Canadian rock legends Rush kicked off their first tour in 11 years Sunday night (June 7) in Los Angeles, California.
The band's first trek since the passing of iconic drummer Neil Peart is launching with a four-night stand at the Forum, the same venue that was the site of Rush's last concert with Peart in August 2015.
The "Fifty Something" tour is Rush's first with the band's revamped lineup of classic members Geddy Lee (vocals, bass) and Alex Lifeson (guitar) alongside Anika Nilles, a German drummer who toured with legendary guitarist Jeff Beck in 2022, and newly added keyboardist Loren Gold.
Rush's setlist for "Fifty Something" is culled from a pool of around 40 Rush classics, with the band playing two sets a night that celebrate Peart's life and legacy.
The tour will feature a distinct selection of songs and Rush will build each night's setlist from a catalog of more than 40 songs, including their greatest hits and fan favorites.
Rush performed in public with Nilles for the first time at Canada's Juno Awards in Hamilton, Ontario in late March.
They played "Finding My Way," the first song from Rush's first album, the band's only LP not to feature Peart.
In an interview with producer and YouTuber Rick Beato, Geddy and Alex confirmed that Rush will play over the course of four shows in a particular city 38 different songs from the band's vast catalog.
Asked if there will be tracks from every Rush record, Geddy responded: "I haven't checked.
I have not checked.
I don't think every record is represented, and some are over-represented for kind of obvious reasons." Regarding the preparation for the "Fifty Something" tour, Alex said: "Well, that's the difference.
In the past, we would plan a couple of months maybe, six weeks, on our own.
We'd have a list of about four hours' worth of music.
Then we'd sort of whittle it down to what the show would probably be.
And then we would have a month together...
Anika had to learn all these songs." Geddy added: "We've really bonded over the past few months.
It's not just about playing the songs and learning the music and playing it; it's about really falling in love with each other.
We've fallen in love with each other, and there's such a strong feeling, a joyful feeling of working together, playing together..." Nilles has more than 275,000 subscribers on YouTube and toured with English rocker Jeff Beck in 2022.
In a recent interview with Classic Rock magazine, Anika stated about Neil: "His playing was very energetic, and I really like that...
He had an incredible range of tonal colors.
He had a very melodic approach to drumming and used a wide variety of sounds to achieve that..." Rush waited three days to announce Peart's passing in January 2020 after a three-year battle with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer.