Having recently seen the band perform live supporting The Mission I spent a few days wondering where I’d seen them before (probably due to brain fog, age and the bands inactivity over the last few decades) and then it came flooding back. “Back in the day”, Salvation played that fateful evening of legend (in my house) supporting The Lords Of The New Church when Stiv wore that T Shirt and fired the band on stage. Anyway moving on some thirty years! (ah that brain fog) I find myself listening to this here live album and it sent memories flooding back from that fateful night. To be fair the songs sounded great when I saw them recently, even with the help of the rhythm section in a box it was a decent support on that Mission tour.
Songs like ‘Debris’ and ‘All And More’ sound great and sparked a flick through my record collection knowing I had at least one of their studio albums, and so it was, ‘Sass’ an album that is well represented here with ‘Paint It Rose’ having a great rolling Cult-like riff that leads this upbeat number.
This live recording captures a band that clearly loves the music they play, and to be fair, The songs have dated really well seeing as they’ve not been played for an age. From the opener ‘The Answer’, with it’s vibrant tempo. It’s something many bands, who to be fair, haven’t played a great deal over the past thirty years don’t quite capture. I’ve always liked that big overdriven guitar sound and having strong melodies always helps.
There are eleven tracks on this CD and a twelve-page booklet to accompany it. Sure fans of The Cult, Mission, and Sisters will be all over this and it’s a no-brainer if you caught any of the band’s recent shows some of these songs will be familiar anyway but Rock fans looking for a new “old band” who had a whole bunch of top tunes – dive in!
‘The Shining’ is a burst of energy before ‘Pearl Necklace’ then raises the bar. I’d love to hear what the band are currently creating studio-wise and see if they can still capture a sound that brings back such good memories. Finishing off with the vibrant ‘Why Lie?’ with its glugging bassline and rolling guitar lick it’s a great set ender.
Go seek Salvation in this live snapshot that contains some really good driven hard rock meets Goth that is delivered really well by a band who clearly still loves music.
“The first time we came to Wales was with Ronnie James Dio in 1984. I have a distinct memory of being in Cardiff on a day off, being in a nice hotel, and being in the bathtub. A fire alarm got set off by some of Dio’s crew members, this was a tour of pranksters. They thought it was great fun, I had to get out of the bath, go all the way downstairs in my bathrobe, go outside and stand in the street!”
Oh dear! Ha ha.
Queensryche played my favourite ever venue – Newport Centre a few times, I believe the last time was supporting Judas Priest on their Epitaph tour in 2011?
“That’s right, that was our last tour together”.
Did you keep busy during lockdown? Is there any more to come from Sweet Oblivion or have you recorded any more solo material?
“I’ve done all kinds of things, that’s all I did really was hang out in the studio, write stuff, yeah, primarily that’s all I did. I worked on the Sweet Oblivion album, the Avantasia album. I also wrote some music for two different projects of my own that will hopefully be launched sometime this year. Busy, busy y’know?”
Did you manage to keep your voice in shape?
“Well, it’s one thing to sing in the studio, it’s a whole different thing to sing live y’know? Starting back out live I had to work for a couple of weeks to get myself back on form again. Singing’s one of those things, that you just have to do, there’s no way around it. You have to power through it and do it. You just have to keep working at it.”
Why did you decide to play ‘Rage For Order’ in it’s entirety rather than say, ‘The Warning’?
“I love the album, absolutely love it. It’s my second favourite Queensryche album. My favourite is the last album we did together, Dedicated to Chaos, that’s the one I listen to the most.
What are your favourite songs to perform live from ‘Rage for Order’ and ‘Empire’?
“I love playing the whole albums. I tell the audience every night that it’s been on my bucket list to play Rage for Order, we never got to play it back in the day. We only played a couple of songs off the album, that’s kind of the curse of most albums, you never get to play everything y’know? You just get to play a couple of tracks because people wanna hear what they know. They are really into hearing what they are familiar with (laughs), some people are not musically adventurous. The best response you have from an audience when you’re playing your album or your songs is, you come out with a new album, you only play a couple of songs, the rest you play are oldies. Next year when you come back, they are starting to like and get used to those songs, it’s a cool dynamic”.
What are your memories about the recording of ‘Rage For Order’?
