Back in 2015, Rush embarked on their “R40 Tour” celebrating the 40th anniversary of drummer Neil Peart’s membership in the band. Not long after the tour’s completion, Peart announced his retirement from music citing chronic tendonitis and other health ailments. Peart’s bandmate, Alex Lifeson subsequently confirmed that Rush had embarked on their last expansive tour together, but left the door open for future one-off performances and the possibility of new music. Not much has transpired in the two years since then, however, leaving Lifeson to now admit that Rush is “basically done.”
“We have no plans to tour or record any more. We’re basically done. After 41 years, we felt it was enough,” Lifeson told The Globe and Mail in a new interview.
With Rush officially out of the picture, Lifeson said he’s keeping busy with a variety of side projects. “I’m writing a lot — I’m writing on four or five different little projects,” he told The Globe and Mail. “I get these requests to do guitar work with other people. It’s really a lot of fun for me. It’s low pressure: I get to be as creative as I want to be and I can work a little outside of the box, which is really attractive to me.”
Lifeson is also reported to be have recorded new music with Rush bandmate Geddy Lee for a project called LeeLifeson.
