Clockwork Angels Tour News

The 2012 leg of the Clockwork Angels Tour kicked off September 7th in Manchester, New Hampshire, and visited 34 cities before coming to a close December 2nd in Houston, Texas. The 2013 leg began April 23rd in Austin, Texas, and will conclude August 4th in Kansas City, Missouri. The 2013 leg of the Clockwork Angels tour is a continuation of the 2012 leg, in that the videos are the same and the setlists are those that have been played before.

Setlists

Similiar to the Vapor Trails tour, the band is offering up alternate setlists from night to night. Two unique setlists were performed the first two nights of the tour. The third night of the tour introduced revised setlists "Night A²" and "Night B²". The fifth night of the tour setlist A³ was first introduced, with a counterpart B³ introduced on the eighth night; those setlists dominated the tour with minor revisions as described here:

• Setlists A/B and A²/B²: 1) The first two nights "Carnies" alternated with "Seven Cities of Gold" while "Wish Them Well" was in both setlists; starting the third night "Carnies" was in both setlists while "Wish Them Well" alternated with "Seven Cities"; and 2) while "The Spirit of Radio" and "2112" medley alternated to close the first two shows, by the third night "2112" was the permanent encore finale.
• Setlist A³ and B³: The fifth night the setlist was similar to A² but "The Spirit of Radio" was moved to the end of the show replacing "Working Man"; on the eighth night setlist B² was revised so that "The Spirit of Radio" replaced "Working man"; "Working Man" has not been played since.
• Setlist B⁴: An rare "B" setlist only performed once on the 2012 leg, a one song variation to B³, with "Seven Cities Of Gold" replacing "Wish Them Well".
• Setlist A⁴: A rare "A" setlist with "Limelight" replacing "Body Electric". This is not such a big surprise, as "Limelight" was listed in the setlist but marked out in a photo taken before showtime opening night.
• Setlist B⁵: A rare "B" setlist where "Limelight" replaced "Middletown Dreams".
• Setlists B⁶ and A⁵: On the nights of the live filming in Phoenix and Dallas, the primary A/B setlists which dominated the tour were alternated as planned with two exceptions. 1) In Dallas, "Wish Them Well" was added to the setlist without dropping its alternate; this is the only time the entire tour that the entire Clockwork Angels set was performed in its entirety without alternates, and 2) Dreamline and Manhattan Project switched nights (Dreamline was played in Dallas); it is understood that Dallas will be the main show featured on the next concert film, and apparently the band wanted to feature Dreamline instead of Manhattan Project on that release.
• Setlist A⁶: An rare "A" setlist only performed once to close out the 2012 leg in Houston, with "Limelight" plus the added revision of "Dreamline" replacing "Manhattan Project".

Overall, Rush have offered up a completely fresh setlist for this tour. The first set is heavy with 80's tracks with the three album openers from Signals/Power Windows/Hold Your Fire performed sequentially to kick off the show, followed by three ultra rare 80's live tracks, with more later in the show. For the first time ever, the live show incorporates a string section taking the stage for the majority of the second half of the show. Also for the first time, the drum solo has been broken up into three parts heard a different points throughout the show.