“The Rage For Order album was a really fun album to make from my perspective. We were working with Neil Kernon as a producer, and he was a wild man that we got to hang out with. One of the greatest personalities to be in the studio with, he could run with your idea, and he had such a vast technical background. At the time, I didn’t have much technical experience in the studio. I would say ‘I want my voice to do this, or I want this sound I’m making to do this’, he’d go ‘ok, I’ll just turn this up here, and oh!, let me plug this box in’ (laughs). He would always have a workaround on how to make it happen. He just came in with a jovial, happy personality, he was glad to be there and contribute, a really good ‘idea guy’. I loved working with him.
On the ‘Rage For Order’ tour, Queensryche supported the likes of Ratt, Bon Jovi and Ozzy Osbourne. Did you ever feel pressured to play with other artists who were very different musically to you guys?
“We weren’t trying to sound like anybody, that whole idea of making bands conform to each other, that was later. We came in that great era when they put all kinds of different music together. We played with Jethro Tull (laughs), Roger Waters and the Psychedelic Furs. We also loved bands like Ratt, we had some great tours together, in fact we had a pretty intense bowling competition with those guys while on tour (laughs).
How do you juggle the touring and family life?
“It is what it is, my wife and I raised our kids on and off the road. They just grew up like that, they are used to travelling, eating in restaurants, being able to order a French meal (laughs). They have high expectations; they won’t go to a concert if they don’t have backstage passes y’know? (Laughs).
This week marks the 34th anniversary of your seminal album ‘Operation:Mindcrime’, how does that feel?
“It makes me feel old! (laughs) Most things make me feel old nowadays, it’s a strange time when you get into your sixties, you’re looking at all of this life that you’ve had. My grandkids are approaching their teenage years now. I’m doing shows, and everyone in the audience, has grey and white hair! (laughs) It’s just a really strange time, I don’t really see myself that way,as being an old fart, even though I am an old fart!”
Do you think that a concept album like Mindcrime would work in today’s environment with people’s poor attention spans?
“I don’t know..it was hard to get people to pay attention back in the eighties (laughs). That’s the thing about music, it’s a personal journey, music is a very personal thing for people. Some people are going to get it, some people aren’t. Some people hold music in a highly revenant regard in their lives, others don’t give a fuck”.
There’s a great line from the song Speak from the Mindcrime album: ‘The rich control the government, the media, the law’. Do you think that line is even more relevant in today’s society?
“I couldn’t even imagine the context of ‘rich’ in today’s situation with people being multi, multi billionaires y’know? (laughs) and then they don’t pay taxes, it seems incredibly wrong. A guy like Elon Musk, with a lot less that he paid for Twitter, he could eliminate hunger in the US for example. He could make a living wage for people, they could work and be paid a living wage which is enough to survive on, or at least live on. He could do so many wondrous things, but he buys a social media site, y’know? I can almost understand Jeff Bezos flying into space because they are looking for minerals and ways to mine that are not going to impact the earth”.
I must ask you about the Hear N Aid project back in 1984, how did you get involved?
“Ronnie James Dio called me, he said that was doing this thing and would I want to get involved in it. I absolutely said yes! I didn’t know what it was, or understand what it was, I just said yes, I’ll be there, just tell me what you want me to do. He sent me a cassette tape of the song Stars and a lyric sheet. A week later, I go down to LA and walked into A & M studios amidst this circus that was going on! There were so many people there, I was a very young man at the time, and I wasn’t used to that kind of situation where all of these very famous people that I looked up to and admired were all gathered together in this room. Many of them were sitting in the same room behind the glass listening to me sing my part which I didn’t know very well (laughs). It was very intimidating! It was a cool moment in time and Ronnie and Wendy (Dio) had great intentions and put their heart and soul into it. They brought together so many different people to participate, it was amazing. Especially as we didn’t have any social media or cell phones back then. I don’t know how they even got hold of all those people! (laughs).
You have a range of wine called Insania. Can we buy here in the UK?
“Normally yes, but everything is kinda messed up with the world transportation issues. If you’re in the UK you can order it from Germany, that’s where we make it, and they can send it to you. I need to find out if the Brexit thing will have an effect on the shipping too actually. Ironically, you can’t get it in the US (laughs) it’s because all of the ships are backloaded and delayed out a year. Thanks a lot Covid!”
You have another company called Backstage Travel, tell us about that. Is it back up and running? Fans can just book up and spend time with you eating and drinking?
“Yes, we just came on this tour from Tuscany, we did a weeklong trip with 32 people, and it was fun. If you like to travel, if you like to drink, if you like to eat great food, and if you like music, it’s a really fun trip to take y’know?”
What are your thoughts on the whole streaming debate?
