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Rush's "Snakes & Arrows" Trivia Quiz

This quiz is about "Snakes & Arrows", Rush's 2007 release. It is also my first quiz, so if you like it, great! Some lyrical and background knowledge required, as well as some attention to detail.

A multiple-choice quiz by Ezmar. Estimated time: 6 mins.

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Rush

Author
Ezmar

Time
6 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
301,984

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Difficult

Avg Score
5 / 10

Plays
291

Question 1 of 10

1. This album contained a few firsts for Rush. It was the first of their albums to have multiple instrumental tracks. It also had their shortest recorded song to date. What is it? Hint

The Way the Wind Blows

The Larger Bowl (A Pantoum)

Hope

Malignant Narcissism

NEXT>

Question 2 of 10

2. According to Peart, what was the main lyrical theme of "Snakes & Arrows?" Hint

War

Faith

Love

Poverty

NEXT>

Question 3 of 10

3. For the "Snakes & Arrows" tour, guitarist Alex Lifeson switched from using PRS guitars to what other electric guitar brand? Hint

Gibson SG

Gibson Les Paul

Fender Stratocaster

Ibanez

NEXT>

Question 4 of 10

4. What alternate guitar tuning does Alex Lifeson use on "Hope"? (from lowest pitch to highest pitch) Hint

Drop D

D-A-D-A-A-D

Eb-Ab-Db-Gb-Bb-Eb

E-G-D-G-B-E-G (Alex uses a seven string on "Hope")

NEXT>

Question 5 of 10

5. How does one know that the circuits are blowing? Hint

watch

hear

see

feel

NEXT>

Question 6 of 10

6. Track four is entitled "The Larger Bowl (A Pantoum)". What is "a pantoum"? Hint

A type of pottery

A form of tune that the song follows

Latin for "The Bowl"

A type of poetry

NEXT>

Question 7 of 10

7. Where did the band get the title for "The Main Monkey Business"? Hint

Neil's daughter used to say it.

Geddy's mom.

It was a phrase used on a billboard in Toronto.

Alex thought of it.

NEXT>

Question 8 of 10

8. Let's see if you were paying attention while listening. There are two songs that transition smoothly, one into the next. What two songs are they? Hint

"Far Cry" into "Armor and Sword"

"The Larger Bowl" into "Spindrift"

"Faithless" into "Bravest Face"

"Workin' Them Angels" into "The Way the Wind Blows"

9. On "Malignant Narcissism", Geddy uses a different kind of bass than his usual Fender Jazz bass. Neil also had to do something different than usual. What kind of bass did Geddy use, and what did Neil do differently? Hint

Geddy used a fretless Jaco Pastorius tribute replica, and Neil had to play without a hi-hat.

Geddy used a six-string bass, and Neil had to play without a hi-hat.

Geddy used a six-string bass, and Neil used a 4-peice set.

Geddy used a fretless Jaco Pastorius tribute replica, and Neil used a 4-peice set.

NEXT>

Question 10 of 10

10. According to the booklet that comes with the album, who wrote and performed "Hope"? Hint

It doesn't mention anything about "Hope" specifically.

Alex Lifeson

Lerxt Lifeson

Geddy Lee, in a misprint

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Dec 10 2024 : Guest 154: 3/10
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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. This album contained a few firsts for Rush. It was the first of their albums to have multiple instrumental tracks. It also had their shortest recorded song to date. What is it?

Answer: Hope

Except for a couple shorter songs, ("Hope" and "Malignant Narcissism" included) Rush's songs have stayed around 4-6 minutes, the general rock standard. And then there are the 10-20 minute long rock epics. (eg, "2112", a must for fans!)

2. According to Peart, what was the main lyrical theme of "Snakes & Arrows?"

Answer: Faith

This theme is very evident in "Faithless," in which it says "I don't have faith in faith, I don't believe in belief." ... "But I still cling to hope, and I have faith in love. And that's faith enough for me."

3. For the "Snakes & Arrows" tour, guitarist Alex Lifeson switched from using PRS guitars to what other electric guitar brand?

Answer: Gibson Les Paul

He chose them because they had a bigger sound than the PRSs.

4. What alternate guitar tuning does Alex Lifeson use on "Hope"? (from lowest pitch to highest pitch)

Answer: D-A-D-A-A-D

He uses a twelve string guitar on this song. not seven string, if you picked that! I found this out while learning how to play it, and it makes it a lot easier than I had braced myself for.

5. How does one know that the circuits are blowing?

Answer: see

"You can almost see the circuits blowing." These lyrics are from "Far Cry". Note: "Far Cry" came about when Geddy Lee and Lifeson were jamming. Neil Peart had left some lyrics on the table, and Geddy started singing them along to the music. It ended up being the refrain to "Far Cry."

6. Track four is entitled "The Larger Bowl (A Pantoum)". What is "a pantoum"?

Answer: A type of poetry

A pantoum is indeed a poem. It consists of four-line stanzas that are crafted in such a way that the second and fourth lines of each stanza become the first and third lines of the next. The lyrics to the song are a pantoum.

7. Where did the band get the title for "The Main Monkey Business"?

Answer: Geddy's mom.

in a "Legends of Classic Rock" interview...

"...Long story short is, uh, this person was up to hijinx and my mother was telling me "Well I think there was some monkey business involved", and I said, "What do you mean, monkey business? What kind of monkey business? And she said, "The MAIN monkey business". So I love that phrase and every time I think of her saying "The MAIN monkey business" it makes me laugh..."

-Geddy Lee

8. Let's see if you were paying attention while listening. There are two songs that transition smoothly, one into the next. What two songs are they?

Answer: "The Larger Bowl" into "Spindrift"

If you listen closely as the final sounds from "The Larger Bowl" die, they morph into the distinctive guitar intro to "Spindrift". "Workin' Them Angels" and "The Way the Wind Blows" aren't even next to each other in the track listing.

Answer: Geddy used a fretless Jaco Pastorius tribute replica, and Neil used a 4-peice set.

This is possibly the most interesting song on "Snakes & Arrows". Geddy decided to get a fretless bass, partly because he wasn't familiar with fretless basses. So he was sort of just playing on it in the studio, and the producer heard a catchy riff and suggested that he make a song out of it. So he and Neil recorded the bass and drums, but Peart's regular 360-degree drumkit had already been shipped away from the studio, so he had to use a 4-piece, the smallest he has ever recorded anything on. When Alex, who had been away from the studio, returned, they gave him a day to make a guitar part for the song. And thus was "Malignant Narcissism" born.

It was nominated for a Grammy for best instrumental.

10. According to the booklet that comes with the album, who wrote and performed "Hope"?

Answer: Lerxt Lifeson

I was a bit perplexed when I read that. I thought it was just a kind of random joke, like a nickname or something, but when I put it on the computer, the composer was listed as "Lerxt" in the CD's information, too. That's when I started to wonder, "Whoa, is this some other person?" So I went to Google and googled "Lerxt Lifeson", and I found out that yeah, it was just a nickname for Alex. I was right the first time.

Source: Author Ezmar

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor agony before going online.
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