I know that the Taurus forum has a good following of Rush enthusiasts but though better to post here.
Am about 2/3rds through the new Behind the Lighted Stage Documentary but couldn’t wait to share with the community here how terrific it is.
I do not have the R30 DVD but if you are a Rush fan like me saw and liked the ‘bonus’ DVD of the Rush in RIO, you’ll appreciate even more of the Band’s day-to-day that had not been widely seen prior.
In this case, however, it’s a beginning to present day documentary with tons of footage that I don’t think was ever seen prior including gems like Alex Lifeson at his kitchen table with his parents telling them that he didn’t want to complete school and didn’t see the value in having a fancy car, etc etc,. Much to their disappointment, they listened to him carry on as any 17 yr. old rebel would. Fast forward to today and there are clips of all of their parents talking about what they were doing at the time, etc.
The documentary also gives a view into the evolution of the band & its music through the turbulent 90’s and how each producer had their own influence on the sound, direction, etc. One bit that jumped out at me was the part where Alex piped up about the brewing problem that he had with all of the synths that Geddy had been adding to their music and how they eventually got back to their roots. The producer of Counterparts (insisting that Geddy pick up the ole’ Fender J-Bass again and that Alex say “no” to the arsenal of pedals) had influence, I’m sure; and they talk about this, but in my opinion, had it not been for the strong lifelong friendship between Alex and Geddy, and the fact that neither had much of an outward American sized ego, they too would have fallen as (completely unrelated in every respect but this) Van Halen did when the influx of 80’s synthesizers and Roth/Eddie VH did battle.
There’s also alot of hand written stills of much of Neil’s lyrics from the original papers they were written on; it’s an extremely well produced ride for any Rush fan.
Synth-wise, it showed some early pics of Geddy’s studio rig complete with Taurus I, supersized Ob SEM multivoice (i can’t say 4 way, as it looked more like 12 way!), and lots of footage of minimoog scattered throughout with the latest clips showing Ged’s Little Phatty atop his very much modest setup as used today.
I was a young 12 year old when Hemispheres was released so didn’t have much of a chance to go to shows, but for fans who were too young to be a part of it, or never managed to get out, alot of the material in this DVD, not to mention the bonus DVD will fill the gap and hopefully get you out of your chair just in time for the Time Machine tour.