There Can Be Only One!! (Queensryche)

I've detailed the entire Queensryche controversy in the early days of  this blog, and now that its over, it seems only fitting that I go over the conclusion here too. Yep! Its over. The band with Todd LaTorre, Parker Lundgren, Michael Wilton, Eddie Jackson, and Scott Rockenfield is Queensryche! Geoff Tate will have to call his band something else. Its official! The dust is still settling, but the paths for each party have been laid out, and it was done by agreement, rather than a nasty court trial. Both sides are apparently happy with the settlement.

Also, from this point on, when I mention 'Queensryche,' I will be referring to Queensryche, and not Geoff Tate and his band. (I always did mean that, but I just had to clarify.)

There can be only ONE!!!

But honestly, the proof was in the print. Queensryche's self titled album shattered Tate's Frequency Unknown in sales. It sold more in the first month than Frequency Unknown did to DATE. It has also outsold the American Soldier  and Dedicated to Chaos albums to date. Also, Queensryche's self titled album (QRST?) received rave reviews constantly, (here is mine) while not one person seemed to have anything nice to say about Frequency Unknown. I sure didn't. But, that fact is once again backed up by the record sales. It all boiled down to the fact that the band was listening to what the loyal fans were saying, and decided to go back to making the music that put Queensryche on the map in the first place. Tate was wanting to make some 'weird electronic progressive rock band thing', and the fans weren't having it. Hence the sales of Dedicated to Chaos. A line in the sand was drawn, and both sides agreed that there could be only ONE Queensryche, and ultimately, there is one, the only one Queensryche until kingdom come, who claimed the prize!

This was the best performance of Mindcrime, and the
only one I need to see.

Basically, the stipulations are this: Queensryche gets the name, and the rights to perform all the songs from all the albums, however, Geoff Tate is allowed to perform Operation: Mindcrime I&II in their entirety for such performances. That has confused lots of fans, and it will be clarified when the band makes its press conference in a few days. What it means is that while the band can preform any song they want from the Mindcrime albums,  they cannot do a tour playing the album(s) in their entirety. If they want to play all the songs on Mindcrime except for say...the short song intros to other songs, and Suite Sister Mary, they can do that. Its a lot like the settlement between Pink Floyd and Roger Waters. Personally, I am okay with this. Geoff Tate has ran Mindcrime into the ground over the past 2 years with his merry band of misfit performers. I really don't want to see it performed in its entirety. Besides, I saw it performed to perfection on the Empire tour with all 5 original members in one of the most amazing concerts I've ever seen. That's something you really only need to see once in a lifetime in my opinion. Plus, I own Operation: Livecrime. Also, Geoff Tate gets to do a farewell tour under the Queensryche banner this summer. I would imagine that it will be billed as Geoff Tate's Queensryche, but after that, he will have to call his band something else.

I have no earthly idea!

Now, as I eagerly wait for the next Queensryche album, there are a few things that I'm wondering. One, What will happen to Frequency Unknown? Will future copies of that album still bear the Queensryche name? It shouldn't really matter though. Its not like that album is having to be reprinted or anything. I'm just wondering if I should buy another copy in case it becomes a collectors item sometime in the future. (I trashed the copy that I reviewed)  Two, After Geoff Tate's farewell tour, what will he be playing live? His solo albums including Frequency Unknown? (He didn't like playing things off that album to begin with...and I don't blame him. lol)  Three, Since Queensryche has the rights to perform the songs from the Tateryche albums (Hear in the Now Frontier, Tribe, Q2K, OMII, American Soldier, and Dedicated to Chaos) will they allow Tate to perform those? I seriously doubt they will be performing any songs from those albums. Also, I gotta admit that I was slightly intrigued with Tate's performance of Lola on that morning news show in Seattle, with Vaudeville. If he was to tour doing that, I MIGHT go see it, as long as it isn't called Queensryche. It was interesting, and the blonde on the left was ridiculously smoking hot.

Queensryche: Michael Wilton, Eddie Jackson, Todd LaTorre,
Parker Lundgren, Scott Rockenfield. Its OFFICIAL!

Anyway, in closing, I just want to say congratulations to the one and only Queensryche, and I am looking forward to the future of this great band. I have high hopes because the band has said in interviews that the new songs they are writing are HEAVY! That is the word that every fan has been dying to hear 'spoken' from the band for years. The future of Queensryche is bright in the hands of Todd LaTorre, Eddie Jackson, Michael Wilton, Scott Rockenfield, and Parker Lundgren. The self titled album was great. Now, its time for the masterpiece.

Now that its all over, I think of the band I grew up with, and.......

....I remember now.