When I interviewed Geoff Tate of Queensrÿche in late 1984, he had just come offstage, having opened for Ronnie James Dio. Covered in sweat and breathing like a chainsmoker who’s just climbed 10 flights of stairs, Tate was otherwise calm and collected. You wouldn’t have guessed that he had just opened for Europe’s most beloved singer of the genre at the age of 26.
It was early days for the Seattle-based band whose biggest hits were still several years in the future ( notably: 1988’s Operation: Mindcrime and 1990’s Empire). The band has sold more than 20 million copies of their albums, but these days the biggest headline about the group is that Tate is no longer their front man – hasn’t been for almost 9 years.
It was one of those super ugly band battles that ended up in the courts, but both entities have continued recording. Which brings me to Geoff Tate’s latest musical endeavor with Sweet Oblivion. The sophomore album from Sweet Oblivion featuring Geoff Tate is “Relentless”, scheduled for release April 9 of this year.
If you liked classic Queensrÿche and if you’ve liked Tate’s solo stuff, there is much to like about this new album. Tate, now 62 years old, is in fine form. I haven’t heard him live in a long time, but at least in the studio, he sounds the same as ever. Same range, same operatic flourishes. I might have wished for a bigger drum sound, but I’m old school.
Sweet Oblivion’s self-titled debut album caused quite a stir in the international hard rock and metal scene since it brought Tate back to a musical landscape, as I’ve mentioned, akin to the sound of the biggest fans’ expectations. The new element within this project, however, is the addition of other musical influences in the mix, instead of being a simple throwback. The idea was to let fans hear Tate in a simultaneously familiar and new musical setting.
While the production and main songwriting on the previous record were handled by Simone Mularoni of DGM, this time the production was instead handled by his fellow Italian metal maestro Aldo Lonobile (Secret Sphere, Timo Tolkki’s Avalon, Archon Angel).
Not only does Aldo produce and handle the songwriting, he is also featured on guitar.
This time around, Tate was more involved in the songwriting and asked Aldo to draft a very special song for him, which he would ultimately sing in Italian. The song also features guitars from Walter Cianciusi and Dario Parente, who are now also in the Operation Mindcrime live band.
I listened all the way through “Relentless” without looking at song titles, so I won’t pick out specific tracks( Okay wait, I lie-I really dig “Another Change” and “Wake Up Call”). I’ll just say that the now 62 year old reminds me a lot of the 26 year old I met that night in Brussels.
Line-up: Geoff Tate – Vocals | Aldo Lonobile – Guitars |Luigi Andreone – Bass|Antonio Agate – Keys |Michele Sanna – Drums
