Test for Echo

Did You Know?

• The cover displays an inuksuk, a stone figure used by the Inuit to mark a food cache, hunting ground, or place where someone lost their life.
• The band did not perform any tracks from the album on subsequent tours.
• Test for Echo was remastered and reissued in 2004, 2013, and 2015, the latter remastered by Sean Magee at Abbey Road Studios.

Background and pre-production

After finishing the Counterparts Tour in May 1994, Rush took an 18-month break, longer than usual, because Geddy Lee wanted to be home for the first year of his daughter's life. During this time, Alex Lifeson recorded his first solo album Victor, and Neil Peart released a Buddy Rich tribute album Burning for Buddy and studied with jazz drummer Freddie Gruber, adopting a traditional grip for most of the album. In October 1995, the band began work on the next album at Chalet Studios in Claremont, Ontario, for writing and rehearsals. Lifeson initially wondered whether Test for Echo would be Rush's last album, but changed his mind after it was finished, as the group was already discussing the next album. The first sessions were difficult for him after having full control on Victor, but after resolving those issues, the band wrote five songs in one week. Inspirational slogans were posted on the studio wall, including 'Individually we are a ass, together we are a genius' and 'If you want something done right, just forget it'. Lee and Lifeson completed nearly six songs before showing any to Peart, to avoid interrupting their productive flow. The writing finished three weeks early, and Lifeson attributed the good spirits during production to the break the band had taken.

Recording

Rush recorded Test for Echo between January and March 1996 at Bearsville Studios in New York, picking that location to achieve a bigger drum sound for Neil Peart. They also worked at Reaction Studios in Toronto, where snowfall lasted 40 days straight. This album marked the first time the band used American engineers and mixers, having previously worked with British or Australian crews. They hired Clif Norrell, a longtime admirer who had played Rush covers in his own band. Mixing happened in April 1996 with Andy Wallace at Toronto’s McClear Place. The group waited for Wallace to finish a mix before they would enter the studio to offer feedback. Alex Lifeson later called Test for Echo one of Rush’s finest albums.

Songs

The title track 'Test for Echo' includes lyrical contributions from Pye Dubois, who had written lyrics for three prior Rush songs, and features Lifeson playing a Les Paul Custom. 'Driven' was written entirely on Lee's bass guitar and uses three separate bass tracks; Peart played slightly behind the beat, giving the song a heavier character. 'Half the World' features Lifeson on a 10-string mandola, which changed the song's personality and initially drew doubts from Lee. 'Time and Motion' originated from Peart's lyrics, with music developed quickly by Lee and Lifeson; a first version had been assembled years earlier but never used. Lee described 'Dog Years' as a bit punky. 'Limbo' is an instrumental assembled from unused ideas. Lifeson picked 'Resist' as one of his favourite tracks and among the best Rush had ever recorded.