Concert held on September 17, 2006 at Emerald Theatre in Mt. Clemens, Michigan
Having been a Queensryche fan since their "Empire" release (1990), I have taken the time to go back to their earlier releases, as well as keep up with the new. The first time I heard the "Operation: Mindcrime" release (1988), I was very impressed with the band's concept piece. In 2006, the band brought the fans "Operation: Mindcrime II", which is the "conclusion" to the story. I have been pleased with the release, and knew that I needed to catch the new tour. I was very pleased when I heard the new tour would feature a full performance of both "Mindcrime" releases, including actors and additional props.
On Sunday, September 17, 2006, me and friend traveled to Mount Clemens, Michigan (just North of Detroit), to the Emerald Theatre. I had not been to this venue before, so I was curious what kind of evening this would be. The venue was easy enough to find. All tickets were "general admission", so there was a line waiting to get in. Doors had just opened when we arrived, so the line started moving fairly well. We got in and found some seats up in the balcony. Overall, the Emerald Theatre is a decent place for a concert. I'd go back.
The stage had a curtain closed, so there wasn't any "preview" of what the setting would be like. At 8:15pm, the curtain opened to reveal a multi-tiered stage, with a video screen at the back. Immediately, the animated opening footage and dialogue from "Mindcrime I" started, which was the same used on previous tours. At the completion, the band kicked into the opening of "Anarchy-X", and it sounded great. The band was not overly energetic, but wasn't ignoring the audience. Lead singer, Geoff Tate, made his appearance with the follow-up of "Revolution Calling", with "headset" microphone and assumed the role of lead character "Nikki". The band continued through a dramatic recreation of the first "Mindcrime" CD, with only a slight change in the storyline. I did find it a tad confusing that there was an actor who would occasionally take the role of our lead character "Nikki", while Tate would "become" other characters (for example, "Dr. X"). The female vocalist who was in the role of "Sister Mary" added much more to the performance than previous tours, and was a key part of the music and drama. The band did a major overhaul of the "Electric Requiem" track, giving it a much more dramatic and powerful performance. Not as "dark" as the original, but much more entertaining. I half wondered if this was changed partly because of the original vocal being very high register, however Tate didn't seem to have any problem with any other vocals, so this may not have been the reason. At the end, Tate was put into a straight-jacket, and did a great job of providing the vocal while looking like he was losing his mind. After some extended musical sections, part 1 ended around 9:15pm. After a 15 minute intermission, the band returned with the opening to "Mindcrime II", and seemed more energetic with the new material. Duel lead guitar solos were sounding great. By the time we got to "I'm American", Tate appeared in a nice black & white suite (think "Men In Black"), and powerfully wandered the stage tormenting a selection of actors representing business folk. There were additional actors and props involved in this second part of the evening, and the band also seemed much more excited with the material. For the track "The Chase", a video image of Ronnie James Dio was shown as "Dr. X", and fading between Tate as "Nikki". The battle between the two was obvious, however I was a bit disappointed that Tate remained off stage during this performance. You basically had the band performing, and all vocals were presented via video and tape. Towards the end of the performance, an actor is brought out in the "Dr. X" role, where "Nikki" (Tate) ties him to a chair and shoots him. This was dramatic, but suffered a bit from the "Dr. X" actor not having any resemblance to any of other representation of "Dr. X". This confused the plot just a bit. The band continued their strong performance, while the story took a dark turn towards the end. Tate kept up the vocals, and did a fair job of holding the dramatic performance. He's not the best Broadway trained actor, but I could see him having the capability. Upon completion of "Mindcrime II", the story was still a bit confusing, but I certainly had the feeling of a full dramatic fictional story had been played out.
After completing the "Mindcrime" sets, the band returned for two encores. We were treated to "Empire" and "Jet City Woman". Tate had gotten rid of the headset microphone, and assumed the more general rock singer look. The audience loved the two encores, and sang along with every note. The show ended around 11:15pm, and lived up to most expectations. The band, actors, and technicians all put together an elaborate performance, which has rarely been attempted in the past.
Overall, I'd say Queensryche has successfully brought to life the somewhat complicated "Operation: Mindcrime" story. Some may wonder if previous guitarist Chris DeGarmo is missed in this performance, and I can honestly say no. My friend had seen the first full "Mindcrime" performance with DeGarmo, and said he only missed DeGarmo's stage persona. Musically, nothing was missing, and the band let Tate have the spotlight most of the time. If you are at all a fan of Queensryche, or a fan of progressive hard rock, you are sure to love this concert. However, if you are looking to see Queensryche simply play their hits, you will be disappointed. This is solely a tour for the "Mindcrime" releases, but is something most of the fans have wanted.
Rating: 8 out of 10
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