Cute. Very cute!
Just thought of a Rush/iHub/SI parallel.
Geddy Lee is the band's frontman mostly because he's the vocalist. And is widely considered one of the best bassists around.
Alex Lifeson is the true "sound" of the band, his guitar filling huge areas of the sound spectrum since he's doing with one guitar what most bands use two guitars to do and doing so with what many consider "unique" or even "weird" voicings (choices of note ordering/selection in chords). He's one of the most under-rated musicians around, in my opinion, but he does get an awful lot of respect. The problem is, he's outstanding on an instrument that has a lot of really outstanding players. Few bassists or drummers drop your jaw; many guitarists do.
Neil Peart is the true "heart" of the band. Keeping the beat going, and being able to do so in the weirdest rhythmic environment imaginable. Rock is typically 4/4 or 2/4, but Rush considers time signature to be an afterthought. It's just whatever fits the lyrics and often changes several times within a song (in "Driven", the main riff has 3 time signatures, all ending in 16, in 4 measures). And he's the only drummer I've ever heard do a long, intricate drum solo in 3/4, which is typically thought of as a "waltz" time signature. Oom-pah-pah. He is almost universally described as the best drummer who has ever picked up a pair of sticks, though I was shocked to talk to a fellow track enthusiast who is retired from a career as a professional trumpet player, and hear him call Neil Peart "over-rated". Them's fightin' words!!!!
Geez, I really need a blog, the way I ramble on, and usually off-topic.
Anyway, the Rush/SIHub parallels.
In "the day" SIHub, like Rush, was a "power trio".
I was Geddy Lee. The frontman with the voice many find very annoying, but annoying or not, was the voice of the band, particularly in business matters. Considered, as most vocalists are, "the leader" though he's just one part of the team that makes it happen. (Aside, I love his old prepubescent wail just as much as I love the silky beauty of his current voice)
Matt was Alex Lifeson (Alex has gotten a bit chubby lately and even before he did, was often called "Big Al", btw), the real "soul" of iHub. Most people don't know/appreciate the range of the job(s) he has to do and its impact on the "band's sound", though I think most realize he's doing a job normally done by two people.
Dave was (and still is) Neil Peart, setting the flawless yet ridiculously intricate and difficult beat that keeps the two prima donnas in check and has Neil's (who is also the group's lyricist) facility with the English language and to this day does all official correspondence on behalf of the company. |
