A history of realistic rock rebellion
Rush, Heidegger and the spirit of authenticity
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/pomh.35026Keywords:
Rush, Heidegger, Dasein, objectivism, progAbstract
While the Canadian rock band has habitually been associated with the theme of individuality, and the literary/philosophical work of Ayn Rand, this article takes a retrospective look at the band’s 40-year recording history and argues that the issue of individuality and individual rebellion inherent within the band’s music cogently reflects Heideggerian ideas. As such, while the concept of striving to transcend the ‘mass’ is a key discourse within the music of Rush, it takes on a realistic and often short-lived form that makes sense in relation to Heidegger’s conception of the power of the social and cultural ‘They’. Consequently, in critically examining key recordings such as ‘Subdivisions’ and the conceptual albums 2112 and Clockwork Angels, the article argues that Rush stress a form of rebellion that reflects the everyday pressures imposed by social norms, and does not reflect macrosocial struggles, elements central to the work of Ayn Rand.
References
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Anderton, Chris. 2010. ‘A Many-Headed Beast: Progressive Rock as European Meta-genre’. Popular Music 29/3: 417–35. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261143010000450
Berti, Jim, and Durrel S. Bowman, eds. 2011. Rush and Philosophy: Heart and Mind United. New York: Open Court.
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—2015. Neil Peart: Cultural Repercussions. Colorado: Wordfire Press.
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Bowman, Durrell S. 2002. ‘“Let them all make their own music”: Individualism, Rush and the Progressive/Hard Rock Alloy, 1976–77’. In Progressive Rock Reconsidered, ed. Kevin Holm-Hudson, 183–218. New York: Routledge.
Deranty, Jean-Philippe. 2014. ‘The Cruel Poetics of Morrissey: Fragment for a Phenomenology of the Ages of Life’. Thesis Eleven 120/1: 90–103. https://doi.org/10.1177/0725513613519590
Elliott, Paul. 2017. ‘The Neil Peart Interview’. Louder, 19 June. https://www.loudersound.com/features/rush-the-rhythm-method (accessed 26 April 2019).
Friedman, Robert. 2014. Rush: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Excellence. New York: Algora Publishing.
Frith, Simon. 1983. Sound Effects: Youth, Leisure and the Politics of Rock. London: Constable.
Guignon, Charles. B. 1984. ‘Heidegger’s “Authenticity” Revisited’. Review of Metaphysics 38/2: 321–39.
Hann, Michael. 2018. ‘Geddy Lee on Rush’s Greatest Songs: “Even I can barely make sense of our concept albums”’. The Guardian, 24 December. https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/dec/24/geddy-lee-on-rush-greatest-songs (accessed 18 February 2018).
Hegarty, Paul, and Martin Halliwell. 2013. Beyond and Before: Progressive Rock since the 1960s. New York and London: Bloomsbury.
Heidegger, Martin. 1962. Being and Time. Oxford: Blackwell.
Hiatt, Brian. 2015. ‘From Rush with Love’. Rolling Stone, July: 41–47.
Holm-Hudson, Kevin. 2008. Genesis and the Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. Farnham: Ashgate.
Horwitz, Steven. 2011. ‘Rush’s Libertarianism Never Fit the Plan’. In Rush and Philosophy: Heart and Mind United, ed. Jim Berti and Durrel S. Bowman, 255–71. New York: Open Court.
Johnes, Martin. 2018. ‘Consuming Popular Music: Individualism, Politics and Progressive Rock’. Cultural and Social History 15/1: 115–34. https://doi.org/10.1080/14780038.2018.1426815
Keister, Jay, and Jeremy L. Smith. 2008. ‘Musical Ambition, Cultural Accreditation and the Nasty Side of Progressive Rock’. Popular Music 27/3: 433–55. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261143008102227
Lambe, Stephen. 2012. Citizens of Hope and Glory: The Story of Progressive Rock. Gloucestershire: Amberley.
Lev, Michael. 2015. ‘For Rush’s Neil Peart, a Planned Retirement Beats the Alternative’. Chicago Tribune, 9 December. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/commentary/ (accessed 14 July 2017).
Lore, Mark. 2015. ‘Rush at 40: Geddy Lee Talks the Past, Present and Future’. Paste Magazine, 28 December. https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2015/12/rush-at-40-geddy-lee-talks-the-past-present-and-fu.html (accessed 31 January 2019).
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Martin, Bill. 1998. Listening to the Future: The Time of Progressive Rock, 1968–1978. Chicago and La Salle: Open Court.
McDonald, Chris. 2009. Rush: Rock Music and the Middle Class. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press.
Miles, Barry. 2015. ‘Rush: “You have no freedom. You do what you’re told to do. By the socialists”’. The Guardian, 13 May. https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/may/13/rush-nme-interview-1978-rocks-backpages (accessed 14 July 2017).
Neale, Steve. 2000. Genre and Hollywood. London and New York: Routledge.
