Rush bassist and vocalist Geddy Lee recently discussed the immense effort and sacrifice required for the band new drummer, Anika Nilles, to play the late Neil Peart drum parts during the ongoing reunion tour.
Lee explained the personal compromise involved in taking on such a role and the challenge of staying true to another musician established parts.
“There are moments where I am just so proud of her. Because in order to do this gig, you have to compromise a bit of yourself. Because you are trying to be true to another drummer part. And that is a sacrifice,” Lee said.
Lee also recalled moments during rehearsals when Nilles asked about complex musical passages. ””Sometimes Anika would write to me and say, ‘What time is this part in?’ I would go, ‘F*ck, I don’t know.’ And I realized we would do a weird musical passage in an odd time signature, but we wouldn’t need to count, ’cause we would just glue a bunch of phrases together… We knew the nuances of each other’s parts so intimately that we had cues in each other’s playing. But she hadn’t had enough familiarity yet. She couldn’t possibly have played off of those cues yet. And now I think she can.”
Lee comments highlight the growing musical chemistry between Nilles and the rest of Rush as the band honors Peart legacy while building a new live identity.
Rush Fifty Something tour opened at Los Angeles Kia Forum. The performance marked the band first full-length concert run in nearly 11 years and its first headlining show since Peart death.
Nilles brought a strong reputation to the reunion. The German drummer had already built a following among serious drumming fans before joining Rush through online performances and instructional work.
Her resume also includes experience with another major rock artist. Nilles previously toured with the late guitarist Jeff Beck, adding further high-profile experience to her career before taking on Peart demanding parts.
The reunion tour grew beyond its initial schedule as interest increased. The run expanded to 40 shows across North America, with dates in cities including Detroit, Montreal, Boston, Seattle, Washington, and Vancouver. The tour is scheduled to continue through December.
