Rush is back and dazzling fans on new Fifty Something Tour

As I sat stage left at the Kia Forum on Sunday night, waiting for the show to begin, I couldn’t help but wonder: Am I going to like the new Rush?

I’ve seen Rush 26 times. My parents took me to their show at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in 1981 because I wouldn’t shut up about them. Being a Rush fan was already uncool, so I didn’t want to sit with my parents, but on the ride home, I asked them what they thought.

“Well, they’re very loud!” But they quickly said something else that I’ll never forget: “They should pay the drummer 2/3 of the money.” Even my non-rock ‘n’ roll parents were impressed with the drummer of this loud trio, the late, great Neil Peart. 

The band had retired in 2015, and Peart died of brain cancer in 2020. But in October 2025, an announcement: Rush would tour again. And now, the Fifty Something Tour is kicking off with four sold-out shows at the Kia Forum.

Their last show was at the Forum, and now I was here for the first time to see Rush play with a new drummer, as well as a keyboard player — so, a whole different Rush than what I and other die-hard fans are accustomed to.

To many, the idea of Rush with anyone other than Peart on drums is unfathomable. But you can’t have Rush without a drummer, and we were all waiting to see what German-born musician Anika Nilles would give us. 

Nilles toured with the late Jeff Beck, but has been somewhat unknown outside of musician circles. The story is that Geddy Lee’s bass tech also worked with Beck, who raved to Lee about how great Nilles was. Lee checked out her vids and flew her out to jam in Canada. 

When Rush announced the 2026 world tour, it stunned fans who thought they would never continue without Peart. Fans on social media were split. Some had faith in Nilles’ musicianship, though others insisted, “It’s not Rush without Neil Peart.” Still others were far more concerned with the aging Lee and whether or not he’d be able to sing well in his legendarily high register. 

Nilles has stated that dealing with fan criticism was far more difficult than learning Peart’s complex drum compositions. Lee and Lifeson added that Nilles did not grow up as a fan of Rush and that it took multiple sessions for her to grasp Peart’s style. Rush offered no previews of Nilles performing with the band. And so, we had to wait. 

It was worth the wait to see what she can do. At the June 7 show, any concerns about Nilles have been put to rest, and she made short work of impressing devout Rush fans.

Lee and Lifeson emerged from stage fog bearing double-neck guitars, ready to give the fans exactly what they’ve been waiting for. And they proved that once again, they know how to choose a drummer. All eyes and ears were on Nilles, and she did not disappoint as she nailed the fan favorite “Xanadu” to kick off the show. 

For any Rush fans reading this: I know your mind is going to certain songs in their canon that are incredibly difficult to play and were just as incredibly thrilling to watch Peart perform. Well, they were in the setlist.

After “Xanadu,” the band launched into the radio hit “Limelight” without hesitation. “All the world’s indeed a stage,” Lee belted as if to reply to naysayers critical of the vocal abilities of a 72-year-old man. To be honest, Lee would occasionally sing certain phrases in a lower register and especially on “The Temples of Syrinx,” as he has for many years, but his voice was quite strong considering his age.

It’s worth noting that the presence of Loren Goldd on keyboards was quite unobtrusive, and his relatively dark corner on stage wasn’t a big distraction to what has been a trio since 1974. But he was heard as he triggered samples and played low-end synths and string patches that Lee and Lifeson used to execute with their feet. And so in this show, the piano part of “The Spirit of Radio” is not a sample and is performed by Gold.

By now, Nilles had earned the crowd’s respect playing the hit “Subdivisions” and the concert classic “Freewill.” The latter, known for an instrumental mid-section in which all three musicians are soloing, features Nilles taking more liberty in kind of doing her own thing. It definitely wasn’t note-for-note what Peart played, but it was skillful nonetheless.

Lee and Lifeson have referred to the Fifty Something Tour as a tribute to Peart, and though he wasn’t present on stage, the power of his legacy filled the venue. There were two tribute collages to the late drummer during the show. In the first interlude, the band performed “Bravado” as photos of Peart were projected on screens. It’s all quite tasteful and not overly sentimental as one might have imagined.

Fans were ecstatic to hear the beginnings of “La Villa Strangiato.” It’s infamous as a complex and jazzy instrumental, and again we couldn’t wait to see how Nilles would perform this masterpiece. This was an absolute highlight of the show; Nilles must have put in serious study of Peart to pull the song off as well as she did. 

Not to nitpick, but “The Spirit of Radio” was an ever-so-slight Nilles interpretation of Peart’s characteristic snare work, but she did provide the feel that carried the radio classic. Concluding the first set and leaving the stage for intermission, the four members of Rush had left fans with a lot to talk about. It was time to call our friends not in attendance and tell them they have absolutely nothing to worry about when they finally get to see the band later in the tour.

And the lights went out again. When a huge digital counter displayed the number “2112,” the arena lost its collective mind. The album recorded in 1976 is damn near biblically important to Rush fans and for the band, it was the album that saved them from getting dropped by a record label that just didn’t understand long, tripped-out, sci-fi related songs. The red star logo, a symbol of individuality, is close to every fan’s heart (it’s my one and only tattoo).

You’ve probably figured out by now that Rush concerts are largely focused on the drums and again, Nilles nailed the Overture and did her best to pull off Peart’s infamous drum fill in the beginning of “The Temples of Syrinx.” Still the crowd chanted “Hey!” during each infamous pause during Overture, cheered for “Distant Early Warning,” and gasped when Lee said, “This is a song about a car..” Red Barchetta” is a concert staple and this tour gave us a huge upgrade in the visuals.

True Rush fans cite “Natural  Science,” a deeper cut, as a favorite, and fans were pleased to hear this one, too. Following that was the second tribute to Peart and Alex dialed up his stellar opening riff to “Time Stand Still.” To our surprise, Aimee Mann, who sang on the track back in 1987, appeared on stage in a long dress and hipster glasses to sing along with Lee.

When the crowd heard the Morse code Nilles played on a cymbal, we braced ourselves for the instrumental masterpiece “YYZ.” With isolated drum fills we all know by heart, we were all amazed when Nilles performed them about as close as one can get to Peart’s mastery.

Spoiler alert: Yes, Nilles nailed “Tom Sawyer.” The arena erupted with the most beautiful applause when she played it to close the show. She then tackled “By-Tor and the Snow Dog” as part of the encore, sending out the well-known drum fills to a very pleased crowd. Honestly, she had us a few minutes into “Xanadu” all the way to the very last number, “Working Man.” It can safely be said that Rush is truly back and reborn. There is nothing to fear but fear itself, so get your tickets for an upcoming date. It’s worth every penny. But what would you expect a Rush fan to say?

Rush will perform on Tuesday, Dec. 1, and Thursday, Dec. 3, at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale. Tickets start at $103.