QUEENSRŸCHE – Dedicated To Chaos

Progressive Metal legends Queensrÿche are back with their eleventh studio album entitled Dedicated To Chaos. Fans who have been loyal to the band since their beginnings back in the early 80’s know that Queensrÿche tends to follow the beat of their own drum. This album is certainly no exception, however, Queensrÿche may have pushed the envelope a little too far with this one.

Dedicated To Chaos is a very diverse and experimental album to say the least. In a recent interview, vocalist Geoff Tate described the music on Dedicated To Chaos as “a clash and slash of musical experimentation anchored by the pulse of the digital code”. This album is really nothing like any prior Queensrÿche release; it really doesn’t fit into any sub-genre of Progressive Metal. In all actuality, the music leans more toward Mainstream Rock.

The first few tracks — “Get Started”, “Hot Spot Junkie”, “Got It Bad”, “Higher”, and “Around The World” — sound like a modern day mediocre U2 or Maroon 5 album. The music features many electronic sounds, simple and repetitive drum beats, and one or two boring guitar chords.

Unfortunately, the album really doesn’t start to get going until the 7th track, “Drive”, which brings some redemption with Tate’s sinister vocals and driving drum beats. Although the song is still simplistic in nature, it is arguably one of the best songs on the album. True Queensrÿche fans will enjoy the next track “At The Edge”, as it probably is the only track which has the feel and sound of a classic Queensrÿche song. Only a small handful of tracks on Dedicated To Chaos provide the signature Geoff Tate power vocals, but when they come out, chances are you’ll greet those instances with much appreciation.

Materially, Tate’s vocals are the only real hero throughout the entire album. He sings with so much empathy and passion it becomes very easy to get mentally involved in his performances. If Tate wasn’t such a superb vocalist this album would easily be a huge waste of time. Additionally, most fans already know Michael Wilton’s guitar and Scott Rockenfield’s drumming talents, however, their ability fails to shine anywhere on this album. This album could have easily been performed with Geoff Tate and a bunch of session musicians.

Hopefully this experimental stage that Queensrÿche is currently going through will not last. Metal fans have come to expect much more from their beloved Queensrÿche, instead of a second-rate Pop Rock album.