TOO BIG TO FAIL: Lemme put on my slick announcer voice: Here’s what the critics are saying about Banks, the new solo record by Interpol’s Paul Banks, who plays the Courtyard Stage at the House of Blues on Nov. 29 for the unbelievable low price of $19! Let’s just have a look at the reviews … Pitchfork’s Steven Hyden says, “The main problem with Banks isn’t the muddled words, it’s the uninvolving music.” Well, that’s expected; Pitchfork hates even itself. Andy Gill of The Independent writes that Banks is “stuffed with aloof, adolescent apocalyptism and self-regard set to lumpy, mechanistic beats.” Oh. Filter’s Mike Hilleary seems to like the record … I think (“Banks’ phantasms manage to construct a decent corporeal form”), and I hear that Entertainment Weekly gave it a nice review. And even if critical opinion of Banks is trending downward (Metacritic’s averaged critical score is 63/100), at least Banks has all that good Interpol shit to fall back on. And if he doesn’t perform any Interpol songs … Well, the show only costs $19.
Rush
Rush photo by Wayne Posner
MGM Grand Garden Arena, Nov. 23 At a time when it’s in vogue for veteran rockers to revisit past glories and play their most popular albums in their entirety, Rush continues to cut against the grain. Oh sure, the Canadian trio has done the flashback bit before, playing all of 1981’s Moving Pictures on its last tour. But this time around, Rush delivered generous portions of both old and new material. With the show broken into two sets plus an encore, Rush delved deeply into its back catalog in the first half, with singer Geddy Lee playing both bass and synthesizer on rarities “Grand Designs” and “Territories” from 1985’s Power Windows. Alex Lifeson demonstrated why CBC Radio recently named him
Canada’s greatest guitarist ever with a fiery solo on “The Analog Kid,” while drummer extraordinaire Neil Peart was as precise as ever, performing the first of two solos on his rotating kit during the instrumental “Where’s My Thing?” Following an intermission, Rush played nine songs off its newest album, Clockwork Angels, something no other band could pull off nearly 40 years into its career—even if it had the balls to attempt it in the first place. An eightpiece string section joined the band for the second set, enhancing hard-rocking tunes such as “Caravan,” “Headlong Flight” and “Seven Cities of Gold,” and providing added texture to the softer “Halo Effect” and “The Garden.” Vibrant steampunk-themed backdrops provided visual enhancement to the songs, while flames and pyrotechnics completed the arena-rock experience.
Peart’s masterful second solo would have fit in at Electric Daisy Carnival with the drums emitting harmonious beeps and blips. The band then shifted into classic-rock overdrive, concluding the set with longtime hits “YYZ” and “The Spirit of Radio” before returning for an encore of “Tom Sawyer” and the beginning and closing portions of the epic “2112.” Performing before a nearly packed arena, which included older fans wearing vintage tour T-shirts, teens getting their first glimpse of the band and even entire families attending together, Rush continues to be, in the words of Lee, the world’s biggest cult band. And even approaching the trio’s fourth decade together, that cult appears to still be gaining followers— and deservedly so. ★★★★★ – Sean DeFrank
SHARP: I was going to click my tongue disapprovingly over the high cost of tickets for ZZ Top’s Dec. 5 and Dec. 7 shows at the House of Blues; they range from $89.50 to $180, and don’t even include a free mustache ride. Then I remembered “La Grange,” “Sharp Dressed Man,” “Tube Snake Boogie,” “Tush,” “Legs” … and then I did some research on them and discovered that they’ve been together 43 years with no lineup changes. That’s not only worth $194; that deserves a damn parade of those chopped Ford coupes and a national holiday during which every American male has to leave his razor untouched. NOW ON SALE: The Psychedelic Furs (pictured) play the Hard Rock Café on the Strip on Jan. 1 ($13), with The Fixx opening the show. This is a very weird double bill: Back in the day, the defiantly postpunk Furs wouldn’t have been caught dead with The Fixx, who are as synthpop as they come. I guess advanced age makes collaborators of us all.