Rush – Hold Your Fire

Pretty good press, flat with minimal surface noise. Agree with others, mix and mastering are a bit muffled. I added a touch of treble and it helped. But overall could have been better. In the end it’s still a cool record to have, but go in with low expectations.

Setup
AT-LP1240
AT-VMN95ML
Bellari VP549
Yamaha A-S501
Wharfdale Diamond 240
Definitive Audio ProSub800

Excellent pressing, surprisingly minimal surface noise for a used record from 1987

This is an album from an era of Rush that I grew up in and I didn’t have a lot of positive feelings about but lately these mid to late ‘80s records have really grown on me. ‘Hold Your Fire’ was the one I knew the least as I had got into ‘Grace Under Pressure’ and ‘Power Windows’ at school and grew to appreciate those records. Didn’t seem in a rush to pick up the follow-up though until many years later. Maybe I was scared off by the many critiques about Geddy’s overuse of synths and that there was not enough Alex guitar or it may have been that I didn’t initially care for the radio songs. The three stars for ‘Hold Your Fire’ may seem awfully low for a rating but honestly it’s more of a 3.5 if that matters. What does matter is that this LP rewards over repeated listens - a slow burn if you will. Many complain about the use (or overuse) of keyboards but this didn’t hurt my enjoyment of ‘Signals’. The progressive elements are still there but there are many examples of pop as well, most prominently on “Time Stands Still” which features the haunting voice of Aimee Mann on the chorus. First single and album opener, “Force Ten” is catching and driving in the tradition of the more mainstream Rush classics (maybe not “Tom Sawyer” but that’s a ridiculously high standard). I really like parts of “Second Nature” and “Prime Mover” as well, very melodic on the bridges but still at a mostly progressive song structure. “Mission” and “Turn the Page” would later be featured on the subsequent live album two years later as Rush made a habit through their careers up to this point to put out a live record after four studio LPs.
I I was in college, freshman year and some friends who were much bigger Rush fans than I was were absolutely crushing ‘Hold Your Fire’ but I bet if you asked them today, their opinions might have changed. It is a polarizing album and was also an end of an era as this would be the last Rush studio album released on Mercury Records. If you’re into the more progressive side of their ‘70s classics then ‘Hold Your Fire’ may not be your flavor but as I said before - listen to it in a vacuum and value it on its own merits. You may find as I did that it certainly does not deserve to be buried in obscurity. Tough times demand touch talk…

I concur with belldav's comment; the sound is terribly muffled (sounds like a poor copy of another copy), and while I didn't find the bass that bad, sound definition is severely lacking and there is a strange whirring noise between each track. At this point, a CD copy sounds way better than this.

It sounds like it has a blanket over the sound ?
Or is this how the original album sounds ?

Just sounds a bit off this pressing

Maybe it’s a repress mix of the back to black pressing ? (Which sounded pretty bad unfortunately)

https://discogs.desbloquearpagina.com/release/7897222-Rush-Hold-Your-Fire

Watch out collectors! Tons of cheap recent reissues are sold here as 200 gram pressing but don't be fooled, ask for pics of either the 200 gram hype sticker or of the card with 2016 expiration date otherwise you'll be getting a 180 gram later reissue....

My copy sounds decent. B- maybe? It has some separation, so not dead, but not quite crisp out of the speakers. It's like a 2010's sound on an 80's record that should be bright. :shrug:

My pressing sounds awful. My worn out cassette sounds better than this pressing. I purchased this in a sale bin at HMV 8 years ago.....wish I'd left it in.
Avoid this pressing!

Good sound quality on this release. Should be the same as the original German CD master?

A possible new repress has popped up with no code, no stickers on front, Made in Canada sticker on the back, 180g vinyl, with insert in paper inner sleeve.