A Tale of Two 'Ryches

[Carlitto H@kk]

How many of you have been following the Queensryche soap opera this year?

Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse, just read up on happenings
in Tate's world Might as well change the saying from "Murphy's Law" to "Tate's Law"!

Tate, and his career, seem to be spiraling while the Scott, Michael, and Eddie are doing
everything right and, from the sounds of the first sample "Redemption", are about to
release a 'Ryche album that many fans have been waiting 10-15 years for!

Thoughts?

[G.I.Jim]

When I saw this clip, I lost all respect for Tate. It's one thing to be pissed about the size of the crowd, but to bitch at the people who DID pay to see your show on a Sunday and tell them they "suck"? Complete tool. I'll reserve judgment on Queensryche's album until I hear the whole thing. The one song that was released is okay... He definitely sounds like Geoff, I'll give him that! Here's the clip...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d88du2GnAus

[Starrider]

I've been following it rather closely. I saw Toddryche live a few weeks ago. They were great, and Todd really did the songs justice, even though he was sick. My only disappointment was that they didn't play I Don't Believe in Love, Jet City Woman, and Take Hold of the Flame. There is a new energy with the band that you didn't see the last few years with GT.

Tateryche is a trainwreck and it keeps getting worse. First Glen Drover bailed, then Bobby Blotzer. Tate has a group of musicians who don't match up with Wilton, Jackson, and Rockenfield. Drover was the only one with any credibility in their genre. The clips for Tateryche's FU album were atrocious. The songwriting was poor, the instrumentation was poor, and the singing was poor. Everything was rushed. Jason Slater just isn't that good a songwriter. He's certainly no Chris DeGarmo. The first song on FU sounded like it had some potential, but I think Tate blew his load in his drawers there and had nothing left for the rest of the album. The re-records were horrible. Then there was the Billy Sherwood debacle. Sherwood was supposed to be "fixing the sonic issues" or some bullshit. Four days later, he bailed. Guess he realized how difficult Tate was to work with and how there was no way he could polish those turds into something presentable.

Geoff Tate was one of the best voices in the industry, but he is a long way from the top now. The spitting incidents, attacks on other band members, and the Rocklahoma incident just kept giving more and more evidence as to how unstable he is. I listen to the original QR recordings in my car all the time, and they're spectacular, but I think it's time for GT to hang up his vest.

I'm excited for the upcoming Toddryche release. I'll listen to Tateryche's FU, but I'm not expecting much based on the clips I have heard. It's very telling that Pamela Moore and Jimbo Barton have taken up sides with Toddryche. Glen Drover even bailed on Tateryche and played Take Hold of the Flame live in concert with Toddryche, which he referred to on Twitter as the "REAL Queensryche."

[JRNYMAN]

I've been following it rather closely. I saw Toddryche live a few weeks ago. They were great, and Todd really did the songs justice, even though he was sick. My only disappointment was that they didn't play I Don't Believe in Love, Jet City Woman, and Take Hold of the Flame. There is a new energy with the band that you didn't see the last few years with GT.

Tateryche is a trainwreck and it keeps getting worse. First Glen Drover bailed, then Bobby Blotzer. Tate has a group of musicians who don't match up with Wilton, Jackson, and Rockenfield. Drover was the only one with any credibility in their genre. The clips for Tateryche's FU album were atrocious. The songwriting was poor, the instrumentation was poor, and the singing was poor. Everything was rushed. Jason Slater just isn't that good a songwriter. He's certainly no Chris DeGarmo. The first song on FU sounded like it had some potential, but I think Tate blew his load in his drawers there and had nothing left for the rest of the album. The re-records were horrible. Then there was the Billy Sherwood debacle. Sherwood was supposed to be "fixing the sonic issues" or some bullshit. Four days later, he bailed. Guess he realized how difficult Tate was to work with and how there was no way he could polish those turds into something presentable.

Geoff Tate was one of the best voices in the industry, but he is a long way from the top now. The spitting incidents, attacks on other band members, and the Rocklahoma incident just kept giving more and more evidence as to how unstable he is. I listen to the original QR recordings in my car all the time, and they're spectacular, but I think it's time for GT to hang up his vest.

