LIVE REVIEW: Rush in Boston, MA (09.14.26)
Monday night in Boston felt less like a concert and more like a massive, emotional family reunion for progressive rock fans throughout New England. After a show on Saturday night, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame legends Rush returned to the Garden for another show as part of their ongoing Fifty Something Tour, with an audience spanning generations of fans.
All the way from Toronto, Canada, Rush was formed in 1968 by current guitarist Alex Lifeson, drummer John Rutsey, and bassist and vocalist Jeff Jones (who Geddy Lee replaced after a couple of months). After releasing their debut self-titled album in 1974, Rutsey left the band, which started the power trio we know of today after the addition of drummer and famed lyricist Neil Peart. The line-up of Lifeson, Lee, and Peart remained stable for over forty years, celebrating the milestone with the R40 Tour, which would eventually become Neil’s final tour before his unfortunate passing in 2020. At the time, a future was uncertain for both Geddy and Alex–but whatever they did onstage together, it would be in tribute to Neil. In 2022, the band performed two 3-song sets at the Taylor Hawkins Tribute concerts in Los Angeles and in London, where they realized how fun it was to perform their songs again. Now, in 2026, Rush has returned, led by Lifeson and Lee, and joined by German drummer Anika Nilles and keyboardist/backing vocalist Loren Gold. For a band whose identity had been so closely tied to the trio, this new chapter brought plenty of curiosity and uncertainty, with one important question in everyone’s mind: How could Rush possibly sound like Rush without Neil Peart?
Back when the tour was announced about a year ago, I remember just scrolling through my feed early in the morning—and just seeing those tour dates pop up was something I genuinely had to take a minute to process. There were no rumors or stuff prior about shows happening anytime soon, and then on some random Monday, one of the most legendary rock bands in the world just decided to drop a bunch of shows. Originally, twelve dates were set across North America, with the closest being at Madison Square Garden. And to no surprise, those ended up selling out within a matter of minutes, with resale ticket prices in the thousands for just nosebleeds! So, I waited a couple of weeks, and then came the announcement for the two Boston shows. After years of pondering whether I would ever get the opportunity, I finally had a chance to see Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson share a stage again. And for what once seemed like a dream, it finally was about to become a reality.
As Monday night got closer, the excitement honestly started to feel a little unreal. I had known for months that this night was coming, but it wasn’t until the final few days that it really started to sink in. I kept thinking about how many times I had listened to Rush’s music over the years (especially during the pandemic) and wondered if I would ever get the chance to see Geddy and Alex standing on the same stage again. Now, there was an actual date in my calendar, and it was getting closer by the hour. Even just driving into the city was something very unique–the anticipation for this show was nothing compared to a normal concert. This wasn’t just another band I had been excited to see–this was Rush returning to New England after years of uncertainty! I went into the Garden knowing I was about to see something that, for years, I never thought would happen—and honestly, I had an idea what to expect once the lights went down, but everything exceeded my expectations!
Walking into the TD Garden, I couldn’t help but notice the generations of fans wearing all types of bands shirts–whether that be one of other bands like AC/DC, vintage Rush tour shirts from over thirty years ago, and hundreds of people with shirts from the current tour. But one thing that seemed extremely clear in the moment was the actual arena filling up and the buzz in the air. At concerts, I hate when fans pay hundreds of dollars for tickets just to use the bathroom and go to the concessions multiple times while the show is still going on! I’m not sure about the higher sections, but down on the floor and on the lower level, practically everybody was right in their seats by the time the band came on.
Beginning the show with a silly intro video called “Xanadudes,” the screen featured three characters–humorously playing the parts of Alex, Geddy, and Anika–going on a quest into a spooky, haunted-style mansion in search of the legendary band, Rush. Along the way, they encounter many bizarre situations, including buying a cryptic map from a sausage vendor named “Gershon” (played by Geddy Lee), meeting the “donut man” (played by Alex Lifeson), encountering actors Paul Rudd and Jason Segel (paying homage to their love for the band in the film ” I Love You, Man”), and even walking into the South Park rehearsal room. Finally finding Rush, who are covered in cobwebs, one of the characters accidentally opens a closet containing the two robes worn on the back of the album cover for 2112, with the title hovering as “absurdly prophetic robes.” The sight of the robes triggers a flashback for both Geddy and Alex, before the video cuts back to the present and the two disappear, seamlessly transitioning into the band taking the stage to launch directly into “Xanadu.”
