Queensryche - Operation: Mindcrime II
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Free Music Notes for Operation: Mindcrime II
Free Music Review: Fitting Follow Up To A Legendary Album
Hit: 5 Stars
Many who heard or read that Queensryche were recording a follow up to the classic 1988 concept album Operation Mindcrime had set their minds to disliking this album before ever having heard it. I'll be honest...I haven't absolutely loved anything Queensryche has done since Promised Land (though I've liked much of it). Until now that is.
This album is the best they've done since Promised Land in my opinion. They recapture the sound and feel of the original Mindcrime album without blatantly ripping it off. I think that's commendable.
The songwriting/storytelling is top notch as is the musicianship. I suppose now would be a good time to address the obvious...the absence of Chris DeGarmo. I wondered how they would pull this off without Chris' involvement, but they pulled it off. Who knows how this might have turned out with his participation?...well, nobody because it didn't happen. I have the utmost respect for Chris' contributions to Queensryche and wish he were still with them, but reality is what it is. I think Mike Stone has stepped up and created his own spot with the band. He isn't filling shoes because he's blazing his own trail with the band.
Anyway...enough about that.
This album is the perfect companion to it's predecessor. Queensryche worked their asses off on this album and it shows. You can tell that they set out to give their fans exactly what they wanted, and to this fan...they delivered in spades.
I really love the song The Hands. This tune stuck out to me the first time I heard the album all the way through. I just kept wanting to listen to it over and over. It is definitely in the vein of classic Queensryche.
I could give you a song by song review, but ultimately, you're the best judge for determining what you like. Listen to the audio samples and make your decision. I'm a long time Queensryche fan and I was really happy with this album. I love it as much as anything they've ever done.
One more thing...if you like it, turn your friends on to it.
Free Music Review: Best since Empire. Very Good Disc!
Hit: 5 Stars
My expectations were pretty low when I bought Mindcrime 2. I barely listened to Q2K and skipped Tribe altogether. I figured Queensryche had lost their creativity and gone the way of some of my other favorite bands from the 80's/ 90's. But I purchased the CD in order to listen at least once so I wouldn't be totally in the dark when I caught their show this past week.
The sequel does feel less sweeping than the first album causing some to say that there is no story. The trade off is a more fleshed out exploration of the themes of revenge, violence, redemption and suicide. My only gripe is that the story goes exactly where you thought it would. I'd have liked a plot twist or a more sinister ending instead of the bittersweet love story ending of All the Promises. The story is good but misses the main draw of the original which was revolution, politics and grit equal to that of a Sam Pekinpah film.
Despite reviews to the contrary there are several standout tracks on the CD. I'm American, One Foot in Hell, The Chase & Fear City Slide are all 5-star tracks that I will have in my rotation of best songs on I-Tunes. The only song I find myself skipping is Hostage but doesn't every CD have that one song you skip?
Geoff Tate still sounds as good as ever to me. He may not go for the octave stretching vocals of Take Hold of the Flame anymore but honestly how dated would they sound if they were still chasing the Iron Maiden/ Spinal Tap sound of Heavy Metal's glory years. Geoff's voice is still extremely strong, go see the live show and you'll be blown away. Its amazing that he can sing with that much power for over 3 hours a night every night.
Bottom line is that if you give this album a chance you'll love it. Nobody who has ever really liked Queensryche should be giving this CD 1 Star out of 5. Its not a perfect album like the first disc but it's a worthy follow up to one of rock's greatest albums and Queensryche's best CD since Empire. I hope their next CD will be on this level!
Free Music Review: Classic to Be!!
Hit: 5 Stars
Operation:Mindcrime 2 is not a follow up, but the continuation of the Mindcrime story started in 1988,back then we were left whit an open ending and the question "what now?"
well here we are 18 years later and we finaly will get the answers.
On a music level we are taken on a rollercoaster by the band
we are treated by them with some cool duets on here,a few with Geoff singing together with Pamale "Sister Mary" Moore and of course they special appearence of Ronnie James Dio as "Dr.X"
the music itself is just way more diverse then part 1 or should i say the beginning of this story.this time the band has taken some risk,the muic ranges from up-tempo rock to blues,to classical(yes those are real strings!)and ballads,but also experimental stuff, what else would you expect man It's Queensryche! they started the whole Prog-Metal/Rock genre
the diverity is one reason to buy this one,lyricly Geoff takes uis in to the life of "Nikki" as he is now,after 18years of prisson,trying to find his way into society today,and having the big question in his head :"Do i lett it all go, or do i want revenge on dr.x,? and iff i do how????,and what will become of it??"
again a lot of questions more complex then just "who killed Mary?" by the way you will get an answer on that one to.
for all those people who are thinking "oh wellmaybe i'll get one off my friends to make a copy?" NO-Use besides the fact he fact you need to hear greatest Queensryche album since "Promissed Land" more the severall times to get it, you need the cd-book to to catch the whole story.
For those of you who are still not convinced to buy this album
you are gonna be so sad when prople come up to you in a few years and ask you "do you have Mindcrime 2 ass well" and your shaking your head "No-only the Mindcime from '88"
GET This Classic to be NOW!!
Free Music Review: Boo disparaging reviewers!! Horray Mindcrime 2!!!!
Hit: 5 Stars
After hearing the album a number of times, and seeing them live, two things are obvious. First: Michael Wilton has been eating his Wheaties and has evolved into a guitarrist of Satrianic proportions. Second: Mike Stone demonstrates a level of speed, accuracy, and innovation with his own guitar playing that is rivaled by very few, and is a tremendous edition to the band. Many formally skeptical Degarmo fans that I talked to at the Philadelphia concert were won over by the new line up. To sum it up, Mindcrime 2 has the most impressive guitar work of any Queensryche Album.
One other thing that this album has over all of the others: Pamela Moore on almost every song, which in and of itself makes it worth buying.
Speaking of vocalists, one would imagine that Geoff Tate had to reach deep down to hit notes so high as what you'll hear on some of these tracks,
but he was able to belt them out with relative ease at the concert, even after performing the entire Mindcrime 1 album in it's original key. Many kudos should be lauded to Geoff for some very inspired lyrics on this album and for making these digital recordings scream with emotion.
I can guarantee you that over 90% of the bad reviews you read here were written by people who only listened to this album once or twice.
What impresses me most about Mindcrime 2 is it's excellent replay value, and how much more enjoyable these songs get after repeated listens.
Would I dare assert that Mindcrime 2 eclipses the original? What I will say is that certain songs like Signs Say Go, Re-arrange You, Chase, Murderer?, and Fear City Slide are absolutely worthy of that mantle, while numerous other tracks still outshine anything on the critically acclaimed Audioslave album (not counting Shape of Things to Come - love that song!).
Free Music Review: This is Tate's Queensryche
Hit: 5 Stars
Background: In 1988 I heard a song called SUITE SISTER MARY and was immediately hooked on this band called Queensryche. Aside from Rush, they were my first experience with progressive metal. The Warning, Rage, Mindcrime played continuously in my single CD player until 1990 when Empire was released. I thought Promised Land a masterpiece, and marvelled at the ability of this band to continue to change their sound from one CD to the next. Although Hear in the Now Frontier was disappointing, there are some very bright moments on it, like SPOOL. Q2K marked the transition from DeGarmo, and it really sucked.
But Geoff Tate seemed to gain his confidence back with Tribe, which is an excellent CD, and again shows Queensryche's ability to push their own ideas of identity to the limits. Tate's voice has changed. He no longer hits the high notes, and even at the concerts he often lets the audience take the high pitched notes...
Tate's solo album is a great example of his new voice. It is a masterpiece of sound and lyric, and it is mostly absent of any hooks. Which brings us to Mindcrime II. This CD is awesome. I am on my 6th listen, and what I hear is Geoff Tate in command. He is an artist, and he has created a CD worthy of the Queensryche name. There arent any songs that stand out like on the original, and maybe the radio is far away from playing any QR, but to the real fans of the band, it delivers.
Where does it lack....the story has very little action. It is more of character study. We spend much of our time inside nikki's head. Dio sounds good, and pamela moore reminds us of the original mindcrime, but mostly what we get is a heavy dose of Geoff Tate's artistry and perspective. But I'll gladly take it. I think even Chris would be proud of this effort.