September 3, 1991 - Roll The Bones

A week after my last release and two years since "Presto", Rush released their fourteenth studio album "Roll The Bones" on September 3, 1991. Rush continue the same style of their past two albums with a lighter rock style, but "Roll The Bones" was a commercial return to success, reaching number 3 on the Billboard charts and selling much better than their last couple albums. Neil Peart used a loose theme of luck in his lyrics for this album and several songs refer to chance or games of chance. This album follows in the footsteps of "Presto", which was my least favourite Rush album so far, but let's see what the new Rush is all about before we throw this one in that same category.

The album kicks off with "Dreamline" and Alex Lifeson plays a light guitar riff to start off as Geddy sings nicely overtop, but it's not long before Alex switches to a much louder guitar tone and Peart loudly joins in on drums. It's a nice segue and they repeat another light-to-loud verse before finally reaching the chorus. Geddy adds some synths to the background of the chorus as he sings lightly overtop a decent but quiet guitar riff by Lifeson. They play another solid verse before it's solo time, but Lifeson underwhelms greatly with this one as the solo is way too quiet, too light and honestly pretty uninteresting. Then it's a final chorus before they jam out a final short verse with Peart playing a couple nice drum fills. Not a bad song by any means, but certainly still this lighter version of Rush. Up next is "Bravado" and it too fits Rush's new style with Lifeson playing a slow, light guitar riff and Peart playing some pretty pedestrian drums. Lee's bass sounds alright, but it too is pretty quiet and this song seems a far cry from the awesome Rush of the past. The guitar falls away as Geddy begins a soft verse, but Alex returns with the same light guitar as before for a pretty uninspiring and soft chorus. If this were any other band, it would be an average light rock song, but this is the almighty Rush and by their lofty standards this song is very much below par. Lifeson gets another chance to solo, and this one is better than the last one as he's actually playing some decent guitar, but the light tone and the overall soft mood of the song really dampen things down and make it all sound fairly lame. Peart adds some cool drums after the solo as they continue to lightly jam things out but this is another pretty disappointing effort. Track 3 is the title track "Roll The Bones" and it was the big hit single off this album and it actually has a decent pace to it unlike the first two slower songs. Geddy and Alex combine some high synths with a catchy guitar bit to make a cool main riff and Geddy also plays some smooth bass that sounds cool, oh, and of course he's singing as well, truly leading the way on all fronts. Geddy sounds good singing overtop this solid main riff and everyone sounds good as they jam along to this upbeat and cool rock riff. Lifeson's guitar switches to acoustic for the chorus and he plays some catchy and fast acoustic guitar as Geddy sings in a nice light voice overtop and adds some synths that aren't too overpowering to complete this quiet yet cool chorus. The guitar goes back to electric as they play another verse and after another couple acoustic choruses it's solo time. Lifeson delivers a solid solo that sounds nice and epic and then it's time for a new, very different part for Rush. It is still Geddy Lee on vocals, but his voice has been dramatically altered to sound very low and strange, and even stranger, he raps the next verse! Usually I would applaud Rush experimenting, but I am not a fan of this middle section at all and I think Geddy's voice sounds really lame. It's such a strange thing for Rush to do, especially in the middle of what was a pretty cool song, and this "rap" section seems very out of place. The final line of the rap is "rock and roll the bones" and they segue right back into the upbeat main riff before jamming out the acoustic chorus several times to end the song. A solid song that is an easy choice for a single, but the middle part sours it for me. The next song is "Face Up" and it's another upbeat tune with Peart unsurprisingly playing some cool drums while Lifeson plays a decent guitar riff and Geddy plays some cool bass as well as some high synths before he begins to sing the first verse. It rolls right into a similar chorus and we hear Geddy sing the name of the song in the background while he also leads the way with a decent chorus verse. While not spectacular, things are decent in this light toe-tapper but after another verse and chorus things slow way down. Geddy sings a new verse overtop a very slow and synth-led part that I find a little dull before Lifeson comes out roaring for a short but decent little solo. Then they proceed ro jam out the chorus several times until the song eventually ends and it's just another example of Rush not even trying to be awesome anymore, they seem way too content to just lightly jam things out. Track 5 is an instrumental called "Where's My Thing?" and Lifeson kicks things off with a cool guitar riff and Geddy and Neil fall in line with some pretty cool bass and drums to complete this nice and catchy main riff. Despite the lack of vocals, the song still sounds like it has a verse and chorus as they shift into a different but still solid riff for the "chorus" with Peart playing some great quick drums and Geddy adding some keyboards that are light but also slightly epic-sounding. They play another solid verse and chorus before Lifeson nicely takes over and starts a heavier new guitar riff. Things continue to sound pretty good, even when they quiet things down briefly, and this is easily my favourite song on the album so far. Rush have had some great instrumentals in the past but this their first for a little while and I think it's a triumphant return as this is a pretty good song.