After performing the 11-minute track, Geddy Lee welcomed the crowd, stating, “We’re so happy to be here for our second night in Boston. As with the other night, we’ve got a ton of music to play, and plenty of jobs ahead of us!” Explaining furthermore, he stated, “Our first job, of course, is to celebrate the span of fifty years of music. Music which was created by that very handsome man with the white teeth,” pointing at Alex (followed by him winking to Geddy), “myself, and of course, the legendary Neil Peart, which brings in our second job, which is to celebrate and pay tribute to the man Neil.. It’s been long overdue for so many reasons,” followed by a standing ovation. Introducing the lineup, Geddy stated, “To help us on this journey here, we have the marvelous Anika Nilles and on keyboardist and vocals, the splendid Loren Gold.” Ending his speech, Geddy shouted, “Let’s get on with it,” kicking into “Dreamline,” a song from my favorite album of theirs, Roll the Bones.
With a setlist that spanned nearly every era of the band’s career, Rush performed a variety of songs from 1974 to their most recent album, Clockwork Angels, in 2012, including: “Subdivisions,” “Headlong Fight,” the pyro-filled “Red Sector A,” the instrumental “La Villa Strangiato,” “Farewell to Kings,” the band’s biggest Billboard chart-topping hit “New World Man,” and the set closer “The Spirit of Radio.” But what stood out the most was the first video collage in tribute to Neil. Sitting down in my seat, I couldn’t help but think in my head about how strange it was to watch Rush perform without the person who had been sitting behind that drum kit for nearly four decades. Plenty of classic rock bands go out there nowadays with either one original member or even sometimes none, with most of them not even paying homage to the founders of the band (with the exception of Lynyrd Skynyrd, obviously). As for Rush, they made Neil’s presence strong during the entire show. I mean, we had side stage seats, so we could see all of the action behind the scenes, and one emotional thing I noticed was how the band remained onstage and watched for the entire collage, rather than going off and changing an outfit or getting a drink. Small things like that really matter, especially when you’re on a tribute tour.
Following an incredible first set, the band returned to the stage with one of their most famous pop culture moments: the iconic South Park intro video, which led into “Tom Sawyer,” arguably the song most associated with the band. Similar to 2012’s Time Machine tour, this started off the Moving Pictures portion of the night, performing the album in its entirety with back-to-back hits like “Limelight,” “YYZ,” and my favorite song of the night, “Red Barchetta.” What made the second set so enjoyable was that, despite all of the emotion surrounding Neil’s absence, the show never became entirely focused on mourning. Rush were still having fun and enjoying themselves. Geddy and Alex were joking around, Anika looked completely comfortable behind the kit, and the audience was having the time of their lives. Especially with how legendary Neil’s drum parts were, my whole row was air-drumming to practically every song!
Like I brought up earlier, ever since this tour was announced, I’ve been looking every week at the setlists and interviews, but I never really realized how much preparation Geddy and Alex had put into getting back onstage again. After more than a decade away from touring, neither of them could simply walk back onto a stage and expect their bodies to be ready for a set this demanding. Over the years, Lifeson has struggled with psoriatic arthritis in his hands, with him stating two years ago in an interview with Eddie Trunk that after “40 years of touring,” he was “not interested in touring anymore,” stating that “There were lots of ups and downs,” and how “it gets tiring, especially when you have a family, and you have loved ones at home that you’re estranged from for months and months at a time. Not just that, but even Geddy faced a completely different challenge–his voice. After not regularly singing Rush songs for more than a decade, he began working with a vocal coach for the first time in his career, stating in a Rolling Stone interview that “It was important to me to do as many original versions for our audience as we could,” and that “I didn’t want to have to start changing keys to every song.” At the Garden, both sounded remarkably strong, especially considering everything they had to overcome just to get back to this point.
Returning back to the stage with an encore of “By-Tor and the Snow Dog” and “Working Man,” the show ended with all four members bowing in the front of the stage. Waving goodbye, Geddy Lee took one last look around the sold-out Garden before turning back toward Alex and Anika, bringing the night to an emotional close. After everything that had happened over the past several years, seeing Geddy and Alex standing together onstage again felt almost surreal. Rush had somehow found a way to continue their legacy without Neil Peart while making sure that his presence was never forgotten, something which does not work with many other bands.
Overall, I highly recommend you go see Rush perform at a show near you! Through the rest of 2026, the band currently has around 20 North American shows remaining and will also have 34 shows in South America, the UK, and Europe in 2027. For my New England readers, the band will be performing at the Mohegan Sun Arena on October 30th and November 1st, two shows which I have a feeling may be super special due to it not just being Halloween weekend—but the fact that the venue doesn’t have any bad seats! As always, thank you for reading, and don’t forget to always support live music!
Featured image by Nathan Cyprys
