Retro Album Review: Power Windows

Impressions/Thoughts:

Today we’re going back to the past. Back into the mid 1980’s, to be exact the year of 1985. It was a time back when keyboards and synthesizers were becoming big in the music industry. Rush, a band known for their Progressive Rock sound, had the challenge of trying to get their songs played on the radio while remaining true to themselves, the result is Power Windows.

Rush "tightened up their sidelong suites and rhythmic abstractions into balled-up song fists, art-pop blasts of angular, slashing guitar, spatial keyboards and hyperpercussion, all resolved with forthright melodic sense" (Fricke, Rolling Stone, 2013)

Personally, I was only familiar with the last song on this album, “Mystic Rhythms”. So, listening to the album in its entirety will be a journey for me. Will I like it or not? Well let’s find out!

The Music:

“The Big Money” has some heavy synthesized sounds that gives off the vibe of the times during which this music was made. It has a pop-rock like sound that you might even have heard at a dance club of that era. Even through the wall of easy listening sound, you can hear the rock penetrating out of the music with Neil Peart’s drumming and Alex Lifeson’s guitar solos. At that point in time, people would connect with the lyrical message that it was all about “Big Money”. Big money on wall street, banks and companies started to outsource manufacturing to other countries. It was a time of change in the US and the start of globalization. Its message is still relevant today as not much has changed, just where it’s happening has changed.

“Grand Designs” is what you think Rush would sound like at that time. It has an upbeat tune, Geddy Lee’s vocals soar above the harmonies and lead the melody of the song. The riff is very catchy which serves as a simple hook that is easy to listen to. The last line of the chorus “Life in two dimensions is a mass production scheme” is one of the catchiest lines on the album. The song describes what was happening at the time, with mass production of automobiles and other products which looked the same. As people and styles started to have the same appearance (eg. Big Hair, boxy looking cars, etc.), everything looked the same and had no uniqueness. Things that were functional were not pretty and things that looked good usually were not functional.

The third track, “Manhattan Project”, is another one of those melodic upbeat songs that is easy to listen to, but you want to focus on the message of the song. It’s not something that grabs you and makes you want to move. Reading the lyrics, there is this disconnect of tones between them and the instrumentals. One would expect a much heavier feel, but the instrumentals are more light and airy which is typical of the 80’s pop-rock sound. “Manhattan Project” represents to me why I’m not a big fan of this album. It’s that the songs have a mellower sound and when compared to other songs from earlier and later in Rush’s catalog, they fall flat.

“Marathon” distinguishes itself by the lesser amount of synthesizer and keyboard, allowing more of the band’s instrumentals to shine. Lyrically the song has a message about life as a race. It a message that we can connect with as you have to set your sights on the goal, your finish line, and not to burn yourself out to quickly. You want to be able to look back and see what your accomplishment were.

“Territories” is more rock sounding than the previously songs from the first half of the album. This song is less about the instrumentals and really allows the listener to hear the lyrics more clearly. Although, the solos by Lifeson are definitely great, Lee’s bass is prominently featured in this song. I see the message as being that when it comes down to it, the geographic lines of which generations have built to divide us are only a detriment to our society. This is because we all live on the same earth and to fight “In the name of a piece of dirt” is so petty. We are all citizens of the same planet and should not squabble over these imaginary territories.

“Middletown Dreams” opens with a pop-rock intro and due to its mellower riff it allows you to focus in on the message within the lyrics. It has a catcher chorus melody and I like Geddy Lee’s wailing vocals at the beginning. This is a song that speaks to most people’s hearts, because it’s about going out and achieving your dreams. Even for those who fantasize and romanticize a certain aspect of their life, it’s never too late to go out and peruse their dreams.

“Emotion Detector” utilizes a strong synthesizer introduction that would be typical and appealing for the 1980’s. It’s not as exciting as the other songs on the album and by some accounts this song is a ballad. I like the part where Alex Lifeson gets to solo over the riff while Lee and Peart are just playing drums and bass keeping the beat, with the synthesizers being less prevalent. From the first lyrics, I can see this song being about people who crave the most attention are people who are the most insecure. They can’t be content with just being cool; they crave the limelight. Power can turn into scorning and ridicule of others and as well as the self. Sometimes the “big splash” that people trying to make justs ends up being a drop in the bucket. Some people get too hyped up on getting attention so that it becomes a negative in life.

“Mystic Rhythms” is the most diverse song on the album right from the get go. The percussive riff that opens the song with the synthesizer only accenting the riff is what makes this song stand out. The keyboards join in later giving the song a different flavor as the track continues. This song probably is the most memorable song on the album with the variation in instrumentals being its main draw. “Mystic Rhythms” seems to be about music itself. With the emotion and meaning being able to be translated and understood no matter where it is played in the world. Rhythms also speak to the self as a conduit for connecting people and entertainment. Music is almost supernatural in that it takes thoughts and emotions and makes them sounds for others to hear.

Verdict:

This album has this Lover Boy pop-rock upbeat sound from the mid 80’s, of that genre. The main way that people listened to music was on the radio, otherwise people would go and hear music at a bar or club. Also people would go out and buy music on Vinyl, 8-track, cassette, and the new format CD. So, when Rush produced this more commercial sound, it made sense because they could get more airtime on the radio and increase their album sales.

During this time, keyboard and synthesizers were a huge influence in music, everyone from funk to pop artists were using them. So, when rock and metal bands started using synthesizers, looking back it was almost inevitable. This album is like if you took the mid 80’s and distilled it into a single album; Power Windows is what you would get.

Besides the constants of the great artistry of Rush, this album is a product of the times and personally this not my favorite Rush album. This album is very mellow and has this heavy synthesizer sound that to me interrupts some of the tones represented in the lyrics. For some of the songs, I would have loved to hear them with a rawer heavier sound. Overall, it has some good moments but this an album that is a product of time that it was made. I personally wouldn’t recommend the whole album to a fan of heavier music, but that doesn’t mean that this album is not great.

Top 5 Songs:

1) “Mystic Rhythms”

2) “The Big Money”

3) “Grand Designs”

4) “Marathon”

5) “Territories”

From left to right: Geddy Lee, Neil Peart & Alex Lifeson