“As long as they pay people fairly, then I’m all about it y’know? It’s one thing to make music and another thing to sell it, if you have an outlet that’s selling your stuff and you are being compensated fairly, then you’re way ahead of the game. It’s funny, the whole vinyl comeback thing, they’ve been saying that since the eighties, ‘vinyl’s coming back’ (laughs) I dug out my old turntable a while ago, and it was very expensive back in the day. I put a record on and, yep, still got that crackly thing going on!”
I was wondering if you have seen any of the classically trained vocal coaches on YouTube who spend a lot of time analysing one performance of yours, the Tokyo concert from 1984, and specifically, the song Take Hold of the Flame?
“I’ve not seen any of them, but someone has mentioned them to me. Is it a good laugh or what?
Ha ha, on the contrary, the coaches are in awe of your voice. I think they are of the opinion that heavy metal is just noise. They certainly change their opinion after watching the video!
“Oh wow, I’ll have to check that out! Sounds interesting.”
On behalf of RPM Online, thanks so much for taking the time out to talk to me today, I’m looking forward to tonight’s show and I hope the rest of the tour goes well.
“My pleasure, me too, so far so good. And on days like this, it doesn’t get any better”.
Swansea on a beautiful sunny May evening is a great place to be. The historic Patti Pavilion is where I was heading to see the legendary Geoff Tate perform not just Queensryche’s 1986 album Rage For Order in its entirety, but also their most successful album, 1990s Empire. Much has been said over recent years regarding the seemingly never-ending drama regarding Queensryche and ex-members. It does seem, however, that Tate has settled into his stride with his current band and is more than happy to be a legacy act. The number of punters wandering around wearing Queensryche T-shirts gives you a good idea of the demographic here tonight.
Before we get to the main event, we had a short but impressive set from openers Mark Daly & the Ravens. Mixing up a blend of southern rock with some Alice In Chains tinged tunes, Daly puts in an energetic performance. The sparse but appreciative audience thoroughly enjoys what they see and hear. Definitely, someone to keep an eye on.
By the time we are presented with Tate’s entrance, the room fills up considerably and there is an air of anticipation. I’ve been checking out some YouTube videos of recent performances and it seemed like Tate has been firing on all cylinders vocally. Taking to the stage with the classic ‘Walk In the Shadows’, when Tate strolls casually up to the microphone and nails that initial scream, everyone in attendance goes nuts. Snazzily dressed and looking the picture of health, Tate has the audience in the palm of his hand from the get-go. The band works their way through Rage For Order’s tracks and there is only a noticeable lull from the audience when lesser-known songs such as Neue Regel and London are being played. A fantastic rendition of ‘I Will Remember’ closes the first act with style.
After an extended break, the band returns to the stage while the intro to ‘Best I Can’ blasts through the PA. Rapturous applause from the crowd pushes the energy of the band and yet again, Tate is nailing it. For a man in his sixties to be singing this well is no mean feat. Tate gets his saxophone out for ‘The Thin Line’ and the band seems to be having the time of their lives. Scottish guitarist Kieran Robertson gets a great reaction from the crowd every time he sticks his tongue out and nails his parts with gusto. Crowd favourite ‘Jet City Woman’ goes down a storm as does ‘Another Rainy Night’ and ‘Empire’ in its full-blown glory. The sound mix tends to be a little muddy in places and drummer Daniel Laverde is obviously a very capable and talented drummer, but as a drummer myself I don’t like the fact that Daniel is using electronic drums. They just look naff, Queensryche’s original drummer Scott Rockenfield was renowned for the huge drum kits that he used, and it just doesn’t work visually for me in a hard rock/metal setting. Just my opinion of course.
‘Silent Lucidity’ sounds amazing as always. You forget how great that song is and looking around at the crowd singing every word is goosebump enticing. Tate is a master at keeping everyone in attendance entertained, even his anecdote about having to go grocery shopping for the first time in his life due to Covid canceling all his tour plans is very funny. After ‘Anybody Listening?’ the band leaves the stage to more rabid applause, shouts, and screams for more. They return for an encore of ‘Last Time in Paris’ and ‘Take Hold of the Flame’. The band has played for around two and a half hours, Tate is certainly giving his loyal fan base value for money. He is happy to press the flesh with the many fans who are front of stage trying to get a reaction from their hero. He seems genuinely over the moon to back out playing live.
The voice is well and truly alive and well. Go and see Geoff Tate if you get the chance, you won’t be disappointed, but you will be thoroughly entertained.
