New Guitar Hero to feature Rush’s 2112
Rush fans let out a collective “oh my God” on Thursday as Activision announced the Canadian band’s seminal album 2112 will be heavily featured in the upcoming Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock video game, out for all consoles in September. The game will include the entire seven-song, 20-minute 2112 “suite,” which tells the story of a future society in which music is banned.
For the uninitiated, 2112 isn’t your average rock album. It’s about the fallout from a galaxy-wide war in the year 2062, which ended with an oppressive organization, known as the Red Star of the Solar Federation, in charge. The federation exerts its influence over cultural matters through their conduits, the Priests of the Temple of Syrinx. But things begin to change for the better in the year 2112, after a rebellious man discovers a guitar in a cave and proceeds to rock out. Essentially, it’s the plot of Footloose, but with a bunch of spacey, Ayn Rand philosophy thrown in.
The album is considered a prog-rock masterpiece and, along with Moving Pictures (1981), it’s generally thought of as Rush’s best work.
The boys in the band are big fans of Guitar Hero, even if they’re not that good at it — the games have certainly turned a new generation on to their music. Rush songs have been featured in Guitar Hero and Rock Band games, going back almost to the beginning, with the instrumental YYZ in Guitar Hero II (2006). The entirety of Moving Pictures was released as a download for Rock Band II in 2008.
As Geddy Lee says in the trailer for Warriors of Rock, “I love the idea of Guitar Hero, I think it’s a great way to be introduced to the music of various bands.”
The new Guitar Hero will also feature songs by A Perfect Circle, Dire Straits, Def Leppard, The Cure, Queen, Stone Temple Pilots and ZZ Top. Led by Rush and their thought-provoking songs, the game will likely do well. Probably better than last year’s Guitar Hero: Van Halen, which was mostly about chicks, booze and cars.
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