Geoff Tate - Queensryche
Queensryche have done it again, they have set the standards for hard rock with the release of Dedicated To Chaos. Also with that they are celebrating 30 years as a band, no small feat in the world of hard rock and heavy metal. With that it was time to talk to Geoff Tate once again about Dedicated to Chaos as well as the brilliant Queensryche Cabaret that they embarked upon last year. Geoff checked in and was abundant with thoughts on the last 30 years, the cabaret, DOC as well as the fans.
An interview with Geoff Tate of Queensryche.
By Jeffrey Easton
Metal Exiles: Before we get into the new record, last year you did the Queensryche Cabaret. What did you get out of doing that?
Geoff: Artistically I got to write a show that was fun but challenging to perform. I was able to work with a lot of talented performance artists and had the pleasure of watching them become inspired by our music.
Metal Exiles: How did you find these people and convince them to perform to your music?
Geoff: The cabaret scene is really taking off in many places around the world. Its is an old art form but it is finding a resurgence in a lot of major American cities as well as Europe. There are people who do it, they were trained all of their lives to be what they are. What we did was contact all of these managers that handle these artists and started the interview process. It was a great psychological experiment with they could take and could not take, discovering what boundaries they had.
Metal Exiles: Was that experiment for the fans or the performers?
Geoff: From my own point of view I enjoyed what it did to the people, I liked watching their reactions. Some people find nudity and sensuality offensive (Editor: I am not one of them) for a number of different reasons and it is fascinating in itself on why people become unglued on that stuff. Some people do not have a problem with it but then you have people just do not like art, they have their own definitions of what they deem artful.
Metal Exiles: I know a lot of the people I talked to thought they were just getting a normal Queensryche show, not a Cabaret.
Geoff: I always like to challenge the idea of expectations. I think if you have a lot of expectations in your life you are constantly disappointed. My motto is have low expectations and you are never disappointed.
Metal Exiles: I knew what to expect from watching some video of prior shows but I was still taken aback by some of the visuals I encountered at both shows I went to. I do like the way you integrated the catalog into your themes, which must have been a challenge in itself.
Geoff: It is very challenging and it is fun trying to come up with different scenarios to present your music. I like that kind of thing as I think it is very boring to get up on stage and play a song, it just does not interest me anymore. I have done it so many times that I am sure it is the same way for somebody who has worked at the same job for years. You know what to expect, you know what’s going to happen and you end up wanting to change up the way you do things. This is the way I am these days, I would rather play onstage with a bunch of people I do not know just for a change than playing onstage with Queensryche. On one hand it is really great because you are comfortable with each other and you know what the other guy is going to do but on the other hand its predictable because you know what they are going to do. We try to change it up as much as we can and make it interesting for ourselves and hopefully for others as well.
Metal Exiles: A few years ago you guys released American Soldier. I know you are used to writing from your own perspective so how hard was it to write from someone else’s?
Geoff: It was difficult and primarily because of the material. You have to treat it with sensitivity and respect and you can really get on the wrong side of wrong if you do not approach it correctly. You are talking about other people’s lives and experiences that are important to them and it needs to be treated that way. Also the topic itself, you have to be careful on how you treat the military in respect to those who feel strongly about it. That record was quite a responsibility when we recorded and presented it, it was serious and when we played for the troops in Iraq that was incredibly serious because we were in the battlefield playing about soldiers who have been that same exact position. Although the album turned out very well and I really enjoyed making it I am glad to be on a different path I am glad to be on a different path doing something completely different.
Metal Exiles: The new album, lyrically, is all over the place. What was occupying your mind while you were writing Dedicated To Chaos?
Geoff: Life and I am fascinated by life. I find myself in all of these situations all the time commenting about things. I do not have an answer to every situation that I am in, I just pose the question. In the song Retail Therapy, I am so inundated iPhone apps, programs for my computer and social media, I am just so caught up in it all the time. I do not make a judgment on it in the song, I am just pointing out that its there and I am hooked. I think on a lot of the tracks on the album, there is not a position I take, I am just painting a picture that it exists, are we caught up in it, is it good? Is it bad? That is how I feel about modern life, it is moving so fast, it is just fascinating to be alive right now. It is a real time of change, not just technologically, but socially and politically. We are growing at a stunning rate and it is probably because we are just connected so much, everywhere in the world. We are able to monitor all of these places everyday and it is fascinating to watch.