Including tracks performed in all setlists, the tour includes only two tracks from the 70's (Working Man, 2112 medley), four from the 90's (The Pass, Dreamline, Bravado and Where's My Thing?), and one from the 00's (Far Cry); the remaining tracks are from the 80's or Clockwork Angels. The albums Power Windows (five tracks between both nights) and Roll The Bones (three tracks between both nights) are heavily featured. The second set includes 10 of 12 tracks from Clockwork Angels, the most songs ever performed in support of a new album, with the omissions being "BU2B" and "BU2B2". Albums not featured this tour: Fly By Night, Caress Of Steel, A Farewell To Kings, Hemispheres, Counterparts, Test For Echo, Vapor Trails and Feedback. "Grand Designs" and "Middletown Dreams" are performed for just the second time ever, after only being heard on the Power Windows tour (since the R30 tour, every track from that album has been performed except "Emotion Detector" which has never been performed live). Similarly, "Where's My Thing?" is heard for just its second tour, only heard before on Roll The Bones tour. "The Body Electric" is brought back after last being heard on the Power Windows Warm Up tour, "Territories" was last heard on the Hold Your Fire tour, "Manhattan Project" was last heard on the Presto tour while "The Analog Kid" was last heard on the Counterparts tour. "The Big Money" and "The Pass" were last heard on the Vapor Trails tour, while "Force Ten", "Red Sector A", "Bravado" and 2112's "Grand Finale" were last heard on R30. "Dreamline" was last hard on the Snakes & Arrows tour. And returing from the Time Machine tour are "Subdivisions", "Tom Sawyer", "Limelight", "The Spirit Of Radio", "YYZ", "Working Man", and "Far Cry".

Show Notes

• There are three videos played during the show: the show opens with "Gearing Up"; the second set opens with "The Appoinment"; and the show ends with "Office Of The Watchmaker".
• Overall show length is approximately 3 hours including intermission: opening night lights went out at 7:45, first set lasted almost exactly 60 minutes, last song finished at 10:45.
• Geddy's backline includes a popcorn machine and a large floating brain in a giant jar.
• There is a small stage behind the drumkit with a small staircase leading up to it from both sides for the string section, which comes out and performs for the entire second set, leaving before the encore.
• During "The Big Money" we hear Dr. Evil from Austin Powers say "One Million Dollars!". The Austin Powers films have been referenced on Different Stages (Geddy says "Yeah Baby!"), in the Snakes In Arrows Live linernotes ("Isn't that weird"), and on the Time Machine Tour during "The Camera Eye" (a sample of Austin saying "Yeah Baby, Yeah!").
• During Where's My Thing, a man in a white robe checked the brain and popcorn machine, wearing a white [Einstein?] wig.
• Alex has a keyboard (same as on the Time Machine tour), which he uses to play the piano on "The Garden".
• Late in "Wish Them Well" the band plays 30 seconds of "Dance To The Music" by Sly and the Family Stone.
• Beginning the fifth show in Chicago, the starman appears in the opening video for "2112", but then Stewie from Family Guy kicks the starman off the screen and takes his place.
• During the film "The Appoinment", the doorbell first plays "Closer To The Heart" and then "Tom Sawyer".
• At the end of the "Office Of The Watchmaker", we hear "Tom Sawyer" (Calliope version).
• Click here for Official Photo Galleries of each night
• Click here for the Clockwork Angels tourbook
• Click here for the Clockwork Angels tourdates

In Their Own Words

"Our intention is to take strings out on the road," guitarist Alex Lifeson tells Billboard.com. Orchestrations, arranged by David Campbell, feature on several of "Clockwork Angels'" tracks, and Lifeson says Rush will employ a small string ensemble, likely eight to 10 pieces, to recreate those pieces and to be added to some of Rush's older material. "It's just something different for us, and I can't wait to hear what it sounds like." Lifeson says Campbell will be writing arrangements for the tour, which kicks off Sept. 7 in Manchester, N.H., and will likely appear at some of the shows as well. "Certainly in the beginning he'll be out for a bit," the guitarist says. "I think his intention is to use these musicians he's been working with for a long time, who he trusts, and once they're settled in he doesn't have to be around all the time and he can come out whenever he feels like it." - Billboard.com, June 18, 2012

"'Clockwork Angels' has five or six songs with strings on them, and we thought that rather than triggering samples, why don't we think about taking strings out for a change? We can pull out some of the older material from the past that we did string arrangements for and include that. And, we sort of dove into it. It's so nice to go out and do something that's unusual and different and keeps you on your toes. And, hopefully, you don't wreck anything for them and they don't wreck anything for you." - Alex Lifeson, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, September 6, 2012

