Snakes and Arrows was released on May 1st, 2007 and debuted at number three on The Billboard 200 chart.
This marks the 18th full length studio album from the band Rush.
The album contains three instrumental songs, a first for Rush and th first time an instrumental has been included on an album since the bands 1996 release, Test For Echo.
The band Rush began writing Snakes and Arrows in January of 2006 and this continued throughout the year.
Once done with the writing the band recorded the tracks in November and December of 2006 with producer Nick Raskulinecz, whose credits also include the Foo Fighters and Alice in Chains.
The album title, Snakes and Arrows, is a reference to the children's game of the same name and was inspired by the ancient Indian game Leela.
Neil Peart has said that many of the lyrics were inspired by his many motorcycle rides throughout North America.
The first single from Snakes and Arrows was the song "Far Cry," release on March 12th, 2007.
The album's second single "Spindrift" was released on June 1st, 2007, followed by the third and last single from Snakes and Arrows, "The Larger Bowl (A Pantoum)".
The full track listing is as follows: 1.
Far Cry 2.
Armor and Sword 3.
Workin' Them Angels 4.
The Larger Bowl (A Pantoum) 5.
Spindrift 6.
The Main Monkey Business 7.
The Way the Wind Blows 8.
Hope 9.
Faithless 10.
Bravest Face 11.
Good News First 12.
Malignant Narcissism 13.
We Hold On Upon its release, Snakes and Arrows was met with positive reviews from fans and critics.
As of 2010 Snakes and Arrows has sold over 600,000 copies worldwide.
This album was followed by an extensive tour and a live album in 2008 titled, Snakes and Arrows Live.