The era in which Queensrÿche were regarded among the most intelligent and exciting acts now seems very distant. The band’s artistic nosedive reached a nadir with 2011’s rambling Dedicated To Chaos – or so we thought until a bust-up left us with two rival incarnations of the band.
So which version to back? Certainly not the one led by ex-frontman Geoff Tate, whose half-baked comeback Frequency Unknown was roundly lambasted despite an array of special guests. In contrast, the rest of Queensrÿche recruited a relative unknown, and what an inspired choice Todd LaTorre turns out to be. The ex-Crimson Glory frontman sounds just like a younger version of Tate, hitting the high notes assuredly throughout.
Stylistically, Queensrÿche does an exemplary job of stopping the rot, songs such as Where Dreams Go To Die, Vindication and the soaring Open Road reviving the sound of the band’s 1990s releases. Accept no substitute.