Up next is "The Big Wheel" and it starts with lots of synths, but things move into another light rock setting as they settle into the main riff. Lifeson's guitar isn't bad at all, but this light and breezy tone just makes anything sound not as cool and I wish it just had some more power to it, some HARD rock! The guitar sounds louder at times in the verse, and those parts sound good, but the chorus is driven by a very lame synth riff and Geddy sings in a sappy voice that is definitely not the ideal Rush. Gone are the days of Geddy shrieking high overtop some epic guitar, bass and drums; in 1991 we have Rush, the light rock and commercial-friendly band and it's hard to believe that it's the same three guys! Another verse and chorus later and they seem to be nicely building to something, but it culminates in just a new verse in a uncharacteristically poor segue for these prog-gods. Then they just play several lame choruses in what might be the worst song so far on this album, and there are other contenders! Yikes. Track 7 is "Heresy" and it's yet another slow rock jam that has some more lame synths that for some reason are the loudest instrument overtop of guitar, bass and drums. Geddy sings lightly overtop a quiet, synth-led main riff as the sappy tunes just keep coming like waves on this album. Peart plays a cool drum beat throughout this song, but they never really stray from the quiet main riff and for a song that is five and a half minutes long, it really felt like there wasn't a lot happening. The next song is "Ghost Of A Chance", the album's other single and Lifeson leads the way with some decent but light guitar. The bass and drums are pretty unimpressive for Lee and Peart and Geddy sings a decent verse but it's also nothing special. Somehow things get even worse as the chorus is even slower, lighter and snappier and no one is doing anything cool, all three seem content to slowly and lazily jam along. How the mighty have fallen indeed! They return to the main riff and after another drab verse and chorus Lifeson finally does something exciting! It's still in the light guitar tone, but it's a decent solo that's easily the highlight of this song. Lifeson spices up the following chorus with some more guitar bits but it's not enough to save this song from mediocrity. Track 9 is called "Neurotica" and Geddy opens things with some cool low bass and it's the bass that continues to drive this verse as Geddy plays a nice bouncing main riff. Things get much simpler in the chorus though as the music shifts to simple and light and there are some lame "oh ohhhh" backing vocals that just aren't what you want to hear from Rush! The cool bass returning lets us know it's off to the next good verse, then another slow chorus followed by a trippy little segue to a decent new verse. Lifeson erupts to play a nice fast solo that is easily one of his best on this album, but then it's back to the slow and sappy chorus to finish things off. The final song on the album is "You Bet Your Life" and although things are still very light, including some lame keyboards, it is an upbeat pace at least. Geddy leads another characteristically decent but nothing special verse but the chorus is refreshingly different as we hear "the odds get even" inbetween Geddy's usual lyrics and he ends the chorus nicely by belting out the name of the song. After another verse and chorus Geddy continues to sing the name of the song, but he also does backing vocals that are full of long words and seem to never stop! This part sounds pretty good with Geddy constantly saying something and it could've led perfectly into a solo, but Lifeson just plays the same riff he's been playing until it return to the main riff. They play a final verse and chorus and before returning to the fast-talking part, only this time Lifeson adds some much better guitar and as things slowly fade out Peart gets in a few pretty sweet drum fills as well. Well at least they ended things with a nice touch!

That is the end of "Roll The Bones" and I thought it was a pretty mediocre album by these three very talented musicians. "Where's My Thing?" is the only song that ever really got me going and while I must continue to iterate that it's not really bad music, Rush's worst music is still better than a lot of people's best music, but this was Rush's worst music in my opinion. I previously thought their last album "Presto" was their worst album, but this newest one sadly takes the cake as the bottom rung on Rush's ladder. I hate that this is what they've become and I know they still have it in them to get back to at least some more hard rock music. We'll have to wait and see!