Working at Perfekt: Background

This piece seems to be the real title track of the album, My Favorite Headache, because in it Geddy talks about the unyielding drive to create and get your work as close to right as possible and then to do it all over again. “And when it’s right / There is no pain / And when it’s right / You start again.” That seems to be the very definition of “my favorite headache,” as Geddy has defined it, which means the thing you love to do—indeed, must do—but is nevertheless a pain to do. “It represents my sort of reluctant relationship with making music,” Geddy says in a January 2001 Bass Player magazine interview. “I love it passionately, but it drives me crazy, because once I get into a project I’m completely consumed by it.”—Rob Freedman, Rush Vault

“The guitar and bass share in making up the main riff here. The instrumentation during the choruses differs a little each time, with some cellos adding to the sound. The vocal harmonies are some of the best Lee has ever invested his voice in. Electronic sounds and bass dominate the ending.”—Epignosis on Prog Archives

“In the album’s highlight, “Working at Perfekt,” Lee casually slips into his infamous higher range (or what’s left of it) as he wails “success to failure, just a matter of degrees.” Beyond his melodic construction, Lee performs as expected on the bass guitar, noodling charismatically and tastefully to the song structure while his once irritating vocals prove that, like fine wine, his screech has matured into a soothing croon.”—Caleb MacAlpin on Sputnik Music

“‘Working at Perfect’ is brilliant and a typical Snakes and Arrows song.”—toroddfuglesteg on Prog Archives

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