I'm excited for the upcoming Toddryche release. I'll listen to Tateryche's FU, but I'm not expecting much based on the clips I have heard. It's very telling that Pamela Moore and Jimbo Barton have taken up sides with Toddryche. Glen Drover even bailed on Tateryche and played Take Hold of the Flame live in concert with Toddryche, which he referred to on Twitter as the "REAL Queensryche."

Couldn't have written my own personal feelings any clearer or stated them any better than you did - especially the paragraph in bold.
The thing that's so .... disappointing, (for lack of a better word) about Tate is how far he has fallen from where he once was in terms of class and talent. Queensryche was a name that was worthy of respect if for no other reason than the fact that Tate always gave 100% and was so proud to be at center stage for that band. What could have happened that he not only lost respect for his fellow bandmates but self-respect in the way he handles himself on stage and insulting his fans and stoops to spitting? I just don't get it. He talks about the band's legacy as well as his own and how he wants the band's history to be remembered but he's personally writing the final chapter that doesn't leave him looking very good. Sad....

[Memorex]

I have to disagree that he was one of the best voices. I used to think that too, but listening now to the old stuff, he could just be outright annoying. There are things I notice now on those songs where I think a better singer could have hit other notes. He was interesting and benefited from some great songwriting. But I've really come to question his overall ability back then.

[VirgilTheart]

I have to disagree that he was one of the best voices. I used to think that too, but listening now to the old stuff, he could just be outright annoying. There are things I notice now on those songs where I think a better singer could have hit other notes. He was interesting and benefited from some great songwriting. But I've really come to question his overall ability back then.

Tate has certain vocal mannerisms that are a bit grating, and I'd say that they've only become more and more noticeable as his voice deteriorated. He's a bit overly theatrical. But back in the day, when he was on, he was on.

I do prefer Todd though. He's got a more metallic edge to his voice, and I think that works to his advantage. He's like a nice vocal blend of Bruce Dickinson, Geoff Tate, Rob Halford and Warrell Dane. Todd's put out some demo samples on YouTube for his solo material, and it's pretty good. He's a multi-instrumentalist, so he wrote and recorded most of the stuff on his own. It's definitely different sounding from Queensryche though. I'm a bit of a metalhead to say the least, so I like it a lot. That said, Todd's made it clear in comments he's made online that he recognizes the classic QR sound and that he's not trying to make the band something that it isn't.

The new album should be pretty good!

[verslibre]

Then there was the Billy Sherwood debacle. Sherwood was supposed to be "fixing the sonic issues" or some bullshit. Four days later, he bailed. Guess he realized how difficult Tate was to work with and how there was no way he could polish those turds into something presentable.

That was quick! Maybe he bailed because Geoff wanted to pay him with a bottle of red Insania for his time.

Geoff Tate was one of the best voices in the industry, but he is a long way from the top now. The spitting incidents, attacks on other band members, and the Rocklahoma incident just kept giving more and more evidence as to how unstable he is.

Geoff didn't even wince when Eddie Trunk asked him about it on TMS. Geoff said spitting was the lowest insult he could inflict on his bandmates.

I listen to the original QR recordings in my car all the time, and they're spectacular, but I think it's time for GT to hang up his vest.

The Warning is just amazing. One of the best ever metal records. They were one killer band through the rest of the decade. Too bad things started to fizzle after Empire.

I'm excited for the upcoming Toddryche release. I'll listen to Tateryche's FU, but I'm not expecting much based on the clips I have heard. It's very telling that Pamela Moore and Jimbo Barton have taken up sides with Toddryche. Glen Drover even bailed on Tateryche and played Take Hold of the Flame live in concert with Toddryche, which he referred to on Twitter as the "REAL Queensryche."

The 'Ryche boys have wanted to return to their glory days for years. Geoff doesn't want to go back to balls-out metal, but since it became his bread 'n' butter, he's stuck. He was a prog rocker in the '70s, and several years older than the other guys. They needed a vocalist and once things took off after the EP was recorded, Geoff knew he had no choice but to leave Myth.

