Rush return to the road in June, with the tour opening on 7 June 2026 in Los Angeles. For a band whose fanbase has followed them through five decades of musical evolution, the announcement sparked something profound. MetalTalk’s Paul Hutchings spoke to fans, tribute artists, event organisers and our own writers to capture what this moment means to those who have lived and breathed Rush for a lifetime. This is their story.
I set out to gather the opinions of Rush fans on the highly anticipated anniversary tour, and what better place than within the MetalTalk writers community? After putting out a call, several colleagues eagerly responded, and I was able to engage a few of them for an enjoyable discussion about what many consider the greatest band of all time.
Michael Burgess, one of the team and an old school Rush fan, joined me for a 40-minute Zoom conversation, during which we delved into the band’s rich history and Mike’s thoughts on the monumental 50th anniversary tour.
Mike traced his Rush origins back to the release of Spirit Of Radio. “I was just ahead of the release of Permanent Waves,” he recalled. “Spirit Of Radio was playing on the radio, and I was in my first year at comprehensive school.
“All the older lads had 2112 on their haversacks, and I was fascinated by it. They would talk about the 2112 Overture. My brother, a couple of years older, bought 2112, and I listened to the first couple of tracks, Overture and Temple Of Syrinx. I thought it was brilliant, but then it went all quiet and felt a bit disjointed, so I put it aside.
“Yet, at school, I kept hearing the lads say, ‘You want to listen to the grand finale, it’s the heaviest thing you’ll ever hear’. I gave it another go, and slowly the pieces fell into place.
“From around 1980 onwards, after that initial hiccup, Rush became my favourite band. The first release I truly experienced as a fan was Moving Pictures. I still remember the review in Sounds magazine stating, ‘Headbangers may be disappointed’, which worried me, but once I heard it, I thought it was fantastic and loved it.”
The conversation highlighted the enduring appeal of Rush’s music. I still believe that Moving Pictures is the most incredible piece of work when you listen to it. Mike agrees. “It’s a beautifully produced record, but the only one that rivals it sonically is Power Windows. That’s my go-to album whenever I get new equipment. Middletown Dreams always sounds stunning.
“For me, the era from Permanent Waves through to Hold Your Fire is my favourite. Every year, a new album came out, marking my school and college years like guideposts. Whenever I hear those records, I’m instantly transported back in time.
“I love the early albums too, mind. 2112, A Farewell To Kings, Hemispheres, and even Caress Of Steel, which I think is underrated.”
I agree about Caress Of Steel. It has become an album I have grown to love in recent years. It is a bit like foods you do not appreciate as a child but grow to love. The Necromancer is astonishingly complex, especially considering how young the band were.
Mike shared his experience of interviewing Alex Lifeson before their last UK tour. Alex discussed the possibility of including obscure songs in the set list, joking about playing The Fountain Of Lamneth and suggesting, with a laugh, that it was unlikely but not impossible.
Mike described Alex as pleasant and genuine, a joy to interview “It was lovely. He came across as on the DVDs, very pleasant, happy to chat. Nice. It’s nice when those people that you get to interview, whose music you’ve loved for years, end up being decent blokes. I was just thinking, please don’t be an arse.
“I had the same with Ace Frehley. I was thinking, please, please don’t be a dick, and I know somebody who interviewed him just before me, who said he was really difficult. I’ve interviewed him three times, and he’s been an absolute joy each time, very funny. But yeah, Alex has been really nice.”
Mike reveals that, like me, his first Rush show was on the Hold Your Fire tour. “Technically, I could have gone to Signals, but I wasn’t allowed due to exams, and my dad wouldn’t let me travel to Edinburgh. I had to wait until Hold Your Fire in Birmingham.
“I was living in Sheffield at the time, at college, and went alone because no one else wanted to go. I travelled there and back by myself just for the chance to see them. I’m glad I caught them at that point, though I wish I’d seen them earlier.”
The last time Mike saw Rush was on the Clockwork Angels tour in Sheffield. We both shared the disappointment that the subsequent R40 tour did not make it to the UK. We both felt that if fans had known it would be Neil Peart’s last dates, many more would have travelled to the US to see them.
Inevitably, our conversation flips to the new tour. “I thought Geddy’s voice was getting a bit strained on the last tour,” says Mike. “I always thought that if they ever got back to doing Rush songs live, I thought, well, if they’ve got a keyboard player, (and they’re going to get a keyboard player), and I would have said a lead singer, to let Alex play the guitar and Geddy play the bass and a bit of keyboards.
“I wouldn’t have been averse to that happening. They’ve got extra musicians in to supplement the band. Now we know they’re in their 70s. Don’t expect them to be like they were in the ’70s or the ’80s and that wouldn’t, that wouldn’t faze me.
