RUSH

Special digitally remastered and expanded edition including three bonus tracks. Features 16 page full color booklet with 4 000 word essay new interview enhanced artwork and rarely seen photos. Strife were a trio that operated with considerable success during the 1970s playing a succession of college and club gigs which helped to secure a firm foothold in the UK market. Their reputation as a band that could deliver consistent performances was well documented and attracted a large following. This intense activity won them a highly coveted record deal with Chrysalis records and the release in 1975 of Rush their debut album. Despite the fact that they were in effect a power trio the band s music was far more considered than what might reasonably be expected from such an outfit. Digging deep into mid-seventies progressive rock this Liverpool-based band ploughed a niche that relied on adventurous arrangements expressive lyrical themes and a penchant for mixing solid hard rock with long passages that consistently revealed more of their style with every listen. LED by frontmen bassist/vocalist Gordon Rowley and guitarist John Reid Strife s sound was built on this punchy progressive rock imbibed with heavy riffs and the impressively layered vocals. Indeed it was the sound of the times and attracted enthusiastic praise despite a number of logistical setbacks not least of all a record company that was fast losing interest and a difficult production process. Produced by R. Dean Taylor (most notable for the hit single There s A Ghost In My House ) and recorded in London and San Francisco the album s two standout tracks are the epic seven minute Indian Dream and the multipart twelve minute title track that s blessed with an adventurous sonic tapestry which boasts a fiercely dramatic showdown.