In this ongoing series, we catch up with artists who made
their mark in the 80s. Many of them are still alive and kicking!
Queensryche is a progressive hard rock band that formed in
1982 and pounded out some classics in the genre throughout the 80s. They hit
their stride and broke through to the mainstream as the decade closed with the phenomenally
successful record, “Empire”. Never able to surpass this summit, the band has
slowly slipped down the mountain into near obscurity where only the most dedicated
fans dared to tread. There have been some moments of genius in those years and
a fairly well-received sequel to their landmark “Operation: Mindcrime” epic,
but the flashes of brilliance have been too few and far between for most. The
band imploded in 2012 for reasons that are still coming to light, but the
result was lead singer Geoff Tate leaving to form his own version of Queensryche.
Meanwhile, most of the other founding members continued by replacing Tate with Todd
La Torre (Crimson Glory) and calling themselves Queensryche. There’s plenty
material available online if you want to read the dirt about the split
resulting in two Queensryches – we’re just here to voice our take on their music.
Queensryche “Frequency Unknown”
First out of the gate was Geoff Tate’s Queensryche with
their album “Frequency Unknown”. The first song showcased off the record as a
single was “Cold”, which pretty much sums up the reception that greeted “Frequency
Unknown”. The record was trashed for bland songs and a horrible mix, the latter
of which Tate quickly moved to address. It also didn’t bode well that some of
the musicians working with Tate bailed due to artistic differences. Listening
to the record, Tate largely continues the sound of recent efforts by the band –
in other words, gloomy and lumbering. If you enjoyed Queensryche for the last
decade or so, this record should satisfy somewhat, but there is nothing here
that comes close to the 80’s material. The record was a chore to listen to, but
I did find some elements of “Cold” and “Everything” enjoyable.
Queensryche “Queensryche”
Todd La Torre’s Queensryche begins their chapter with a
self-titled record. As the record rips into a much more muscular single, “Where
Dreams Go To Die”, three things are quickly evident: 1) La Torre is a
dead-ringer for Tate, actually sounding more like a younger version of him. 2)
This version of Queensryche is clearly more energized and inspired – the songs
come at you hard and fast with blistering riffs and thunderous percussion. 3)
There is a great deal more of the early Queensryche coming through in the
songwriting, along with a heavier dose of the melodic elements that made “Empire”
and some of the songs from “Hear in the Now Frontier” so great. In addition to
the first single, some other great tracks include “Spore”, “Redemption”, and “Vindication”,
some of the best songs I’ve heard out of Queensryche in a long time.