Nooger, Dan. 1976. ‘Rush Goes into Future Shock: “Music will not exist in 2112”’. Circus, 27 April. http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19760427circus.htm (accessed 6 June 2017).
Peart, Neil. 2004. Traveling Music: The Soundtrack to My Life and Times. Toronto: ECW Press.
—2016. Far and Wide: Bring That Horizon to Me! Toronto: ECW Press.
Popoff, Martin. 2017. Rush: Album by Album. Minneapolis: Voyageur Press.
Price, Carol Selby, and Robert M. Price. 1999. Mystic Rhythms: The Philosophical Vision of Rush. Berkeley: Wildside Press.
Rand, Ayn. 1964. The Virtue of Selfishness. New York: Signet.
—1995. Anthem. New York: Signet.
Reed, Ryan. 2018. ‘Geddy Lee on Rush’s Prog-Rock Opus “Hemispheres”: “We had to raise our game”’. Rolling Stone, 22 October. https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/rush-geddy-lee-interview-prog-rock-hemispheres-738828/ (accessed 21 February 2018).
Sheehan, Thomas. 2015. Making Sense of Heidegger: A Paradigm Shift. London and New York: Rowman & Littlefield.
Sherman, Glen. L. 2009. ‘Martin Heidegger’s Concept of Authenticity: A Philosophical Contribution to Student Affairs Theory’. Journal of College and Character 10/7: 1–8. https://doi.org/10.2202/1940-1639.1440
Shuker, Roy. 2002. Understanding Popular Music. London and New York: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203478806
Stump, Paul. 1998. The Music’s All That Matters: A History of Progressive Rock. London: Quartet Books.
Taddeo, Julie Anne, and Cynthia J. Miller, eds. 2013. Steaming into a Victorian Future: A Steampunk Anthology. Lanham and Toronto: Scarecrow Press.
Watts, Michael. 2011. The Philosophy of Heidegger. Durham: Acumen.
Weigel, David. 2017. The Show That Never Ends: The Rise and Fall of Prog Rock. New York: W.W. Norton.
Weinstein, Deena, and Michael A. Weinstein. 2011. ‘Neil Peart versus Ayn Rand’. In Rush and Philosophy: Heart and Mind United, ed. Jim Berti and Durrel S. Bowman, 273–85. New York: Open Court.
Wendt, Thomas. 2015. Design for Dasein: Understanding the Design of Experiences. Createspace Independent Publishing Platform.
Anderton, Chris. 2010. ‘A Many-Headed Beast: Progressive Rock as European Meta-genre’. Popular Music 29/3: 417–35. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261143010000450
Berti, Jim, and Durrel S. Bowman, eds. 2011. Rush and Philosophy: Heart and Mind United. New York: Open Court.
Birzer, Bradley J. 2012. ‘Rock as Mythos: Rush’s Clockwork Angels’. The Imaginative Conservative. http://www.theimaginativeconservative.org/2012/06/rush-progressive-rock-as-mythos.html (accessed 6 July 2017).
—2015. Neil Peart: Cultural Repercussions. Colorado: Wordfire Press.
Bosso, Joe. 2012. ‘Interview: Alex Lifeson talks Rush’s Clockwork Angels track-by-track’. MusicRadar, 25 May. https://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/interview-alex-lifeson-talks-rushs-clockwork-angels-track-by-track-545614 (accessed 15 February 2019).
Bowman, Durrell S. 2002. ‘“Let them all make their own music”: Individualism, Rush and the Progressive/Hard Rock Alloy, 1976–77’. In Progressive Rock Reconsidered, ed. Kevin Holm-Hudson, 183–218. New York: Routledge.
Deranty, Jean-Philippe. 2014. ‘The Cruel Poetics of Morrissey: Fragment for a Phenomenology of the Ages of Life’. Thesis Eleven 120/1: 90–103. https://doi.org/10.1177/0725513613519590
Elliott, Paul. 2017. ‘The Neil Peart Interview’. Louder, 19 June. https://www.loudersound.com/features/rush-the-rhythm-method (accessed 26 April 2019).
Friedman, Robert. 2014. Rush: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Excellence. New York: Algora Publishing.
Frith, Simon. 1983. Sound Effects: Youth, Leisure and the Politics of Rock. London: Constable.
Guignon, Charles. B. 1984. ‘Heidegger’s “Authenticity” Revisited’. Review of Metaphysics 38/2: 321–39.
Hann, Michael. 2018. ‘Geddy Lee on Rush’s Greatest Songs: “Even I can barely make sense of our concept albums”’. The Guardian, 24 December. https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/dec/24/geddy-lee-on-rush-greatest-songs (accessed 18 February 2018).
Hegarty, Paul, and Martin Halliwell. 2013. Beyond and Before: Progressive Rock since the 1960s. New York and London: Bloomsbury.
