As the world... errrr HAS-BEEN rock band turns...

[Red_Label]

In case you didn't get enough drama from the Van Halen and Guns & Roses soap operas...

I give you the drama of the once-mighty prog metal icons, Queensryche! It's quite an interesting read if you can stomach such a long one.

http://www.blabbermouth.net/news.asp...sitemID=176576

I've known for some time that Geoff (and his Yoko Ono wife, Susan) were at the root of the major issues with that band. I'm sure some of that had something to do with DeGarmo leaving way back when as well. What a pathetic joke...


BTW... I hear that the replacement vocalist sounds just like Geoff closer to his heyday. So who knows... maybe the band can put-out something that's not total crap for a change once all the smoke has cleared. I used to practically "worship" these guys in the late-80s. But geez... that's the last time they were actually any good!

[TwilightOdyssey]

Crimson Glory is one of my favourite bands. Ryche has sucked since DeGarmo left.
May have some promise ... or suck even worse!

[DankStar]

Ugh, messy

[aleclee]

Sounds like a bad case of LSD

Word.

It would be interesting to know if Tate's LSD was one of the factors leading to DeGarmo's departure. We'll never know that but it would be interesting.

[Jake]

Slight OT, but: Blabbermouth is one of the most popular metal sites on the internet - You'd think they'd have a website that doesn't look like it came from a 10th grader's final project in his web publishing elective class.

[Red_Label]

Word.

It would be interesting to know if Tate's LSD was one of the factors leading to DeGarmo's departure. We'll never know that but it would be interesting.

That was the whole point of my post. If you believe Wilton, Rockenfield, and Eddie (not to mention Chris' TWICE departure from the band)... then YES... Tate's LSD is why Chris left. Add Geoff's center-of-the-universe ******baggery to his wife's control issues and you've got something that would be more than ANYONE could bear. Chris was a REAL man and got the hell out. The rest of the pussies/guys just stuck around for 1-2 decades for their own various reasons. This whole thing has left me despising Tate, having less respect for the guys who stayed, and respecting Chris more. Which is pretty much how I've felt for the past decade.

I LOVE how in Wilton's statements he confirms what I knew the SECOND I learned about the 2nd "Mindcrime" album (not to mention actually heard the uninspired POS)... that it was all just a money-grab that tried to cash-in on their 2nd most popular album (and without question, their climax).

[Gearjoneser]

It sounds like they got rid of their Steve Perry.

Without Tate they won't really be Queensryche anymore, but adults have to make a living and Queensryche has always been a good metal brand name. If that's what they've become, it's too bad, but other members just have to play the hand they're dealt.

[Hellion]

Heck, I stopped paying attention to them after DeGarmo quit.

[LesStrat]

"Are you happy now? I walk the thin line for you."

[TheLivingDead]

Ah yeah, I was just reading this yesterday.

Crazy. They used to be on top of the metal/rock world. Shame it's ending like this.

[jalguitarman]

Sounds like Geoffs head has swollen way too big. Perhaps thats why he shaves it now.

Really Mindcrime was thier finest hour. Empire was great but Mindcrime was epic in every sense of the word. Rage was a close 2nd to Mindcrime. Of course thats just my opinion.

Funny, when I was at the gym tonight they has 'Hair Nation" on instead of the normal pop garbage thas usually on. One of the songs they played was "I don't believe in love". Then to come home and read that mess. What a shame.

[aleclee]

Tate's LSD is why Chris left. Add Geoff's center-of-the-universe ******baggery to his wife's control issues and you've got something that would be more than ANYONE could bear. Chris was a REAL man and got the hell out.

Could well be the case but what doesn't quite add up for me is that DeGarmo didn't just leave QR, he left the industry to pursue a career as a pilot. To the best of my knowledge, other than the short-lived Spys4Darwin, a stint working with Jerry Cantrell, and writing a few new songs with QR, DeGarmo hasn't really done anything musically (at least in a commercial sense) since he left Queensryche.

Given DeGarmo's talent, I have to believe that his scarcity of post-QR projects was his choice, as was the transition to aviation. While LSD was likely a factor, his post-QR work suggests that LSD wasn't the only factor and perhaps not even the deciding factor in his departure.

[Red_Label]

Could well be the case but what doesn't quite add up for me is that DeGarmo didn't just leave QR, he left the industry to pursue a career as a pilot. To the best of my knowledge, other than the short-lived Spys4Darwin, a stint working with Jerry Cantrell, and writing a few new songs with QR, DeGarmo hasn't really done anything musically (at least in a commercial sense) since he left Queensryche.

Given DeGarmo's talent, I have to believe that his scarcity of post-QR projects was his choice, as was the transition to aviation. While LSD was likely a factor, his post-QR work suggests that LSD wasn't the only factor and perhaps not even the deciding factor in his departure.

