Come on, people!
I hope I don't sound like too much of a jerk here, but can't you people let go of this band? They'll never sound as good live as they did in their heyday, and they'll never release another good album (Promised Land being the last one). I don't understand why this whole Operation Mindcrime "Revisited" is such a big deal when you consider that half of their set list from the past few tours has been from that album, anyway. Besides, hasn't Geoff Tate insulted heavy metal and its fans more than enough times for you to turn your backs on him? This guy is such a hypocrite. In interviews, he'll talk about how Queensryche is not a metal band, how he never listens to metal, and how the fans only want to hear the old stuff. At the shows, however, he'll praise metal and perform a set full of Mindcrime and Empire tunes. If he had the balls to back up his shit-talking and had any faith in Queensryche's newer material, he wouldn't be afraid to perform more than one song off of every album following Promised Land. If this band is "looking into the future," as Tate puts it, then why are they making a sequel to an album from their past (a past that features a sound that Tate would "rather not explore again")? If all of the newer metal bands bore Tate, why did Symphony X open for them earlier this year (and, I might add, slay them every night!)? Furthermore, Mike Stone will never sound as good as Chris Degarmo, and Eddie Jackson's and Michael Wilton's backing vocals are totally fake! I feel bad for Scott Rockenfield because it seems as if he feels that this gig is the only way for him to make a decent living. There was a time when I went nuts over Queensryche, but that time is long gone. I can only hope that others will learn the same lesson before Queensryche start doing a string of farewell tours like Kiss.
Stay metal. Never rust.
Met-Al
