Tuesday
Sep042012
Geoff Tate Announces New Queensryche Lineup
Tuesday, September 4, 2012 at 12:01AM Geoff Tate recently announced the members of the "new" Queensryche. So who did Tate choose to join him on stage? Rudy Sarzo, Bobby Blotzer, Glen Drover, Kelly Gray and Randy Gane.
"Together we shall embark on a new musical journey that will be a greater extension of where Queensrÿche has ever been," Geoff Tate said of the lineup.
I have to admit that Tate put himself together a little supergroup and diehard 'Ryche fans will certainly take a second look at this lineup because of Kelly Gray.
Stay tuned for tour dates. So what do you think? Will you support this version of the band, or the other version featuring the former members of Queensryche and new singer Todd La Torre?
Reader Comments (16)
Rudy Sarzo has been in a Quiet Riot that wasn't really Quiet Riot,(anything after Randy Rhoads left was QR in name only) a Dio that's not Dio ("Disciples"), a Whitesnake lineup put together originally for a video, a B.O.C. w/ only 1 original member, and an AniMetal re-manufactured w/ ZERO original members.
Bobby Blotzer is like the 3rd or 4th drummer Ratt has had, & his other band was a... (wait for it..) Ratt tribute band.
the other 2 guys aside from Geoff Taint are absolute nobody's.
Meanwhile the other Queensryche, the REAL Queensryche has 3 of the 4 other original band members. And they're the ones who wrote the musical parts, if not the whole songs.
Geoff & his ego obviously think he can pull this off, thinking the real Queensryche fans will forget the way he disrespected them right before he got fired from the real Queensryche. FAT CHANCE. Maybe he just wasn't secure enough to go solo and actually write some songs completely by himself.
I'd wish him good luck, but he doesn't deserve it. He deserves to fail horribly. And knowing my pal Sarzo since 1978, Geoff will be in need of another bassist shortly, as Rudy has 6 other bands he's in, and some of them still play arenas somewhere around the world. The best this will get is 2nd stage at festivals like M3.
Also, to call Glen Drover (who spent 4 years in Megadeth) an absolute nobody is a little harsh.
And what do yuo think will happen the first time Tate spits on them?
Queensryche is legally, logically, and emotionally Wilton, Rockenfield, Jackson, Parker and La Torre.
Tate's voice is shot, and has been for years. His artistic integrity is non existent, as is his business ethics.
And, Just as an FYI, I have been a Ryche fan since the EP, worshipped Tate's voice and politics, and loved his first solo record.
I know I'm in the minority here.. but I have no problem with any of those bands continuing on without the vocalist who made them popular. The fans don't have to record with these guys, nor do they have to go out on the road with them... If band members believe they need to replace a singer I see no problem.
Great White w/o Jack Russell IS still Great White. The main songwriters Of Mark Kendell & Michael Lardie are still there.
Quiet Riot with DuBrow (much less Randy Rhoads) ISN'T Quiet Riot, because it's a band with Zero of the original members/songwriters - when Rhoads left, the band ceased to be. Kevin put together another band, called it "DuBrow" & went out & played - that band was Kevin, Greg Leon on guitar, QR drummer Drew Forsythe, & bassist Gary VanDyke. as time went on each of the positions aside from DuBrow became revolving doors. He only took the previous band's name because Rhoads had passed away & Spencer Proffer, who signed them, didn't think DuBrow's name was a good enough band name.{and to "Chip" who commented earlier, even though Sarzo's picture is on Metal Health, it's Chuck Wright & Tony Cavazo who played the bass parts on that record}. so it's NOT Quiet Riot. Especially not now.
Skid Row was Skid Row before Baz & after. He wrote none of the songs. Rachel Bolan writing the majority of the material. I will say he was the best of the singers Skid Row has had, and obviously the most popular.
There WAS a Warrant before Jani Lane - but it bore little resemblance to what Jani built them into. When he left, his songs should have left to. But then , what passes for Warrant wouldn't have much to play... Not that anyone really wants to hear, if they go see them. Play a song from "Rockaholic" live & you can almost hear crickets outside the club.
Queensryche without Geoff Tate is still Queensryche, because it's the same guys (minus one) as before Geoff ever joined them.
Opinionated? Sure I am. But it's based in fact.
Reality check! We're quibbling over who?!
I give 'em 1 1/2 songs -- the unmatched "Queen Of The Reich" and a half a good song, "Jet City Woman".
It's a shame we live in a world where talent like Blotzer and Sarzo have to wind up playin' in what amounts to a Queensryche tribute band with the original band's vocalist.
I wish RATT could keep Blotzer busy enuff and Rudy could be touring and making albums with the "Still Of The Night" era version of Whitesnake.
I'm realizing Sarzo has been a Rock'n'Roll Nomad since day one, having to jump from band to band going for the next "better" opportunity, at least, so it seemed at the time. But there's no questioning this guy's talent -- just watch him in the pro shot footage of Quiet Riot from US Festival '83. I'm sure Ace will attest to that, having seen that particular performance first hand live. The guy's an absolute MONSTER! I so want to read his book, "Off The Rails", too, about his time with Ozzy, which Chump & Co. raved about on "That Metal Show" as it supposedly lives up to their praise -- it's so hard to tell with those guys since they gush over damn near everything VH1Classic PR puts in front of them.
I see people bashin' Blotzer here but I witnessed him point blank playin' with RATT at M3 and my feeling is he's another MONSTER! He blew me away! I'm sure he's got something going on with his playing or DiMartini and Pearcy wouldn't be keeping him around since the classic line-up!
Speaking of M3, I watched Queensryche's performance on the TVs up on the VIP deck at Merriweather. Boy, we're they lackluster. Look, I never really liked 'em except off "Queen Of The Reich" but that's not what's driving my opinion of that M3 performance. It was a shambles with Tate sing-singing his way through the set and overall lack of energy from the band. It doesn't matter whether I like their stuff, thi was about watching a train wreck implode right on the stage. No wonder it all blew up in their faces.
Taint (haha!, Ace! You sure you didn't steal that from me?) was just on Chump and made it sound like he wants to put the band back together. I say, "Why bother?"
When you play a festival like Rocklahoma you better bring it as a band. The fans have been outside all day and have had the opportunity to see many bands. As a band you'd better be able to live up to the ones that have played before you.
Bobby Blotzer on drums?????
Besides, you had to back pedal when it comes to chronologies that don't uphold the songwriter axiom (Q: how many songs need to be written or co-written before a person achieve a certain status in your canon? Q: what constitutes a song in terms of the value it holds in placing a person into that canon? Q: how do you factor in the specific time when a person wrote a song as relates to both previous questions?).
So I grant your forceful opinion. I just don't see how basing it on facts makes it any more valid than any other opinion if even you can't hold to it (granted, it isn't as if you were making some claim of inherency).
Two facts and a conclusion: members of Great White were drunks. Some members are now sober. I like Russell's Great White. The conclusion doesn't follow from the premises.
But it is an opinion that may be influenced by one or both of them.
I am simply curious to see how well _both_ versions do in practice. And though I prefer original voices in bands, that isn't always an option.