In the eyes of the ancient denim-clad warriors, Rush sold out with
Signals. Those of us who could dig deep within what Rush had to offer could see differently, but for a headbanger in the mid-80s who wanted a heavy Rush sound there was nowhere to turn. Enter Watchtower's
Energetic Disassembly.
The best way to describe this album is simply Rush meets thrash metal. Groups like Iron Maiden and Queensryche were already around for the more heavy-minded proggers, and groups like Metallica and even Venom and Mercyful Fate had come slightly close to a "progressive" sound, but Watchtower observed these groups and said - "Not technical enough. You play bass with a pick?? Those drums are for kids - is this Def Leppard?"
Energetic Disassembly is what I like to imagine would have happened if Rush had never listened to The Police - if instead of moving away from bombastic, over-the-top displays of virtuosity and fantasy-themed lyrics, they did the opposite and embraced these aspects of their sound all the while revamping them with a more modern 80s style.
What we have here is a rare case of unrelenting heaviness punching you in the dick mixed with the beautiful craftsmanship of a 70s jazz fusion group. And what about the vocals - the guy's ***ed in the head. It sounds like they got some guy who had never heard music before, showed him
Caress of Steel and
Sad Wings of Destiny, and then locked him in a studio until the album was done. Crazy.
Buy this ***!