The legendary King’s X, comprised of dUg Pinnick, Ty Tabor & Jerry Gaskill, are pleased to announce they have signed with InsideOutMusic/Sony Music worldwide. They will be the label-home for the band’s forthcoming 13th studio album and first new music in 14 years, which has just been completed, the long-awaited new record will see the light of day on the 2nd of September 2022.
The band comments:
“I feel like it’s been forever since we put out a new album, and I’m ready for the world to hear our latest offering, hopefully there’s a little bit of everything that you love about Kings X, three sides of one is the best way to describe it. The groove is with us!” – dUg Pinnick
“It’s really gonna happen! The new record is coming out soon. I’m happy to be working with the team at InsideOut/Sony Music. I’m happy with the record. I’m happy everybody gets to hear it. It’s a happy day. Or at least that’s what I’m telling myself. Hope you enjoy it!!!” – Jerry Gaskill
“I have a long-standing relationship with InsideOut and am so pleased that InsideOut/Sony is releasing the new King’s X album.” – Ty Tabor
InsideOutMusic label-head Thomas Waber adds: “We have known the guys since forever and have been fans even before then. We are really looking forward to adding another album to their impressive legacy. Working on a King’s X album is always a highlight and an honour!”
The bands forthcoming new album saw them working with Emmy Award-winning engineer, mixer, and producer Michael Parnin (Rage Against the Machine, Mark Lanegan) at his Blacksound Studio in California. He comments: “I am very proud of the energy and work put into this album, especially of all the different vocal performances and varied musical influences mixed together as one. In true King’s X fashion, we had several obstacles to overcome, and it wasn’t easy but hopefully worth it to the amazing die-hard fans out there who have been waiting so patiently and to the new listeners hearing King’s X for the first time. It’s an honest labour of love that I am excited the world finally gets to hear.”
King’s X are set to return to stages in 2022, heading to Europe in September and returning to North America for more dates in October. Find the full list of shows below:
Europe & UK
1st September – Backstage Halle, Munich, Germany
2nd September – Veruno Musica Festival, Veruno, Italy
3rd September – Old Capitol, Langenthal, Switzerland
6th September – Hirsch, Nürnberg, Germany
7th September – Colos-Saal – Aschaffenburg, Germany
9th September – Boerderij, Zoetermeer, Netherlands
10th September – Fabrik, Hamburg, Germany
12th September – Spirit of 66, Verviers, Belgium
13th September – Kantine, Cologne, Germany
14th September – Le Forum, Vaureal (Paris), France
16th September – The Brook, Southampton, UK
17th September – Picturedrome, Holmfirth, UK
18th September – Wylam Brewery, Newcastle, UK
20th September – Garage, Glasgow, UK
22nd September – Rescue Rooms, Nottingham, UK
23rd September – Junction, Cambridge, UK
24th September – KK’s Steel Mill, Wolverhampton, UK
26th September – Islington Assembly Hall, London, UK
27th September – Academy 2, Manchester, UK
28th September – Tramshed, Cardiff, UK
30th September – Biebob, Vosselaar, Belgium
1st October – Hypothalamus, Rheine, Germany
North America
28th July – Gramercy Theatre, NYC, NY, USA
29th July – Sellersville Theatre, Sellersville, PA, USA
19th October – Amos’ Southend, Charlotte, NC, USA
20th October – The Concourse, Knoxville, TN, USA
21st October – The Forum, Hazard, KY, USA
23rd October – Brooklyn Bowl, Nashville, TN, USA
25th October – The Howlin’ Wolf, New Orleans, LA, USA
27th October – Come and Take It Live, Austin, TX, USA
28th October – Trees, Dallas, TX, USA
29th October – Warehouse Live, Houston, TX, USA
Look out for more info on the new album in the coming months!
Trapped Animal Records is proud to announce the return of 90’s legends Headswim, with a reissue of their seminal psych-grunge masterpiece, ‘Flood’, on October 7th. Released on double vinyl and double CD, this deluxe re-issue will feature previously unreleased BBC sessions, studio B sides, and experiments by the band and their mad scientist friends on disc two!
To celebrate the release, Headswim’s original lineup will be performing Flood in its entirety at The Camden Underworld on Friday, October 7th. This will be the Headswim’s first performance in over two decades!
“If you’d told me 28 years ago that in 2022 Headswim would be performing the entirety of their debut LP at The Camden Underworld, I’d have eaten my hat. Pass the salt.” exclaimed Clovis Taylor.