Metal Exiles: But is it good or bad though?
Geoff: I do not know, I do not have that answer. Nobody does until we spend enough time doing it. But then what is good or bad? Those decisions are based on certain frames of reference on any given time period. We used to think slavery was good. We used to think that driving 55 mph was good and that chanced in the 70’s. We have all kinds of opinions on what is good or bad so I do not know.
Metal Exiles: One of the songs that really stands out to me Is “Around The World”. I feel as though that could be a world anthem. What made you decide to pen that?
Geoff: I really believe the ideas in that song. I believe that love is the most powerful human emotion there, it is so important to our survival as a species. We can easily knock off our neighbor because we do not have any relationship with them. Love is something that we need and to experience because without it we get to a certain point where we just stop developing. Love gives you this other dimension; you can be so much more than you started out being.
Metal Exiles: On the other side of that coin you have the song “Got It Bad”. I truly believe that is a needed song for lust.
Geoff: Lust is an incredibly strong emotion as well, it is something that inspires and pushes you in a direction that can be confusing depending on the situation. All of us have felt or feel that emotion in our lives and some have that emotion more frequently than others.
Metal Exiles: As it is lyrically diverse, it is musically as well, maybe the most diverse Ryche record to date. How hard was it to make the entire album work together with its many sounds?
Geoff: I enjoy that process quite a bit, putting the albums together in an order that works. This album was less time spent on that than other though. Primarily because of the way we release music these days, it is not an album anymore, it is a playlist. Its not a single anymore, it’s a focus tracks. All of that terminology is changing the way we think about music. All of these studies point out that we do not listen to albums anymore, they say, we just listen to specific songs that they like and put together a playlist. I say, sure why not, especially with this album. With Dedicated To Chaos there is no theme or concept, they are all individual tracks so put them in any order you want. I even tried them alphabetically and that works very well too.
Metal Exiles: I know that Vivian Campbell said recently that nobody cares about albums anymore. Do you think that’s true?
Geoff: That’s a very global statement but going by information I have and talking with different record companies there is a lot less emphasis on selling albums instead there is more focus on the content of the song. The public is leaning that way as well.
Metal Exiles: As far as I am concerned, I still like going out and buying CDs (and records for that matter).
Geoff: They say that the older people are the ones that keep the record bankrolled as well as the artists. Pretty much everybody under 35 are downloading and illegally.
Metal Exiles: You have a bunch a different vibes on this album, what was the focus on with Dedicated?
Geoff: We just wanted to make an album with a bunch of diverse songs. Usually when we sit down to make an album we talk about what we want to achieve and with this one the two major points we wanted to cover was diversity within the songs. We wanted them as different from each other as we could make them. The second thing we wanted to do was play our instruments differently. You do the same thing for so long you develop habits , these ways of doing things that you go to because its easier. Then you start repeating yourself and we wanted to make the songs diverse so to make them that way we played our instruments differently. Each member approached their instruments differently in their own way. Scott set up his kit differently than he had before which forced himself to play in different times. Parker taped his fingers together in different configurations to force himself to reach for notes differently and exercise his fingers. I changed my recording location to a different studio to give myself a whole different vantage point for inspiration. Eddie just went out and bought a bunch of new equipment so he is out opening new artistic doors for himself.
Metal Exiles: You mention technology and I know you sometimes record your parts separately and send them in. Do you miss recording an whole album together?
Geoff: We do that to, we will record in the same studio for a record as well. We will come up with an idea and pass it around and once another member puts their stamp on it, it’s a Queensryche project. We do get together to rehears stuff, arrange and try different parts and ways of doing the song. There is always constant jamming between members and the whole band three of four times a week.
Metal Exiles: You said earlier that you do not like to tour and do “the same thing” so how is the tour supporting Dedicated going to go off?
Geoff: Unfortunately the new album does not get a lot of attention on the first tour because it is our 30th Anniversary this year so we are playing songs from all of our records so we have quite a lot of material to pick from so we will be limiting what we do play from this album to a few songs. It’s OK because when we put out a new album it usually takes people a year to get into the record, especially to appreciate it in the live setting. Its ok, we will play more from it next year when we do a proper tour for the album.
Metal Exiles: What do you have planned for 30 years?
