Geoff Tate returned to Jergel’s for an encore presentation of his Operation: Mindcrime tour featuring Queensryche’s rock opera in its entirety, as well as a few favorites from the Empire album, including the ballad “Silent Lucidity” which Tate noted as being the song that everyone always talks about with him.
The evening opened with a performance from the band Till Death Do Us Part featuring Emily Tate on lead vocals along with drummer Michael Fechter. They were joined by Kieran Robertson on guitar and Jack Ross on bass, both of which could be found later performing with Geoff Tate.
Sad to hear that the band’s merchandise didn’t make it to the show, because we were definitely hoping to hear more from this band. They offered up a unique sound with distorted guitars, strong lead vocals, and beautifully done synth layers and samples. Emily noted new music is on the way, including a cut called “My Friends are on Fire” from their yet to be released album. We look forward to hearing it.
Geoff Tate’s Operation: Mindcrime took the stage with the strong additions of guitarist Scott Moungton and drummer Felix Bohnke (Edguy, Avantasia) rounding out his band, and bringing an incredible energy and anticipation as the show began. Delighting fans with this second visit to Jergel’s as the anniversary year of the Operation: Mindcrime album is about to come to a close.
As we noted last month Tate’s former bandmates in Queensryche aren’t currently performing songs from the album (with the exception of “Eyes of a Stranger”) in their current set, which made this an especially nice treat for fans. Even more so for younger ones, who may have never had the opportunity to see the band perform the entire album live, as they’d done back in 1991 when recording Operation: Livecrime.
Highlights from the evening included a powerful duet between Geoff Tate and his daughter Emily during the riveting “Suite Sister Mary,” as well as the insane crowd participation on favorites like “Spreading the Disease,” “The Needle Lies,” and “Eyes of a Stranger.”
This show was a huge contrast to Tate’s acoustic performance a couple years back at Diesel, but what remains the same is his theatrical and emotional delivery of the songs, the factor that truly brings them to life, along with his unquestionable talent and range.
For those wondering what else Tate has been up to, I strongly encourage you to check out Sweet Oblivion, a new metal project featuring him on lead vocals, along with a team of skilled Italian musicians assembled by Simone Mularoni, the mastermind behind DGM.
Given that the idea for Sweet Oblivion was to create a musical landscape reminiscent of Queensryche’s sound during the 80’s, the album offers a collection of songs showcasing the great songwriting and performing talents of Mularoni, Emanuele Casali on keyboards, and Paolo Caridi on drums, this album marks a very welcomed return for Tate to a style that he made famous along with his previous bandmates.
Follow us @ThePureRockShop for the latest news on hard rock and metal music locally including Glen Sobel’s Goon Squad featuring members of the Alice Cooper band in July and Bang Tango and Faster Pussycat this August.
Catch radio interviews and pure rock programming, including new music from Sweet Oblivion featuring Geoff Tate, and more on 91.7 FM WNJR in Pittsburgh and online at WNJR.org daily from 3pm EST – Midnight.