Heidegger, Martin. 1962. Being and Time. Oxford: Blackwell.
Hiatt, Brian. 2015. ‘From Rush with Love’. Rolling Stone, July: 41–47.
Holm-Hudson, Kevin. 2008. Genesis and the Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. Farnham: Ashgate.
Horwitz, Steven. 2011. ‘Rush’s Libertarianism Never Fit the Plan’. In Rush and Philosophy: Heart and Mind United, ed. Jim Berti and Durrel S. Bowman, 255–71. New York: Open Court.
Johnes, Martin. 2018. ‘Consuming Popular Music: Individualism, Politics and Progressive Rock’. Cultural and Social History 15/1: 115–34. https://doi.org/10.1080/14780038.2018.1426815
Keister, Jay, and Jeremy L. Smith. 2008. ‘Musical Ambition, Cultural Accreditation and the Nasty Side of Progressive Rock’. Popular Music 27/3: 433–55. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261143008102227
Lambe, Stephen. 2012. Citizens of Hope and Glory: The Story of Progressive Rock. Gloucestershire: Amberley.
Lev, Michael. 2015. ‘For Rush’s Neil Peart, a Planned Retirement Beats the Alternative’. Chicago Tribune, 9 December. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/commentary/ (accessed 14 July 2017).
Lore, Mark. 2015. ‘Rush at 40: Geddy Lee Talks the Past, Present and Future’. Paste Magazine, 28 December. https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2015/12/rush-at-40-geddy-lee-talks-the-past-present-and-fu.html (accessed 31 January 2019).
Macan, Edward. 1997. Rocking the Classics: English Progressive Rock and the Counterculture. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195098884.003.0003
Martin, Bill. 1998. Listening to the Future: The Time of Progressive Rock, 1968–1978. Chicago and La Salle: Open Court.
McDonald, Chris. 2009. Rush: Rock Music and the Middle Class. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press.
Miles, Barry. 2015. ‘Rush: “You have no freedom. You do what you’re told to do. By the socialists”’. The Guardian, 13 May. https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/may/13/rush-nme-interview-1978-rocks-backpages (accessed 14 July 2017).
Neale, Steve. 2000. Genre and Hollywood. London and New York: Routledge.
Nooger, Dan. 1976. ‘Rush Goes into Future Shock: “Music will not exist in 2112”’. Circus, 27 April. http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19760427circus.htm (accessed 6 June 2017).
Peart, Neil. 2004. Traveling Music: The Soundtrack to My Life and Times. Toronto: ECW Press.
—2016. Far and Wide: Bring That Horizon to Me! Toronto: ECW Press.
Popoff, Martin. 2017. Rush: Album by Album. Minneapolis: Voyageur Press.
Price, Carol Selby, and Robert M. Price. 1999. Mystic Rhythms: The Philosophical Vision of Rush. Berkeley: Wildside Press.
Rand, Ayn. 1964. The Virtue of Selfishness. New York: Signet.
—1995. Anthem. New York: Signet.
Reed, Ryan. 2018. ‘Geddy Lee on Rush’s Prog-Rock Opus “Hemispheres”: “We had to raise our game”’. Rolling Stone, 22 October. https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/rush-geddy-lee-interview-prog-rock-hemispheres-738828/ (accessed 21 February 2018).
Sheehan, Thomas. 2015. Making Sense of Heidegger: A Paradigm Shift. London and New York: Rowman & Littlefield.
Sherman, Glen. L. 2009. ‘Martin Heidegger’s Concept of Authenticity: A Philosophical Contribution to Student Affairs Theory’. Journal of College and Character 10/7: 1–8. https://doi.org/10.2202/1940-1639.1440
Shuker, Roy. 2002. Understanding Popular Music. London and New York: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203478806
Stump, Paul. 1998. The Music’s All That Matters: A History of Progressive Rock. London: Quartet Books.
Taddeo, Julie Anne, and Cynthia J. Miller, eds. 2013. Steaming into a Victorian Future: A Steampunk Anthology. Lanham and Toronto: Scarecrow Press.
Watts, Michael. 2011. The Philosophy of Heidegger. Durham: Acumen.
Weigel, David. 2017. The Show That Never Ends: The Rise and Fall of Prog Rock. New York: W.W. Norton.
Weinstein, Deena, and Michael A. Weinstein. 2011. ‘Neil Peart versus Ayn Rand’. In Rush and Philosophy: Heart and Mind United, ed. Jim Berti and Durrel S. Bowman, 273–85. New York: Open Court.
Wendt, Thomas. 2015. Design for Dasein: Understanding the Design of Experiences. Createspace Independent Publishing Platform.
Published
2019-12-16
Issue
Section
Articles
How to Cite
Barron, L. (2019). A history of realistic rock rebellion: Rush, Heidegger and the spirit of authenticity. Popular Music History, 11(3), 210-227. https://doi.org/10.1558/pomh.35026
