"Powerful, dramatic, progressive, diverse and electrifying."

(-Queensryche.com)  These are some of the words that have been used to describe this very unique band for over two decades.  I say only some, because there is no one way to describe Queensrÿche.  Since their inception in the early '80s they have evolved several times over as a band, as musicians, and as entertainers.  But one thing always remains the same...they have always remained true to themselves, and take great pride in never giving in to the sways of public opinion and the trendy influneces that go hand in hand with the business of making music.  I'm going to take you on a journey beginning back in 1981 in Bellevue, WA with a couple of kids playing guitar...

Each of the founding members stumbled into music in one form or another at an early age.  By their late teens they had played in numerous bands individually.  Drummer Scott Rockenfield and guitarist Michael Wilton played together in a metal cover band called Cross+Fire.  They eventually added bassist Eddie Jackson and guitarist Chris DeGarmo and the "Evolution" began.  They changed their name to The Mob, gigged regularly playing cover tunes and began to write some originals, but lacked the final component...a dynamic lead singer.  Another local club band, Babylon, caught the attention of the group, particularly their lead singer, a young man with a big voice named Geoff Tate.  Tate agreed to perform with them for a local rock festival. Though the response was good, and they began to form a local following, Tate was not totally convinced that joining the band was the right direction for him, not to mention his prior commitment.  With money they mustered together from part-time jobs, the band managed to cut a four song demo, and the result was enough to sway Tate's mind that they had created something special.  The demo, which included the tracks "Queen Of The Reich", "Nightrider", "Blinded", and "The Lady Wore Black" was initially rejected by several labels, but sparked an interest by Harris Management, who agreed to take them on.  Around this time they changed their name to Queensrÿche and produced their own self-titled EP(1982) of the their demos on their own label, 206 Records.  A rave review by the British magazine Kerrang! catapulted interest in the band and began a bidding war between seven major labels.

Finally settling on EMI America, they re-released the self-titled EP and only added one additional track.  It made it into the top 100 and prompted their first national tour with Dio and Twisted Sister.

Their first full length release The Warning(1984) reached #61 on the Billboard charts and landed them a spot on a World Tour with Bon Jovi and Kiss.  In 1986, Rage For Order was released.  This album really began to show the diversity and versatility of the band, combining startling and thought provoking lyrics with a progressive and limitless exploration of sounds and musical composition.  The world finally caught notice of Queensrÿche in 1988 with what many consider their breakout release, the concept album Operation:Mindcrime.  The cerebral rock opera album that told the story of Nikki, a junky turned brainwashed, underground anti-government assassign, who falls in love with Mary, the ex-hooker turned nun, stayed on the charts for over a year and quickly put Queensrÿche on the map.  Their follow up release, 1990's Empire proved to be their biggest commercially successful album, and produced their first top ten single, the power ballad, "Silent Lucidity" and on the charts for more than two years.  They embarked on thier first full-fledged headlining tour, "Building Empires" which included a dramatic performance of "Operation:Mindcrime" in its entirety with a video enhanced experience, and guest vocalist Pamela Moore, who brought her recorded character of Sister Mary to life (and death) on stage. 

After rigorous touring, including a stint on The Monsters Of Rock Tour with Motley Crue and Metallica, the band decided to take some time off before returning to the studio for the 1994 release Promised Land.  The result was a heavier, darker sounding album of moving lyrics, driving rhythms, and haunting riffs, that explored and exploited the personal struggles, triumphs and growth of each of the members of the band.  In 1995, EMI released a 2-disc multi-media CD-rom that included a behind-the-scenes look at the grueling process of producing "Promised Land" and an interactive adventure game that let fans explore the inner psyche of the individual band members.  The 1997 release Hear In The Now Frontier further displayed the band's progressive nature with a stripped down, raw sound, that many critics compared to the other musical movement that immerged from the Seattle area...grunge rock.  Met with mixed reviews from fans and critics, the band began a tour in support of the album, and things began to unravel...Two months into the tour Tate got sick, and for the first time ever, the band was forced to cancel some dates.  Shortly after that, their label, EMI, went bankrupt and the band ultimately had to fund the remainder of the tour.  After fulfilling his contractual obligation to the tour, founding guitarist Chris DeGarmo announced that he would be leaving the band.  Although  the details of his departure have never been made public, band members have eluded to ideas of burnout and the desire to persue other ventures. 

Degarmo was replaced by long-time friend and producer Kelly Gray, who appeared on their 1999 Atlantic Records release Q2K and live CD/DVD Live Evolution, but was never fully embraced by fans as agood fit, and left the band after the 2001 tour.  Now with Sanctuary Records, in 2003, DeGarmo co-wrote and played on four tracks of the 2003 release Tribe but did not end up touring with the band in support of the album.  It was then that Mike Stone joined the band and remained.  Stone has evolved into an intrigal part of the force that remains Queensrÿche who, to this day, continue to tour and make music as relevant and poignant today as it was groundbreaking and electrifying over twenty years ago.

In April 2006, the long anticipated sequel to Operation:Mindcrime was released and debuted at #14 on the charts, their first release with Rhino.  Pamela Moore reprised her role as Sister Mary, and guest vocalist Ronnie James Dio recorded the part of the sinsiter Dr. X.  The insuing tour included a full dramatic production of both albums in their entirety, live actors and an updated video sequence.  2007 saw three releases for the band, a live CD/DVD, Mindcrime At The Moore, recorded at the Moore Theater in Seattle, WA, a new greatest hits collection, Sign Of The Times and Take Cover, a collection of songs in tribute to some of the bands that have influenced them over the years.

In addition to the success of Queensrÿche, individudal side projects have also garnered some attention.  In 1999 Scott Rockenfield collaborated with Paul Speer on a long form music video, Televoid that earned the duo a Grammy nomination.  Rockenfield also plays with Slave To The System with Kelly Gray, Damon Johnson and Roman Glick(Brother Cane), and Scotty Heard(Sweaty Nipples) who released their self titled debut album in 2006.  Scott is also co-founder and CEO of Rockenwraps.  Geoff Tate has appeared on the collaborative album with Hear 'N Aid(1985) as well as recording "Somebody To Love" on the Queen tribute Stone Cold Queen.  Tate released a self titled CD in 2002 and toured in support of it.  Opening on several dates of that tour was Michael Wilton's other band, Soulbender.  Former member Chris DeGarmo played on tour with Jerry Cantrell of Alice In Chains, as well as on his second solo album.  DeGarmo, along with Vin Dombroski(Sponge) and Mike Inez and Sean Kinney(Alice In Chains) formed the group Spys 4 Darwin, and relesed an EP Microfish, which is currently available for sale again.  DeGarmo is now a pilot in the Seattle area.

If you are still unsure of what to make of this band, I highly recommennd seeing them perform live.  They are currently touring North America, and will be heading to the UK this summer.