My dad and I traveled to Fayetteville, Arkansas (of all places) to catch the Queensryche show on the 27th of May. I had already been a pretty big Queensryche fan, but considering my age, I had never had a chance to see them live, much less when Chris DeGarmo was still in the band. Regardless, I think the band has written some incredible albums, and Geoff Tate was (and still is, for that matter) one of the greatest hard rock/metal vocalists out there.
However, the show in Fayetteville was a total disappointment. I could tell from the first song that the night probably wouldn't be memorable. I knew that Michael Wilton and Parker Lundgren (Geoff Tate's son-in-law) were using that Digitech modeling gear instead of tube amps. Despite my opinion on modeling gear for live performances, I decided to remain open-minded and let my ears decide. Well, I did, and their tones were horrendous. I've been to three shows here in the past few months where the guitarists use modeling gear for their main rigs, and each one has sounded completely lifeless, sterile, and empty. Why do touring guitarists insist on using this garbage over and over? I can understand if you're a workingman playing bars, but these are professional acts with roadies and endorsement deals. There's no excuse.
Furthermore, the volume of the show was too low. I'm not saying that splitting ears is a necessity, but this show sounded just a tad louder than a run-of-the-mill bar gig.
Also, there were quite a few ridiculously cheesy moments during the show. To begin the show, Tate graced the stage with a goofy hat and suit that made him look like a used car salesman (as another reviewer said). OK, no big deal. The band played three extended suites: Rage for Order, American Soldier, and Empire. The first suite was tolerable, as it contained many obscure yet rocking 'Ryche tunes. However, the show started to go downhill quickly at the beginning of the American Soldier suite. A man dressed in an soldier's uniform marched to the center stage (greeted with an abundance of overly-patriotic "USA! USA! USA!" chants), only to surprise the audience by breaking into a hip-hop routine. At this point, I was asking myself, "Is this really Queensryche?" The most cringe-worthy moment occurred when Tate brought out his daughter and his saxophone. Yes, his saxophone. Since when do saxophones and metal mix? And I know Tate loves his kids, but his daughter doesn't belong on stage at a progressive "metal" concert, especially dressed in what looked to be a beauty pagent dress.
Furthermore, the volume of the show was too low. I'm not saying that splitting ears is a necessity, but this show sounded just a tad louder than a run-of-the-mill bar gig.
Also, there were quite a few ridiculously cheesy moments during the show. To begin the show, Tate graced the stage with a goofy hat and suit that made him look like a used car salesman (as another reviewer said). OK, no big deal. The band played three extended suites: Rage for Order, American Soldier, and Empire. The first suite was tolerable, as it contained many obscure yet rocking 'Ryche tunes. However, the show started to go downhill quickly at the beginning of the American Soldier suite. A man dressed in an soldier's uniform marched to the center stage (greeted with an abundance of overly-patriotic "USA! USA! USA!" chants), only to surprise the audience by breaking into a hip-hop routine. At this point, I was asking myself, "Is this really Queensryche?" The most cringe-worthy moment occurred when Tate brought out his daughter and his saxophone. Yes, his saxophone. Since when do saxophones and metal mix? And I know Tate loves his kids, but his daughter doesn't belong on stage at a progressive "metal" concert, especially dressed in what looked to be a beauty pagent dress.
I will say though that, despite the sound and cheese factor, everyone in the band played rather well. Lundgren, the new guy, played his parts proficiently, as did guitarist Michael Wilton and the other veteran members. And Tate, when he could actually be heard, sounded dead-on, despite a more constricted vocal range due to years of singing. But the band did look overwhelmingly bored. I'd like to think the bleakness of Fayetteville was to blame.
Granted, it's disappointing that DeGarmo left and that Tate can't quite hit the same high notes as he used to, but those facts don't really bother me. Give a listen to Live Evolution. It's a great live album, and it was done without both DeGarmo and Geoff's old vocal range. Currently, I think the main issue with Queensryche is that too much of Tate's family is becoming involved with the band. First of all, his wife is now managing the band (she was actually working the sound booth, and I think this might have had something to do with why the mix didn't sound great...I don't mean to be sexist, but I would bet that it was her idea to have the daughter on stage too). You've also got his son-in-all law playing in the band. And now you've got his kids on stage, too. It just seems like a recipe for disaster to me. I can see why DeGarmo might have left the band if he knew it were headed in this direction.
Unfortunately, this show left me so uninspired that I stopped taking pictures after the first few songs, and even those didn't turn out too well.
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