Rush – A Farewell To Kings [Ultradisc One Step LP] (Vinil 180g, LP dublu)

“A Farewell To Kings” is a multi-part epic that transports listeners into space, a work inspired by a poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge and a perennial favorite on the radio – from a band dedicated to art without boundaries: Rush! The Canadian trio skillfully takes advantage of the studio environment to break new ground, further integrate electronic instruments into their work, and expand their musical vocabulary. “A Farewell To Kings,” Rush’s fifth album, is a milestone! Incredibly, the album was recorded in just three weeks. Sound engineer Pat Moran already knew it when he witnessed Rush nail “Xanadu” perfectly in a single take at Rockfield Studios. The fantasy epic, loosely based on Coleridge’s “Kubla Khan” and “Citizen Kane,” features one of the most famous call-and-response passages in Rush’s entire discography. “Closer To The Heart,” the only song Rush brought to Rockfield in its complete form, made it into the Top 40 in the UK and became a staple of their concerts for decades.

Throughout, “A Farewell To Kings” is brimming with nuances that enrich the atmosphere and the arrangements. Experiments with unusual time signatures and extremely complex passages take center stage – whether it’s the bass pedals that gave Alex Lifeson the freedom to add a second guitar on “Xanadu” or the expansive spaces that invited Geddy Lee to use the Minimoog. Drummer Neil Peart’s contributions are also impressive: his range on “A Farewell To Kings” expands to include orchestral and tubular bells, temple blocks, wind chimes, a glockenspiel, and much more. Not to be outdone in terms of instrumentation, Lee supplements his setup with a 12-string guitar and the now-iconic double-neck models. Lifeson also uses both acoustic and electric 12-string guitars, as well as a classical guitar and his own bass pedal synthesizer. After taking a break from the “album-tour-album-tour” cycle with the release of the live album “All The World’s A Stage”, Lee, Lifeson, and Peart refined their craft with virtuoso intensity. They traveled for the first time to a studio outside their home base of Toronto, enjoyed the idyllic seclusion of the Welsh countryside, and mixed “A Farewell To Kings” in two weeks at Advision in London.

The numbered double LP from Mobile Fidelity, strictly limited to 5,000 copies, was remastered specifically for this release at the MoFi studio in California – the tapes were stored in boxes labeled both “Master” and “Safety Copy” – and pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing using the sonically superior One-Step process on “UltraDisc” 180-gram vinyl (45 RPM). The tapes were stored in boxes labeled both “Master” and “Safety Copy.” The luxurious box features faithful reproductions of the original graphics as well as the iconic cover artwork by Hugh Symes. Inside are the two records – in foil-embossed jackets and original MFSL Master Sleeves. A spacious soundstage and pinpoint detail reproduction, along with a pitch-black background and full dynamic range across the entire frequency spectrum, characterize the MoFi UltraDisc One-Step version of “A Farewell To Kings.”We recommend the use of „L’Art du Son” LP cleaner to wet wash your vinyl. Even new records of high quality production will benefit from this.

Lista pieselor

LP 1

Side A

1. A Farewell To Kings

Side B

1. Xanadu

LP 2

Side C

1. Closer To The Heart

2. Cinderella Man

3. Madrigal

Side D

1. Cygnus X-1