Geoff: We will be experimenting with our music as we will be selecting stuff from all of our records as well as incorporating a visual show that has video footage from throughout the years as well as some new stuff. We will be presenting it in conjunction with the songs so it will be a Queensryche retrospective in audio and visual.
Metal Exiles: Considering this is your 30th year, compare Geoff Tate 1981 and Geoff Tate 2011. How much have you changed as a musician and a singer?
Geoff: Probably pretty dramatically for me, you have to change. You grow up, you change and you try new things. I am glad I have had a career that was so inspirational to me and that I have had the chance to experience so much. I have traveled in over the world, played thousands of shows in over 50 countries, thousands of conversations with people from all over the world. I have golfed with Presidents, Mayors and Governors, I have just had amazing experiences and I might not have done any of this if I had not of joined the school band, took up an instrument and fallen in love with music. It was one of the catalysts of where I am right now.
Metal Exiles: It seems that you have grown and developed into a whole different animal since the EP came out. It seems as if your song writing has gotten better throughout the years and with the new record it has peaked again. I know I might offend a few fans but the new record is close to being one of your best.
Geoff: I think we all hear music differently and to each his own. We experience it differently and we all have different tastes in what we listen to. For me I do not believe in the concept of good music and bad music, I think music is art, its an expression, it is what it is. To make a judgment is acting on the ego and you cannot expect everybody to like what you do and as long as you like it as an artist and you put it out there that’s all it matters. We never looked at it as a competition sport, we do not care about ratings, units sold etc, it does not mean anything to us. We are in it for the shear art and creation of it and it shows in what we do. We do not stick to a tried and true method; we are all over the place and try new things as well as challenging our audience. We are just those kinds of people who place a value on it.
Metal Exiles: To close this out, when a new Queensryche record drops and I mention it to people I know, the first question I get is “Are they back?”, meaning the Mindcrime/Empire era. What do you think about music fans that just cannot get past a certain era?
Geoff: I look at it this way, I am glad that they like something that we have done, I am happy about that. I am not writing records for them, I am not writing records for anybody but myself, that is the way I have always done it. Some people are going to be into what we are doing now, some people wont, that is the way it all works and I am fine with that. If someone only wants to those records, that’s cool.
Queensryche have lived up to their legacy and released a stunning new record in the form of Dedicated To Chaos, I suggest you invest your mind and ears into this creation.
Official Queensryche Site
BUY Dedicated To Chaos!
An interview with Geoff Tate of Queensryche.
By Jeffrey Easton
Metal Exiles: Before we get into the new record, last year you did the Queensryche Cabaret. What did you get out of doing that?
Geoff: Artistically I got to write a show that was fun but challenging to perform. I was able to work with a lot of talented performance artists and had the pleasure of watching them become inspired by our music.
Metal Exiles: How did you find these people and convince them to perform to your music?
Geoff: The cabaret scene is really taking off in many places around the world. Its is an old art form but it is finding a resurgence in a lot of major American cities as well as Europe. There are people who do it, they were trained all of their lives to be what they are. What we did was contact all of these managers that handle these artists and started the interview process. It was a great psychological experiment with they could take and could not take, discovering what boundaries they had.
Metal Exiles: Was that experiment for the fans or the performers?
Geoff: From my own point of view I enjoyed what it did to the people, I liked watching their reactions. Some people find nudity and sensuality offensive (Editor: I am not one of them) for a number of different reasons and it is fascinating in itself on why people become unglued on that stuff. Some people do not have a problem with it but then you have people just do not like art, they have their own definitions of what they deem artful.
Metal Exiles: I know a lot of the people I talked to thought they were just getting a normal Queensryche show, not a Cabaret.
Geoff: I always like to challenge the idea of expectations. I think if you have a lot of expectations in your life you are constantly disappointed. My motto is have low expectations and you are never disappointed.
Metal Exiles: I knew what to expect from watching some video of prior shows but I was still taken aback by some of the visuals I encountered at both shows I went to. I do like the way you integrated the catalog into your themes, which must have been a challenge in itself.
