Queensryche – Frequency Unknown

Band: Queensryche
Album: Frequency Unknown
Record Label: Cleopatra Records
Release Date: 6th March 2013
Reviewed By: Nick
 

Track Listing:

 1. Cold
 2. Dare
 3. Give It To You
 4. Slave
 5. In The Hands Of God
 6. Running Backwards
 7. Life Without You
 8. Everything
 9. Fallen
10. The Weight Of The World

BONUS TRACKS: 
11. I Don’t Believe In Love
12. Empire
13. Jet City Woman
14. Silent Lucidity 

For Fans of: Queensryche
TRACKS TO CHECK OUT: Cold, Slave
 

After the controversy surrounding Geoff Tate’s dismissal from Queensryche, and his subsequent formation of his own band, also called Queensryche, it is now to be debated which band truly should continue under that name, however it is Geoff Tate’s line-up which is the first to release new material.
 

On Frequency Unknown, the band reaches a heavier sound, although the addition of keys/piano shows a striving for a more melodic groove to give this album a little bit of something different, however there are times when the almost insistent nature of this addition just seems to have been thrown in as an afterthought which doesn’t really work with the overall groove (the track ‘Everything’ is a prime example of this slightly awkward forced piano). The attempted melodic style does come together a lot more with the additional Spanish style guitar intro to ‘The Weight of the World’ which, once it is transferred onto an electric, does transform into a fairly dark ballad.

Tate’s vocal range is much more restrained than it has been in the past, and when he does reach for the high notes which have been a staple of his sound for the past 30 odd years they can sound strained and do show some cracks beginning to show.

There are even points of musical experimentation which throw this album into a more alternative form of metal, especially on some of the earlier tracks on the album, which creates a bit of interest and stops it sounding like “just another metal album.”

As one would expect, Geoff Tate has gathered together a troupe of some of the best session musicians he can find, which means that the playing on the album is undoubtedly fantastic. However he has thrown the group together and stamped the name of the band which made him famous on it despite the fact that it’s as much a Geoff Tate solo album- it does seem here that he has a touch of Axel Rose syndrome and is having his Chinese Democracy moment.

Overall, it is an enjoyable record to listen to, with plenty of killer riffs and awesome guitar solos, but it’s hard to think of it as a Queensryche record, which is going to annoy some fans.
 

SCORE – 7 out of 10

User Album Score: {extravote 1}