Welcome to another edition of From My Collection. Today, we revisit the self titled debut EP from one of the most important American metal band of all time, Queensrÿche. Before the multi-platinum albums, sold out arenas, and rock operas, Queensrÿche was an aspiring metal band with a hunger for innovation. They saw what bands like Iron Maiden and Mercyful Fate were doing, taking metal to new creative heights. If the Europeans could do it, why not them? This week’s essay explains how they did so and the impact it had on American metal from that point forward.
Before becoming known as the grunge capital of the world, Seattle, Washington had quite the metal scene. Spearheaded in the 70s by TKO and Rail, it would soon grow to boast now legendary acts such as Q5, Culprit, Sanctuary, Heir Apparent, and Queensrÿche, just to name a few. Now Queensrÿche wasn’t always “Queensrÿche”. They originally formed in 1981 as The Mob. After a year of polishing their chops and writing music, The Mob were ready to make their opening statement. There was only one problem: They had no voice to do so.
Just as Queensrÿche wasn’t always “Queensrÿche”, top 10 metal singer of all time Geoff Tate wasn’t always “top 10 metal singer of all time Geoff Tate”. Once upon a time, he was Geoff Tate: frontman for moderately successful local band, Myth. While I describe Myth’s success as merely moderate, I imagine it must’ve been a bit more than that. Why? Because when Tate was approached to join The Mob, he declined. Instead, he decided to let them “borrow” his voice as a session singer, just like Candlemass would do with Johan Längquist on Epicus Doomicus Metallicus. Myth was Geoff Tate’s baby and main focus. He planned to keep it as such.
Now before I go on with this rest of this essay. I want you to stop and think for a second. Could you imagine how the course of metal history would have been altered had Geoff Tate never joined The Mob? Even if they had found another singer, there’s no way that singer would’ve been more effective than Tate in elevating them to the next level. This isn’t to disparage the musical and songwriting chops of Michael Wilton and Chris DeGarmo, America’s answer to Adrian Smith and Dave Murray. The Mob’s debut demo paved the way for entire generations of power and progressive metal bands to come. But Tate’s operatic vocals are the icing on the cake. The Seattle metal scene knew this. When The Mob released their self titled demo in 1982, it gained so much traction that Tate abandoned Myth and joined the band full time. Despite being released in 1982, unless you were an ardent tape trader, this demo wouldn’t hit your radar until 1983 when it was released as an EP under a new moniker: Queensrÿche.
Queensrÿche adopted the name after the EP’s first track, “Queen of the Reich”. What can I say about this song that hasn’t been said already? Everything about it is pure metallic perfection: the lyrics, the guitars, the atmosphere. Geoff Tate’s opening scream might be the greatest in metal history, even over “Highway Star” and “Angel of Death”. It’s so iconic that it overshadows the earthshattering shriek on the following track, “Nightrider”. Musically, it carries on the same vibe and energy as “Queen of the Reich”. This is US power metal in its most embryonic form. A flip over to side B continues the charge with “Blinded”, before we’re introduced to Queensrÿche’s progressive side. After 3 songs of battle ready metal, Tate and company play us out with an ominous ballad about an equally ominous character, “The Lady Wore Black”. Just as this EP expanded upon the guitar work of bands like Iron Maiden and Mercyful Fate, “The Lady Wore Black” expanded upon these very bands ballads, as heard on tracks like “Children of the Damned” and “Melissa” respectively.
Queensrÿche marked a major turning point in American metal history. Upon its release, there were two styles of metal which dominated. The first was a chunky, riff oriented style that evolved out of 70s hard rock (i.e. Y&T, Riot). The second featured the same fantastical lyrics as Queensrÿche, but lacked their melodic sensibility. Instead, focus was placed on the most obscure elements of 70s prog and psychedelia (i.e. Manilla Road, Cirith Ungol). What both styles had in common was that they looked back at what metal was. Queensrÿche looked forward at what metal could be. Instead of waiting for the ideal US metal saviors to come along, they took the bull by the horns and assumed the title themselves. They’d spend the rest of the 80s challenging the norms and conventions of metal, and despite a mid career slump, continue to do so today. So the next time you hear some poser dismiss Queensrÿche as “butt rock” or “the guys who did “Jet City Woman” bro”, teach them a lesson and guide them to this EP.