and December 2011 at Revolution Recording in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
The Studio Albums 1989–2007 is a box set by the Canadian rock band Rush. It contains the band's seven studio albums released from 1989 to 2007 and was released on 7 CDs on September 30, 2013. The albums are Presto (1989), Roll the Bones (1991), Counterparts (1993), Test for Echo (1996), the 2013 remix of Vapor Trails (2002), Feedback (2004) and Snakes & Arrows (2007).
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