With renewed spirit, Rush comes to Atlanta Nov. 1

During Rush’s 2010 and 2011 “Time Machine” tour, the band played songs from its 38-year catalog and debuted two earmarked for its next album, taking fans back in time and giving them a look into the future.

The 1970s/1980s rockers, nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year, return to Atlanta on Nov. 1, and guitarist Alex Lifeson feels the band is back in its youthful days when he, singer/bassist/keyboardist Geddy Lee and drummer Neil Peart were eager to explore musically and hungry to make a mark.

“I never expected it to be like this,” Lifeson said in a phone interview. “It feels like in a lot of ways like it did in 1976. We’re just so excited to make the records, so excited to play, and always trying to play better than the last time or than the last rehearsal. It doesn’t matter. We always want to move forward.”

That is a change from the time when it was uncertain whether Rush, which released its latest CD, “Clockwork Angels,” in June, would survive.

In 1997, Peart’s 19-year-old daughter, Selena, was killed in a one-car accident. About a year later, his wife, Jackie, succumbed to cancer.

The band put everything on hold, and Peart, who remarried in 2000, didn’t pick up his drumsticks for nearly four years. But the band got back together in fall 2000, made its 2002 album, “Vapor Trails,” and it has regained steam.

Working with Nick Raskulinecz, who produced the band’s 2007 CD, “Snakes & Arrows,” Rush took a far more in-the-moment approach than in the past to recording.

“It was very different this time,” Lifeson said. “Neil started doing his drum tracks on the very first day, so very, very spontaneous performances for him. … He’s so anal about his parts and how he puts them together and he doesn’t like to weave very much, whereas Nick (Raskulinecz), that’s all he wanted Neil to do, just play like a maniac all the time. And I think it really, really worked. And Neil loved doing it, actually.”

Lifeson and Lee continued to play and tweak the songs while waiting until the drum tracks were done to record their performances.

“The stuff that Neil did, we were getting mixes that we imported back into our session so that we could play along to what Neil was doing, update what we were doing, and feed that back into him, so that the next day when he went back in to continue working on that song, he was working with fresher arrangements,” Lifeson said.

“It pingponged right to the final performances.”

“Clockwork Angels” has gotten rave reviews for a potent collection of songs (standouts include “Caravan,” “BU2B” and “Carnie”) that combine sharp melodies, tight and complex playing and adventurous arrangements.

“I’m still kind of close to it, but I would definitely say it’s one of our better efforts,” Lifeson said. “It’s cohesive throughout.”

The tour includes a new light show and video over a three-hour set that includes older songs and most of “Clockwork Angels.”

“It’s so nice to go out and do something that’s unusual and different and keeps you on your toes,” Lifeson said.

“So it’s a challenge, and we’re always looking for something to move us forward.”