This week on Riff Worship, we dive into Rush’s 1978 conceptual titan, Hemispheres!
Following the grueling tour cycle for A Farewell to Kings, Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neil Peart headed to Rockfield Studios in Wales with producer Terry Brown to test their limits and record one of the most complex and ambitious albums of their career.
We break down Rush’s origins in Willowdale, Ontario, the transition from early hard rock to high-concept progressive rock, and the grueling, round-the-clock recording sessions that pushed the band to the edge.
We’ll examine Side A’s 18-minute epic, “Cygnus X-1 (Book II: Hemispheres),” analyzing its psychological battle between Apollo and Dionysus, alongside Side B standouts “Circumstances,” “The Trees,” and the legendary 12-part instrumental “La Villa Strangiato (An Exercise in Self-Indulgence).”
Join us as we discuss why Hemispheres marked both the peak and the end of Rush’s pure, side-long prog era!
Recommendations:
Spazz / Romantic Gorilla - Split
Emma Ruth Rundle - These Killing Times
Psycroptic - The Pulse of Annihilation
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