Some of the songs played were extremely strong and well written. Others were a bit structure-less, but maybe they have to grow. I was impressed by these musicians. Very confident stage performance, though the singer was a bit static on stage. Maybe experience will help! His voice was definitely strong. I hope to hear more from this band soon and I will definitely pick up their debut album.

Queensrÿche
Let me start with the fact that I had mixed feelings before and after this concert. First there was the disappointment that Chris DeGarmo couldn’t tour with the guys. I had really hoped for that. They replaced Chris with an unannounced guitarist. Furthermore I hoped that the show was not anything like the DVD Live Evolution, which featured a magnificent sound, great performance, but IMO something missed. A lack of chemistry, a unity, maybe it was that. I don’t know. Difficult for me to say. This night was a bit like watching the DVD.

In the late eighties and nineties, Queensrÿche was one of the most successful rock bands. Playing the Monsters Of Rock fest with AC/DC and Metallica, and performing their operatic shows in sold-out stadiums. Theatrical, dramatic, melodic are the keywords. Music for audiophiles. Sure, the tonight played pieces from the pre Promised Land era were memorable, enjoyable, if not, great. But it was distressing to see that the response of the fans to the other, more recent songs was weak. ´Is Anybody Listening?´ You could feel that in the audience too. People were talking to each other, not showing any interest.

As a singer/front man, Geoff Tate is amazing. He seemed to have a good time out there and tried his best to get the audience going. His voice was also in good shape and reached stratospheric highs. However, the rest of the band was static and somewhat uninspired. The performance was tight but with minor mistakes and sloppiness. Maybe due to the fact it was the first gig of the tour with this new guitarist.

The sound was great. Very hard, but clear. Like I said, people could still talk to each other. Off course the Heineken Music Hall was built for that but I haven’t seen many bands having a sound like tonight. Even Dream Theater sounded bad last year.

The highlights of the show were definitely the older tunes. 30(!) minutes of Operation Mindcrime (during this the crowd AND the band seemed to have a good time!) including I Remember Now, Anarchy X, Revolution Calling, Spreading The Disease, The Mission, The Needle Lies and Eyes Of A Stranger. From Empire the songs Jet City Woman, Empire and Silent Lucidity (time for some lights!) were the ones I remember. I Am I and Screaming In Digital are also instant favorites, which sounded really great.

The band also played 2 songs (Open and Desert Dance) from their upcoming album Tribe. For a show-opener, Open was very weak IMO. Reasonable songs, not special at first listen.

In conclusion I can say that it was a night with highs and lows. There were parts where I really enjoyed the show and parts were I felt bored and unsatisfied. With Best I Can from the Empire-album, the two hour show ended. After discussing the show with a few people, during the after party were I was kicked out because I didn’t have that special ticket ;-), and I had to catch the train home.

(Review: Martijn Semmelink)