Snakes and Arrows

... tell me the good news first...

My new Rush CD 'Snakes and Arrows' came this morning. A bit of a surprise, as CD-WOW has not had a good recent record of delivering on time (see Marillion and Porcupine Tree - the latter has still not arrived).

Got a nasty throat infection, which makes me sound like Barry White, so I'm at home resting and sorting out job applications...

The Rush CD is excellent on first listen. Much better production than 'Vapor Trails', and it hangs together well. The inclusion of the two instrumentals, and the prominence of the acoustic guitar on a couple of tracks break thing up a little. I've heard some reviews comparing it to 'Hemispheres', but I can't see it. What I hear is confident musicians doing their own thing, returning to the themes of isolation in modern life (The Way the Wind Blows is particularly effective) but with an optimisitic slant (We Hold On).

I think I'll be coming back this repeatedly. 8 out of 10 for me