Geoff: It is very challenging and it is fun trying to come up with different scenarios to present your music. I like that kind of thing as I think it is very boring to get up on stage and play a song, it just does not interest me anymore. I have done it so many times that I am sure it is the same way for somebody who has worked at the same job for years. You know what to expect, you know what’s going to happen and you end up wanting to change up the way you do things. This is the way I am these days, I would rather play onstage with a bunch of people I do not know just for a change than playing onstage with Queensryche. On one hand it is really great because you are comfortable with each other and you know what the other guy is going to do but on the other hand its predictable because you know what they are going to do. We try to change it up as much as we can and make it interesting for ourselves and hopefully for others as well.
Metal Exiles: A few years ago you guys released American Soldier. I know you are used to writing from your own perspective so how hard was it to write from someone else’s?
Geoff: It was difficult and primarily because of the material. You have to treat it with sensitivity and respect and you can really get on the wrong side of wrong if you do not approach it correctly. You are talking about other people’s lives and experiences that are important to them and it needs to be treated that way. Also the topic itself, you have to be careful on how you treat the military in respect to those who feel strongly about it. That record was quite a responsibility when we recorded and presented it, it was serious and when we played for the troops in Iraq that was incredibly serious because we were in the battlefield playing about soldiers who have been that same exact position. Although the album turned out very well and I really enjoyed making it I am glad to be on a different path I am glad to be on a different path doing something completely different.
Metal Exiles: The new album, lyrically, is all over the place. What was occupying your mind while you were writing Dedicated To Chaos?
Geoff: Life and I am fascinated by life. I find myself in all of these situations all the time commenting about things. I do not have an answer to every situation that I am in, I just pose the question. In the song Retail Therapy, I am so inundated iPhone apps, programs for my computer and social media, I am just so caught up in it all the time. I do not make a judgment on it in the song, I am just pointing out that its there and I am hooked. I think on a lot of the tracks on the album, there is not a position I take, I am just painting a picture that it exists, are we caught up in it, is it good? Is it bad? That is how I feel about modern life, it is moving so fast, it is just fascinating to be alive right now. It is a real time of change, not just technologically, but socially and politically. We are growing at a stunning rate and it is probably because we are just connected so much, everywhere in the world. We are able to monitor all of these places everyday and it is fascinating to watch.
Metal Exiles: But is it good or bad though?
Geoff: I do not know, I do not have that answer. Nobody does until we spend enough time doing it. But then what is good or bad? Those decisions are based on certain frames of reference on any given time period. We used to think slavery was good. We used to think that driving 55 mph was good and that chanced in the 70’s. We have all kinds of opinions on what is good or bad so I do not know.
Metal Exiles: One of the songs that really stands out to me Is “Around The World”. I feel as though that could be a world anthem. What made you decide to pen that?
Geoff: I really believe the ideas in that song. I believe that love is the most powerful human emotion there, it is so important to our survival as a species. We can easily knock off our neighbor because we do not have any relationship with them. Love is something that we need and to experience because without it we get to a certain point where we just stop developing. Love gives you this other dimension; you can be so much more than you started out being.
Metal Exiles: On the other side of that coin you have the song “Got It Bad”. I truly believe that is a needed song for lust.
Geoff: Lust is an incredibly strong emotion as well, it is something that inspires and pushes you in a direction that can be confusing depending on the situation. All of us have felt or feel that emotion in our lives and some have that emotion more frequently than others.
Metal Exiles: As it is lyrically diverse, it is musically as well, maybe the most diverse Ryche record to date. How hard was it to make the entire album work together with its many sounds?
Geoff: I enjoy that process quite a bit, putting the albums together in an order that works. This album was less time spent on that than other though. Primarily because of the way we release music these days, it is not an album anymore, it is a playlist. Its not a single anymore, it’s a focus tracks. All of that terminology is changing the way we think about music. All of these studies point out that we do not listen to albums anymore, they say, we just listen to specific songs that they like and put together a playlist. I say, sure why not, especially with this album. With Dedicated To Chaos there is no theme or concept, they are all individual tracks so put them in any order you want. I even tried them alphabetically and that works very well too.
Metal Exiles: I know that Vivian Campbell said recently that nobody cares about albums anymore. Do you think that’s true?
Geoff: That’s a very global statement but going by information I have and talking with different record companies there is a lot less emphasis on selling albums instead there is more focus on the content of the song. The public is leaning that way as well.
Metal Exiles: As far as I am concerned, I still like going out and buying CDs (and records for that matter).
Geoff: They say that the older people are the ones that keep the record bankrolled as well as the artists. Pretty much everybody under 35 are downloading and illegally.
Metal Exiles: You have a bunch a different vibes on this album, what was the focus on with Dedicated?
Geoff: We just wanted to make an album with a bunch of diverse songs. Usually when we sit down to make an album we talk about what we want to achieve and with this one the two major points we wanted to cover was diversity within the songs. We wanted them as different from each other as we could make them. The second thing we wanted to do was play our instruments differently. You do the same thing for so long you develop habits , these ways of doing things that you go to because its easier. Then you start repeating yourself and we wanted to make the songs diverse so to make them that way we played our instruments differently. Each member approached their instruments differently in their own way. Scott set up his kit differently than he had before which forced himself to play in different times. Parker taped his fingers together in different configurations to force himself to reach for notes differently and exercise his fingers. I changed my recording location to a different studio to give myself a whole different vantage point for inspiration. Eddie just went out and bought a bunch of new equipment so he is out opening new artistic doors for himself.
Metal Exiles: You mention technology and I know you sometimes record your parts separately and send them in. Do you miss recording an whole album together?
Geoff: We do that to, we will record in the same studio for a record as well. We will come up with an idea and pass it around and once another member puts their stamp on it, it’s a Queensryche project. We do get together to rehears stuff, arrange and try different parts and ways of doing the song. There is always constant jamming between members and the whole band three of four times a week.
Metal Exiles: You said earlier that you do not like to tour and do “the same thing” so how is the tour supporting Dedicated going to go off?
Geoff: Unfortunately the new album does not get a lot of attention on the first tour because it is our 30th Anniversary this year so we are playing songs from all of our records so we have quite a lot of material to pick from so we will be limiting what we do play from this album to a few songs. It’s OK because when we put out a new album it usually takes people a year to get into the record, especially to appreciate it in the live setting. Its ok, we will play more from it next year when we do a proper tour for the album.
Metal Exiles: What do you have planned for 30 years?
Geoff: We will be experimenting with our music as we will be selecting stuff from all of our records as well as incorporating a visual show that has video footage from throughout the years as well as some new stuff. We will be presenting it in conjunction with the songs so it will be a Queensryche retrospective in audio and visual.
Metal Exiles: Considering this is your 30th year, compare Geoff Tate 1981 and Geoff Tate 2011. How much have you changed as a musician and a singer?
Geoff: Probably pretty dramatically for me, you have to change. You grow up, you change and you try new things. I am glad I have had a career that was so inspirational to me and that I have had the chance to experience so much. I have traveled in over the world, played thousands of shows in over 50 countries, thousands of conversations with people from all over the world. I have golfed with Presidents, Mayors and Governors, I have just had amazing experiences and I might not have done any of this if I had not of joined the school band, took up an instrument and fallen in love with music. It was one of the catalysts of where I am right now.
Metal Exiles: It seems that you have grown and developed into a whole different animal since the EP came out. It seems as if your song writing has gotten better throughout the years and with the new record it has peaked again. I know I might offend a few fans but the new record is close to being one of your best.
Geoff: I think we all hear music differently and to each his own. We experience it differently and we all have different tastes in what we listen to. For me I do not believe in the concept of good music and bad music, I think music is art, its an expression, it is what it is. To make a judgment is acting on the ego and you cannot expect everybody to like what you do and as long as you like it as an artist and you put it out there that’s all it matters. We never looked at it as a competition sport, we do not care about ratings, units sold etc, it does not mean anything to us. We are in it for the shear art and creation of it and it shows in what we do. We do not stick to a tried and true method; we are all over the place and try new things as well as challenging our audience. We are just those kinds of people who place a value on it.
Metal Exiles: To close this out, when a new Queensryche record drops and I mention it to people I know, the first question I get is “Are they back?”, meaning the Mindcrime/Empire era. What do you think about music fans that just cannot get past a certain era?
Geoff: I look at it this way, I am glad that they like something that we have done, I am happy about that. I am not writing records for them, I am not writing records for anybody but myself, that is the way I have always done it. Some people are going to be into what we are doing now, some people wont, that is the way it all works and I am fine with that. If someone only wants to those records, that’s cool.
Queensryche have lived up to their legacy and released a stunning new record in the form of Dedicated To Chaos, I suggest you invest your mind and ears into this creation.
Official Queensryche Site
BUY Dedicated To Chaos!
