Geddy Lee is defending the decision to continue touring under the Rush name.

In June, Lee and Alex Lifeson will kick off their Fifty Something reunion tour in Los Angeles. They will be joined by drummer Anika Nilles, who replaces the late Neil Peart. For many years, the surviving members of Rush insisted they would never tour under their iconic name again. In a recent conversation with Classic Rock, Lee explained why they changed their minds.

“What else do you f—ing call it?” the bassist declared (as transcribed by Guitar.com). “When the band ended, we said it’s only Rush with Neil in it,” he continued. “Which of course is true. Rush as most people know it. But, you know, over five gigs we will be playing forty Rush songs. So what the f— should we call it, Iron Maiden?”

Lee and Lifeson Were ‘Twisting Ourselves Into a Pretzel’ Over Name Choice

Despite his confidence, Lee admitted that the decision wasn’t easy. “We were twisting ourselves into a pretzel to try to avoid using the name that we have had for fifty years, and even before Neil came.”

“It just seems silly to go on as ‘Lee and Lifeson Present The Music Of…’” he explained. “Let’s cut to the chase, shall we? Let’s just be who we are and have been for over fifty years.”

READ MORE: How Would Neil Peart Feel About the Rush Reunion?

Lee confessed it will be strange performing Rush classics without Peart behind the kit, even though the late drummer’s family has given their blessing. “There are some songs you play where it kind of hits you, it’s bad, and it feels weird,” he noted. “And it’s appropriate that that happens.”

The bassist also confirmed that Rush will pay tribute to Peart at each of their upcoming performances.

“If we just picked up and went on without feeling any tug of anything, that would be absurd, that would be a whole other thing,” Lee admitted. “And there’ll be moments in both sets where we’ll pay tribute to him. We’re working hard on that, making sure that it’s appropriate.”