To pre-order Flood #Reduxon three different double vinyl formats, double CD and download go to headswim.co.uk
There are also bundles available and tickets for the Underworld.
The Courettes are hot hot hot! at the moment and rightly so. Heading over to the UK in June for an extensive tour this 10″ record brings together a whole bunch of B sides and outtakes. Striking whilst the iron is hot is a good thing and this duo are knocking out quality records and drawing these together in one convenient place is a bargain. They ask that you play this record loudly and through shite speakers but that’s not an exclusive request because it’s also available on CD as well.
You know the drill with this pair, they’re retro in a wall of sound way and bang up to date current as well. It’s not just a cobbled-together compilation because there are non-album B sides, and three tracks that have added instrumentation on them it also has the Japanese-only split ‘So What’ available right here, right now.
Their brand of pop smart melodies wrapped up in a Rock and Roll sound was perfectly described as not playing Rock and Roll because they are Rock and Roll, if you know – you know! At times you have to concentrate hard on the record because you think it is a four-piece and some making that wall of sound and not just two musicians, it’s got that warm Fuzz on the guitar and a shimmering smokey mix over the top of the whole sound. Surely it’s only a matter of time before everyone gets down with The Courettes and their music maybe one DJ who knows their music will get smart or a Jools Holland to champion this pair and whoosh! away they’ll fly. ‘Tough Like That’ is a bruiser with it’s punchy riff and then the cool smoldering ‘Talking About My Baby’ before it just takes off for the chorus before switching vocals and dropping back into that cool smolder.
Try them – buy this 10″ you won’t regret it they write and perform wonderful music that let you leave all your real-world woes at the door because for the next half an hour your gonna dream and pretend you’re onto the best-kept secret in music – The Fabulous Courettes Schh! or everyone will cotton on. Bop shawaddy bop baby! Eight tracks to tide us over. Perfecto!
SPIRITED HORN-BLASTED ANTHEM HERALDS UPCOMING NEW ALBUM,’WELCOME 2 CLUB XIII’ OUT 3RD JUNE ON ATO RECORDS
UK SHOWS JUNE
Drive-By Truckers have announced the premiere of ‘Every Single Storied Flameout’, the latest track from their upcoming 14th studio album, ‘Welcome 2 Club XIII’, due via ATO Records on Friday, June 3. Pre-orders are available now.
The spirited, horn-blasted ‘Every Single Storied Flameout’ sees founding member/vocalist/guitarist Mike Cooley looking back at his younger years with unsparing self-reflection and a bit of rambling wisdom. “I wrote that song when my son was turning 16 and going through a rough patch for a bit,” Cooley says. “Luckily, he’s turned it around and he’s doing great now, but it was a tough time for a while. Part of my way of dealing with it was to take ownership of the example I might’ve set, in the hope of leading him out of it.”
Southern Gothic hits the Wirral Peninsula as Bambara plays their last mainland UK date at the visionary Future Yard in Birkenhead, after an already formidable European jaunt. Delayed by almost two years and a few venue changes on the way, we’re finally here enjoying a much sought-after sonic assault.
The band brings with it a moody, introspective atmosphere akin to something you would expect from a David Lynch feature. Saturating the room with somber tones immediately on opening number ‘miracle’, until the latter half of the song, at which point frontman Reid Bateh kicks the door off the hinges vocally. Between most of the set, he moves effortlessly from cool and contemplative to frenzied and intense, unleashing his lyrical attack looking like a young Michael Shannon playing method in a crazed and epic role.
The overall sound is explosive, hitting all the right spots and showcasing an accomplished live makeup without losing any of the dexterous qualities of the records. Although the group is ferocious yet brooding, they make it clear from the outset that they are a well-oiled machine, melding an impressive, galloping rhythm section with layers of lush Bayeux Esque synthesized backing tracks and gothic guitar lines, draping the audience in neo-noir darkness. Tonight we are given an array of the band’s ever-growing back catalogue, but with a focus on the latest album Stray, and the recent EP Love On My Mind. Stand-out tracks are ‘stay cruel’ from the former and ‘feelin’ like a funeral’ from the latter. We are even treated to the live debut of ‘little wars’, a definite plus for the Tuesday night crowd here this evening. With more dates on the other side of the Irish sea and a swift handful of shows in the US and Canada once they fly back, let’s hope they don’t tire themselves out too much and return to the UK sooner rather than later.
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