Neil Peart...said that in the three and a half weeks of rehearsals...he dropped at least 10 pounds....This year's pre-tour training regimen began in February. Three times a week, Mr. Peart would bike 20 minutes to his local Los Angeles Y.M.C.A., swap his helmet for a bandanna, and spend 30 minutes on the cross-trainer (keeping his heart rate near his recommended maximum), followed by calisthenics, yoga sun salutations (he held each pose for a count of 20 Mississippi) and the return bike ride home. (His favorite workout track? Silence. 'The only activity I combine with music is driving,' Mr. Peart said. 'For me, exercise is an act of will.'). - New York Times, September 9, 2012

A future opportunity to appear on stage with rock legends Rush was probably not exactly what Salina Symphony legend Eric Stein had in mind when he handed his daughter a violin at age 3, but it suits Adele Stein fine. The 25-year-old Salina native, who started playing cello when she switched from violin at age 4, was on stage with Rush for the first time Friday at the opening show of the group's "Clockwork Angels" tour in Manchester, N.H. She is one of eight string instrument musicians who are sharing the stage with the iconic rock trio during its current nine-week U.S. and Canada tour, which will conclude Dec. 4 in Houston. "It's really an incredible experience," she said. "We sit behind the band on a riser. People will be able to see us very clearly." Stein, who lives in Phoenix, is not old enough to have been into Rush in high school, having graduated South High in 2005...However, she had seen the movie called "I Love You, Man," about two men who were big Rush fans and attend a Rush concert, before she got an email from a gig contractor in Los Angeles asking if she'd be interested in the tour. She knew right away she wanted to do it. "I couldn't believe it when I got the email," she said. "I was at the airport when I got it, and I was so excited. I was looking around, antsy, trying to tell somebody, but there was nobody to tell." She found an appreciative audience for her news when she called her mom, Wendy, in Salina. Wendy is planning a trip to Chicago to see her daughter perform with the band and take advantage of a VIP pass and board the string players' bus, one of five buses on the tour. Stein said the stringed instruments are featured in the band's new material from the "Clockwork Angels" CD, but she said they may also get to play along on the Rush hit "YYZ". She said guitarist Alex Lifeson, drummer/lyricist Neal Peart and vocalist/bass player Geddy Lee are "the sweetest men you can possibly imagine." Stein first met the band after she arrived in Toronto on Aug. 26 for pre-tour rehearsals. She said the string players did a rendition of "Happy Birthday" for Lifeson, whose birthday fell during the early days of rehearsals. Stein said she walked past Lifeson and wished him happy birthday, and he thanked her by name. "Some people I've worked with who are famous, like, they don't take the time to get to know your name," she said. "They (Rush members) are so humble and do not act famous at all." Before the tour started, Stein had been concerned about how the loud music on stage might affect her sensitive ears. However, she was soon contacted by an audiologist, who took impressions of her ears and prepared custom-made headphones in which she can control the volume of the sound mix. She said she had listened to a few of the new songs off the recently released album before arriving to rehearse, but at the first rehearsal the musicians all listened to the music together before playing it. "It's got some pretty incredible rock rifts all throughout every song," she said. "It's very well-written music." - Salina.com, September 12, 2012

"What happened is the thing that always happens -- the set was much longer than what we had to limit ourselves to. We didn't want to get rid of those songs, so we picked a Set A and a Set B, and since then we've been tweaking it a bit, playing a couple and moving them around. I mentioned to Ged the other day: It's kind of nice to arrive at a gig in the afternoon and decide which songs to switch out that night and keep it mysterious, especially now that everything is blogged and tweeted and e-mailed. And it's been a whole set list controversy. Having a deep catalog like this makes it difficult to play enough songs that everybody wants to hear. Everybody has their favored and less favored songs. Rush fans are great at debating the merits of songs. And good at expressing their disappointment and elation. (Laughs) "We don't usually do this type of thing, so we may get back in our usual groove. I'd be an advocate for some other stuff, songs we didn't prepare perhaps." Alex Lifeson, Detroit Free Press, September 16, 2012