[verslibre]

I have to disagree that he was one of the best voices. I used to think that too, but listening now to the old stuff, he could just be outright annoying. There are things I notice now on those songs where I think a better singer could have hit other notes. He was interesting and benefited from some great songwriting. But I've really come to question his overall ability back then.

I think it's safe to say Geoff was one of the best metal singers in the '80s. I don't think the EP and The Warning would have sounded as good without him. The other guys knew he had the goods, and Geoff knew he couldn't forsake the opportunity. Even when grunge had staked its claim, Queensryche enjoyed the most success with Empire.

[Andrew]

Never liked QR at all...and it's 100% Tate's voice.

Looking forward to hearing the Todd album.

[verslibre]

Never liked QR at all...and it's 100% Tate's voice.

Looking forward to hearing the Todd album.

Todd sounds like Geoff, so you probably won't like it.

[VirgilTheart]

Never liked QR at all...and it's 100% Tate's voice.

Looking forward to hearing the Todd album.

Todd sounds like Geoff, so you probably won't like it.

Like I said earlier, Todd's not an exact clone. I've actually had a couple of friends that never cared much for QR because of Tate's voice that LOVE the new song with Todd. There's enough of a difference between them vocally for Andrew to potentially like the new album.

[Pelata]

Todd sounds like Tate the way Augeri sounds like Perry...kinda but not really. You can tell the influence stylistically and tonally, but it's not a complete replica.

[VirgilTheart]

Todd sounds like Tate the way Augeri sounds like Perry...kinda but not really. You can tell the influence stylistically and tonally, but it's not a complete replica.

That's a great way to put it. Todd's also pretty heavily influenced by Bruce Dickinson and Rob Halford too.

[verslibre]

Never liked QR at all...and it's 100% Tate's voice.

Looking forward to hearing the Todd album.

Todd sounds like Geoff, so you probably won't like it.

Like I said earlier, Todd's not an exact clone. I've actually had a couple of friends that never cared much for QR because of Tate's voice that LOVE the new song with Todd. There's enough of a difference between them vocally for Andrew to potentially like the new album.

Todd sounds like Geoff the way Will DuVall sounds like Layne Staley, the way Steve Augeri sounds like Steven Pereira, and so on, and so on. Those guys aren't clones, but their voices fit what the bands wanted in a replacement singer.

[VirgilTheart]

Never liked QR at all...and it's 100% Tate's voice.

Looking forward to hearing the Todd album.

Todd sounds like Geoff, so you probably won't like it.

Like I said earlier, Todd's not an exact clone. I've actually had a couple of friends that never cared much for QR because of Tate's voice that LOVE the new song with Todd. There's enough of a difference between them vocally for Andrew to potentially like the new album.

Todd sounds like Geoff the way Will DuVall sounds like Layne Staley, the way Steve Augeri sounds like Steven Pereira, and so on, and so on. Those guys aren't clones, but their voices fit what the bands wanted in a replacement singer.

Sure, but my point is that there are enough differences between the two vocally where someone who isn't fond of Geoff Tate's voice could still like Todd's voice. I've seen a few examples of this already with my friends, so I could see Andrew potentially liking the new album with Todd.

[verslibre]

Sure, but my point is that there are enough differences between the two vocally where someone who isn't fond of Geoff Tate's voice could still like Todd's voice.

Your point's crystal clear but I think you're being a wee bit defensive for Todd when you don't need to be.

[VirgilTheart]

Sure, but my point is that there are enough differences between the two vocally where someone who isn't fond of Geoff Tate's voice could still like Todd's voice.

Your point's crystal clear but I think you're being a wee bit defensive for Todd when you don't need to be.

I suppose. My apologies, verslibre!

[verslibre]

Just pokin' ya.

[TageRyche]

I think those who hate Geoff Tate will like this video: Youtube link

[verslibre]

Yup, seen it. It's been posted just about, well, everywhere.

"Insania"...

[Starrider]

The first single from Tateryche's FU album is on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzDJHuxBTUw&list=FL0VFY4sU0iZgXVkQ0FP1IwQ&index=1

My first thought is that the guitar solo does not fit the rest of the song at all. Other than that, the song isn't too bad, but it doesn't have much to it that would make me think it is a Queensryche song, which it really isn't anyway.