![]() ![]() ![]() Herb got the news of Peart’s passing in January while driving south through Virginia on vacation. “Rush fans are among the most passionate, rabid music fans I’ve ever met in my life.” “There are fans that seem to just need this music to survive,” Herb said. With the recent passing of rush drummer Neil Peart, attention to Solar Federation has soared. “We also do part of the ‘2112’ suite, which we feel we have to do because the name of the band is Solar Federation.” “I think there’s only one or two shows where we didn’t play ‘Tom Sawyer,’” Herb said. With over 40 songs under their belt, Solar Federation is bound to play a favorite like “Tom Sawyer,” “The Spirit of the Radio” or “Red Barchetta.” For the Reverb show Herb has developed what he termed a “crowd-pleaser set.” “Obviously, we don’t do everything they do.” “I’ve studied past Rush tours and I try and re-create a flow of songs,” Herb said. Of course, there are a couple Rush songs elevated to must-perform status for a Solar Federation show, but Herb is particular about each set list. The demand of dedicated fans keeps Herb and the others on their musical toes as they constantly rehearse new songs to add to the Solar Federation repertoire. The first two Solar Federation shows took place in Lancaster’s Tellus360, after which the band quickly gathered popularity among Rush fans, local and national. “Julie stepped up … and at first I was a little skeptical because Rush is generally thought of as a dude’s band. “It was impossible to find one person in the area that could not only handle all the (bass and keyboard) duties but hit those notes,” Herb said. In that first year the role of Rush frontman Geddy Lee was actually shared by three members the vocals are now manned – or womanned – by Julie Schreiber. Starting as a five-piece setup in 2014, Solar Federation spent a year rehearsing before playing its first gig and settling on a four-person lineup. The band, named after the ruling body in Rush’s sci-fi epic “2112,” makes its Berks County debut Saturday, March 14, at Reverb, 1402 N. Setting himself up in the basement was a labor of love, and after about a year he felt confident enough to reach out to a few fellow musicians about forming a Rush tribute band. Years after sneaking into his older brother’s room to acoustically devour his collection of classic rock records, Herb was still drawn to the Canadian rock band. “Rush was always my favorite band, since before high school.” “I just wanted to see if I could do it,” said Herb. Secluding himself in his basement, he devised a goal to learn a dozen songs by Rush. READING – After spending years in bands around central Pennsylvania, including time with the idiosyncratic Herbie and the Beatles tribute band Number Nine, Jeff Herb was looking for some simple fun with his drum set. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |