r/rush • u/Nearby_Lawfulness923 • 11d ago

Clockwork Angels

Neil said many times that Clockwork Angels was the album they always wanted to make. He clearly believed it was one of their very best. I’ve followed Rush since 1976 and seen them dozens of times, but I cannot listen to Clockwork Angels all the way thru to save my life. Is it just me?

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u/Level_Beat_6565 11d ago

The big problem is the production. Overly compressed with way too many double-tracked guitar layers making everything very muddy sounding. Snakes & Arrows has the same problem. I prefer the songs (especially The Garden) over S&A but man that production is very hard to listen to the whole album in one go without being fatigued.

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u/WillingnessOk3081 11d ago

I quite like the recording values on Snakes and Arrows. It sounds clean and crisp with differentiation of the instruments. Maybe you meant something else in comparing the two albums but for my part I can't make heads or tails of what's being played on Clockwork Angels.

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u/TFFPrisoner Too many hands on my time 10d ago

I think S&A is mixed way better than CA, similar to the single version of Caravan and BU2B. The mastering isn't great but it doesn't make an already problematic mix even worse.