Legendary Canadian prog-rock trio Rush brought its ongoing Fifty Something tour to San Antonio’s Frost Bank Center on Wednesday and Friday nights. An epic multimedia production and two different setlists left fans in a state of rapt ecstasy, cheering along even though each set contained nearly three hours of music.
San Antonio’s had a long love affair with Rush. The city’s infatuation with the band goes all the way back to the early years, when it was championed by local album rock powerhouse KISS-FM and iconic DJs Joe Anthony and Lou Roney, who helped promote the band with an early gig at Randy’s Rodeo.
To call the two Frost Bank Center shows highly anticipated would undersell them. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famers called it quits after 2015’s R40 tour despite their cultish fans clamoring for more. Then drummer and lyricist Neil Peart — the member openly pushing retirement — died in 2020, seemingly closing the book forever.
But almost a year ago, a shock announcement hit social media: Rush would barnstorm the U.S. with a series of residencies to celebrate 50 years.
And a funny thing happened on the way to the LA Forum, where the tour kicked off — somehow the band became even more beloved. Ticket sales exploded, and some even likened the set of road dates to Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, but for middle-aged men.
Those people pretty much nailed it.
It’s hard to imagine anyone leaving these two San Antonio shows disappointed. Bassist-vocalist Geddy Lee, whose voice legendarily reaches upper registers, killed it. He sounded better than he had on the band’s latter tours. Alex Lifeson, the group’s oft-overshadowed guitarist, sounded dexterous despite a public battle with arthritis.
And new drummer Anika Nilles? Forget about it. She played with confidence and swagger, respecting Peart’s highly composed drum parts while adding a touch of her own groove. Throw in new adjunct keyboardist Loren Gold — who gave the multitasking Lee a bit of a breather — and you have a solid band.
But whoever brought it, the magic was back.
Longtime fans will be happy to tell you in depth that the brilliance of Rush lies in contrast. Very serious, difficult compositions performed by guys — and now a gal — who don’t take themselves seriously.
Take the funny video that opened the show both nights, depicting Lee and Lifeson decrepit in an old folks’ home before leading into “Xanadu,” one of the numerous twisty prog compositions performed both nights. The video featured actors Paul Rudd and Jason Segel reprising their I Love You, Man roles, something they’ve done on Rush tour videos since the movie was released more than 15 years ago.
The video ended with the infamously goofy robes that Rush made famous early in their career. Then the real Lee and Lifeson emerged onstage with their equally notorious double-necked guitar and bass.
The important part is that while the visual may have drawn laughs, both players actually use the two necks of their instruments to great effect across the multiple sections and textures that comprise the song.
And the humor balances out the Samuel Taylor Coleridge-inspired lyrics. How else can you get away with that type of lyrical content and not be pretentious?
The first set both nights included not just the “Xanadu” opener, but also “Subdivisions,” from Signals, which kicked off the band’s divisive synth era. For some, this period may work better live with a pulsing groove, given that the production on albums drove at least some of the criticism.
The centerpiece of the show both nights lay at the start of the second set. On Wednesday night, Rush tore through its complete rock opera “2112.” Yes, all seven movements of the song.
When released in 1976, the suite took up a full LP side, and was a deliberate declaration of independence from their record company, which encouraged the group to eschew long compositions in favor of radio-friendly tunes. Clocking in at more than 20 minutes, the song weaves a tale of creative liberty and censorship in a dystopian future.
On Friday night, Rush treated the audience to a complete performance of its signature 1981 album Moving Pictures to start the second set.
Moving Pictures is beloved by fans because it’s an amalgam of everything that makes Rush great. Iconic artwork? Check. Synth-driven melody with mind-blowing fills and a signpost to the future? Ladies and gentlemen, “Tom Sawyer.” A sci-fi tale? “Red Barchetta.” A knotted instrumental? “YYZ.” A radio-friendly meditation on fame with a hooky chorus? “Limelight.” A ten-minute epic with every one of the aforementioned elements, a virtual microcosm of the album itself? “The Camera Eye.” A criticism of fear-mongering with a heavy, sinister riff reminiscent of Rush’s early work? “Witch Hunt.” And an odd, reggae-filtered Police-inspired treatise on emotions to wrap it up? “Vital Signs.”
The visuals exploded at full force during each night’s second set. Lasers swept through the arena, pulling the audience into futuristic sci-fi landscapes. The proceedings had the nostalgic trappings of a classic arena show but were driven by state-of-the-art technology.
Attendees of only one night didn’t completely miss out either. On Wednesday night, the band played five of seven songs from Moving Pictures, primarily in the second set. On Friday, the band closed the show with an abbreviated take on “2112,” including three of the movements for the concert’s explosive finale.
Don’t think it was all sci-fi escapism, though. Peart’s untimely death hung over the proceedings, despite Lee’s statement in interviews that he did not want the band’s concerts to feel like funerals. Pictures of Peart flashed poignantly on the giant video screens that framed the stage each night during the song “Bravado,” and the performance both nights of “Time Stand Still” featured imagery of the late drummer’s iconic kit sitting empty.
While those songs came from post-Moving Pictures albums, the overall setlists on both nights pulled heavily from the band’s earlier years.
The older-skewing song choices made the tour something of an outlier in Rush history, since past tours have leaned toward a more balanced approach to the catalog.
Despite Peart’s notable absence, Nilles may very well have stolen the show. Not only did she display killer chops, but her beaming smiles and easy rapport with Lee and Lifeson gave the comeback show heart it might not have had if the band had chosen someone better-known to fill that vital role.
On Wednesday night, Nilles dropped a drumstick during the iconic “Tom Sawyer” drum fills but recovered like a stone-cold pro. The move was so impressive that national music blogs called it out.
Encores for both shows closed with “Working Man,” the band’s first single, released more than 50 years ago. When it first aired on Cleveland radio, listeners mistook it for a new Led Zeppelin song, and given the thundering riffs and Lee’s forceful falsetto, one can see why.
But as Rush’s career unspooled across two nights this week in San Antonio, listeners couldn’t miss the virtually unparalleled development in the band’s sound. And it’s that development that truly defines the band. Even fellow ‘70s prog monsters such as Genesis and Yes stalled after the ‘80s, while Rush kept rolling.
If this is Rush’s last tour — and given the members’ ages, it’s highly possible — the members are going out on a high note, eh? We’re lucky to have had this cherished band in our lives all these decades.
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