Rush Analysis

Do some hierarchical clustering of Rush albums based on musical features. We also check the robustness of the clustering algorithms by adding very different music, and seeing how it impacts the existing cluster assignment.

We will plot audio features obtained via the Spotify API to visually trace Rush's musical development over time, and identify ways in which individual Rush albums differ from the others. For example, I will show that Moving Pictures is not only the most instrumental Rush album, but it marks a peak at which Rush's music got less instrumental. As they added more synthesizers to fit in with their 80s contemporaries, Rush also added more vocals to the mix. However Rush has never been in danger of becoming an instrumental band, as we see no "Instrumentalness" values above 0.2. For reference, the highest possible "Instrumentalness" value is 1.

Rush is one of the most prolific progressive rock bands in history. They started out as a hard rock band in the vein of Led Zeppelin, then moved into progressive rock, then added synthesizers in the 80s, and added hard rock again in the 90s and 00s. This makes them a great candidate for a musical analysis.