NOTE: The write up for the Birmingham gig is here.
NOTE: Gary in Leeds – I would love to send you photos for your son, but please send a valid email address. The last one keeps returning my replies.
Well, that was a turn up for the books! The Sheffield leg of the Time Machine Tour a couple of years ago was by far the worst – not Rush, just the crowd, which was awful. But this episode of the Clockwork Angels Tour was far-and-away the best yet. It was fantastic!
They switched back to the London set list (as far as I can remember it), which was as follows:
Part 1:
- Subdivisions
- The Big Money
- Force Ten
- Grand Designs
- The Body Electric
- Territories
- The Analog Kid
- Bravado
- Where’s My Thing? (with drum solo)
- Far Cry
Part 2:
- Caravan
- Clockwork Angels
- The Anarchist
- Carnies
- The Wreckers
- Headlong Flight (with drum solo)
- Halo Effect
- Seven Cities of Gold
- The Garden
- Manhattan Project
- Drum Solo
- Red Sector A
- YYZ
- The Spirit of Radio
Encore:
- Tom Sawyer
- 2112 Part I: Overture
- 2112 Part II: The Temples of Syrinx
- 2112 Part VII: Grand Finale
The crowd were lively, and Rush really played up to that. Geddy even commented on the fact at the end. It was a fantastic show as a result – made even better by the seat my agent had got me.
Here’s a selection of photos I took.
Although Birmingham LG still keeps the Gold Star for the best venue overall, kudos to Sheffield for only charging £5 to park – and a curse on the O2 in London for charging £21 (or £28 if you didn’t book it in advance, which I fortunately did when I remembered while I was in the services at Bishops Stortford, trying to sidestep all the old people there). It’s also worth pointing out that a “large” soft drink at Sheffield is about the size of a bucket, and there doesn’t appear to be any nonsense about not taking a bottle into the hall itself. All the others would sell you a bottle of something (for which you had to donate an organ to be able to afford it), then insist you poured it into a plastic cup before letting you get to your seat.
The last show is in Glasgow on Thursday, so I’ll be making an early start to make sure I get there. Anyone who hasn’t been yet really ought to get a ticket – the performances by Rush are the standard by which all others should be measured.
Oh, and one thing I haven’t mentioned in any of my reviews is that Geddy closes with “…we hope to see you again some time…” That always cheers me up, because we have to face the fact that the end is closer than the beginning – but not just yet!