“But I do know people who aren’t happy that they’re back. I’m thinking, how can you not be happy to see Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson on stage again?”
There was a palpable sense of excitement and frustration around the tour’s announcement. We talked about the challenge of securing tickets, with UK dates being released in stages and the inevitable anxiety of missing out.
“I was quite disappointed when they kept adding dates onto the American tour,” Mike says. “The more dates were getting added on, then I thought the less chance of them coming over here. I thought they might blow themselves out.
“But I’ve noticed that they’re sort of staggering the show, so I think they’re pacing themselves, and I don’t think they’re going to do the three-hour shows of the past couple of tours. So, I do understand that.”
Our chat swung to the debate among fans regarding the legitimacy of the band continuing without Neil Peart. Mike is unequivocal in his support, stating he believes Neil would have wanted his friends to continue sharing their music. As he pointed out, other bands, such as Thin Lizzy, continued.
“I don’t think that Neil would have denied his two closest friends the opportunity to go out and play the music that they made. Why would Phil Lynott want his music locked up in a time capsule never to be enjoyed again?
“These guys wrote the music. It’s their songs, and why shouldn’t they go out and play them? Neil’s wife and daughter, and family have given it their blessing. I’m 100% behind it, and I know they were disappointed not to do R40 over in Europe, but what they said is that they had to talk Neil into doing a handful of shows. They had managed to expand it by another few dozen shows or so.
“And then he said, when it’s done, it’s done. But they knew on that last show, the look on his face, that was it, and they’d never be able to persuade him otherwise. I completely get the reason why he did that.
“What he went through with his daughter and his first wife. And he had a new family. So why not? They owed us nothing. To me, this is a bonus. I never thought I would get to see these guys play this music again and even if they just played for an hour and a half, played a couple of medleys to fit everything in, I would still go for that.
“There’s a lot of positivity, but there’s the usual moaning. Oh, it’s not Rush without him. No, I don’t subscribe to that.”
Demand for tickets highlighted Rush’s enduring popularity, particularly among a generation that never had the chance to see them live before.
Mick and I agree that the Rush fan base is a uniquely loyal and supportive. However, like everyone else, the ticket prices are the one topic of disappointment.
“I’d seen the prices in America, and I was thinking, oh my goodness. When you went to see the NEC for Hold Your Fire, I think my ticket cost 20 quid, including coach travel from Sheffield to Birmingham and back.
“I think the ticket prices are ridiculous. I know it’s the promoter that sets the ticket price. If you don’t like it, you don’t buy one. I’ve got eleven working Mondays left before I retire. So, my holiday next year is going to see Rush on multiple shows in the UK, and if I can get one abroad, even better.”
Concerns about Geddy Lee’s voice surfaced during our conversation, especially given the difficulty of his vocal style and his age. However, as with most, there is broad confidence in Annika Niles as the newly announced drummer.
“As long as she gets those iconic fills in, the Tom Sawyer, Temples Of Syrinx, the instrumental breakdown in Freewill, I think most people give her plenty of leeway. I mean, when it was her who was announced, I was bouncing around the room.
“My daughter is ecstatic. She’s not a big Rush fan at all. She loves Annika. She loves her drumming, and if she’s good enough for Jeff Beck, and if she’s good enough for Geddy and Alex to think this is the one, then I’m glad it was her and not one of the ones that everybody was expecting if it ever happened. You know, Mike Portnoy or Gavin Harrison.
“And I’m certainly glad it’s not bloody Dave Grohl. I think they’ve made the best possible choice.”
Our wish list of songs is lengthy, but Mike is keen on Middletown Dreams. “I think Afterimage would be a perfect song for this tour, reflecting on loss. When I look back, and I think of the R30 tour, we were all looking forward to those big epic numbers. The Xanadu’s, the 2112’s, La Villa Strangiato. But for me, the song that stole that whole show was Between The Wheels.
“It was momentous, the power, it was so hypnotic, and it was just this tiny little song from the end of Grace Under Pressure. It just sneaked under the door amongst all these giants of songs.
“Something like Bastille Day, By Tor and the Snow Dog. Yeah, I would love for them to do the full All The World’s A Stage.”
Rush’s tour opens on 7 June in Los Angeles, where Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson will be joined by Anika Nilles on drums and Loren Gold on keyboards. Further articles in this series, including interviews with Rushfest Scotland, tribute band Rushed, and the Something for Nothing Rush Fancast, will follow in the coming month.
To read our Rush At 50 series, click here.
For UK ticket sale information, visit: https://www.aegpresents.co.uk/event/rush.