I think that QR was Chris' "baby" (his short-lived side projects notwithstanding) and when that started to take such a dump, he mostly just wanted out of the biz entirely. And I don't blame him. I've dealt with such stupidity on a much smaller scale and it really soured me on things. In fact, I spent the last year working hard with a group of younger musicians on a newer-style hard rock project. We practiced every single week, did a handful of gigs, and recorded half an album at a nice Pro Tools studio. But the [VERY capable] lead singer had such a bad case of LSD that this past January the band just ground to a halt. I was so disillusioned that I quit playing electric entirely and started my own solo acoustic "flamenco-jazz" deal. And the biggest reason I did that was wanting to get FAR away from the possibility of having to deal with that garbage again. And from what I'm reading, the stuff Tate has been up to is miles ahead of the guy I dealt with. (Btw... been playing electric again for a few months now and loving it again -- but really needed that break to rekindle the love for it.)

Also, flying has a way of sucking you in. I know, because ever since I was a kid I wanted to be a "rock star". That was my dream. But about the time I turned 24 I caught the flying bug and earned my Private Pilot's License (at at Part 141 flying school -- earned my PPL at 35.1 hours). Suddenly, my rock and roll dreams didn't matter to me any more. I just wanted to fly bizjets or airliners. I was obsessed and it almost made me sick to my stomach every time a jet would fly overhead and I wasn't piloting it. The aviation biz in those days was a tough nut to crack though. I ended-up working for a company, installing computer systems and flying their airplane around the region (it was Mooney 231/M20K). I ended-up parlaying my computer experience into a career as a network admin instead of aviation. But it still fascinates me and I can see why Chris has been a hopeless addict for years. He's ATP-rated (Airline Transport Pilot). That's the highest civilian rating and as far as I am aware, ONLY he and Steve Morse are ATPs in all of the celeb pilots. So it's a way of life for him.

[LesStrat]

some folks get disillusioned and quit, so I'm not sure his change of careers necessarily discount the impact of LSD.

[jalguitarman]

I'm not getting the LSD thing here.

[Red_Label]

I'm not getting the LSD thing here.

Lead Singer's Disease

It's a force so destructive that if you could encapsulate it and drop it on your enemy, it would obliterate everything to a degree heretofore unknown to man! LOL.

I managed to go about 2.5 decades of gigging before I was exposed to the FULL brunt of an LSD experience. It's a BAAAAAAD trip...


If you've never worked with a true DIVA than it's hard to to understand the level of narcissism that a human being can possess. Seriously, I've worked with a LOT of selfish people in my 44-year long life. But spending a year with a true diva was quite an eye-opening experience. You come to realize that people with this "disease" really do ONLY experience life through their own eyes, wants, needs, etc. NOTHING and NO ONE ELSE on the planet matters. They are almost sociopathic in their worldview. Everyone and everything else exists to serve them and their purposes. We are all either tools to be used by them, or hurdles for them to get around. Our wants, needs, desires are of NO import to them. I've heard about this sort of thing many times over the years, but until you've had to endure such a person you don't really believe that a human being can be THAT self-absorbed. Crap... I'm a pretty self-absorbed guy. We all view the world through our own eyes and want to satisfy our own desires. But most of us realize that we're dealing with the needs of OTHER people and have to keep that in consideration. A lead singer with LSD is not able to process that there may actually be OTHER opinions, needs, and desires to be considered. The band exists to BACK them and make them look their best. The band might as well be a jukebox!

Anyways... sorry to rant about that. It's just so bewildering to work with someone like that. I'm convinced that Hilter, Stalin, etc were all lead singers with LSD at one time!

[richard parker]

Lead Singer Disease. I read the article and it was very depressing. All that crap for trying to make some music.

[lpmarshall]

I only read part of the article, but I couldn't help but think about the scene from Spinal Tap where David's girlfriend is managing the band and showing them their characters and talking about recording in "doubly".

[richard parker]

I was playing in a covers band a few years back that had a complete ***** as a lead singer. One night after rehearsal we were having our customary beer in the pub when he announced that henceforth he would be taking half the gig money and the three of us could split the other half between us. Apparently it was 'his' band and he was the main attraction so he was, in fact, being very generous as he had originally decided he wanted 75% of the money.

A stunned silence of several minutes followed finally broken by the drummer saying "Shall I ?" to which I replied "Be my Guest". He then dragged our superstar out of the pub and spent an entertaining five minutes kicking him around the car park.

[lpmarshall]

I was in a cover band with a singer with LSD once. He would never help tear down, and on top of that he wasn't very good. Anytime we would practice I would say stuff like "Maybe we should try that one again, and Greg can maybe sing it in key this time". Ha. So glad those days are over. Band drama became a 2nd job with added stress I didn't need.