"We're stuck with certain songs that we kind of have to play, but generally we do try to go back to songs that we haven't played either in a long time or haven't at all. It's fun to revisit those songs and inject a little bit of new life into them. We weren't really keen on playing 'The Camera Eye' for a very long time. It wasn't until we ended up doing the whole Moving Pictures album that we made an effort. It ended up being our favorite song to play on a nightly basis. It's a challenging song to play and it's long. There are a lot of ups and downs and a lot of melody changes and key changes. It's a workout but to play it well is very, very satisfying for us. We'll continue to play it on this next tour." - Alex Lifeson on how 'The Camera Eye' was intended to be performed on the Clockwork Angels tour, Guitar Player, November 2012

"Alex, Geddy, and I exchanged many emails on the subject of the setlist - what new songs we would play, and which old ones we wanted to either keep or resurrect...I enjoyed relearning some songs from the mid-'80s we hadn't played for many years, like 'Grand Designs,' 'Territories,' 'Middletown Dreams,' and 'Manhattan Project' and I could tell they were going to sound better than the records (because we play better now than we did back then). But it soon became clear to me that the proposed sets were way too long. Typically, we like to play a one-hour first set, take a twenty-minute intermission (before which Geddy always makes an announcement along the lines of, "We have to take a break - 'cause we're about a hundred"), then play another hour and thirty or forty minutes. Gump and I could tell the two setlists I was playing to would add up to much more than that, and we would need to drop at least four songs. However, there were no obvious candidates, and when I mentioned this reality to Alex and Geddy, the three of us couldn't agree on dropping any. So I suggested something different for us: putting together two shows, Show A and Show B, that would alternate four different songs each night. In the past we had always preferred a fixed format for the setlist, and when confronted with only one or two songs in excess, we would either knuckle down and play them, or drop them for time constraints. This time, somehow the idea seemed more attractive to us when it was bigger (as it should). It did mean having to learn that many more songs, and work them out musically, technically, and production-wise, but it seemed worthwhile - even just because it was different." - Neil Peart, DW Edge #10

"In the recent past I had always performed a long solo, around nine minutes, somewhere in the middle of the second set. But...during the mixing of Clockwork Angels, our co-producer, Nick Raskulinecz, an irrepressible 'enabler,' insisted that I had to do my solo out of the drum break in 'Headlong Flight.' It happened that that song would appear around the middle of the second set, but - ¡Jesu Christo! - 'Headlong Flight' is a fast-paced seven-minute song, in the middle of a fast-paced hour-long performance of the Clockwork Angels songs, with another thirty or forty minutes still to go. Plus, coming out of that drum break I will still need to drive through a long guitar solo, another verse, bridge, and a double chorus, all at a fast tempo. To say the least, it was daunting. But...once again I applied some 'polyrhythmic thinking.' What if I did two shorter solos, one in each set?" - Neil Peart, DW Edge #10

Opening Night Concert Videos

• Intro video -> Subdivisions
• The Big Money
• Force Ten
• Grand Designs
• The Body Electric
• Territories
• Analog Kid
• Bravado
• Where's My Thing? -> Drum Solo 1
• Far Cry
• Video
• Caravan
• Clockwork Angels
• The Anarchist
• Carnies (alternate)
• The Wreckers
• Headlong Flight -> Drum Solo 2
• Halo Effect (with guitar solo intro)
• Wish Them Well
• The Garden (alternate)
• "Alex's joke
• Manhattan Project
• The Percussor (Drum Solo 3) -> Red Sector A
• YYZ
• Working Man
• T-shirt toss
• Tom Sawyer
• The Spirit of Radio
• "Office Of The Watchmaker" outro video

"Night B" alternates

• Middletown Dreams
• The Pass
• Seven Cities Of Gold
• Dreamline
• 2112 Overture/Temples/Grand Finale