Catching Up With James Christian of House of Lords

Catching Up With James Christian of House of Lords
Interviewed by: Roger Scales

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Concert Review: Queensryche at the House of Blues in Boston, MA

Queensryche
House of Blues
Boston, MA
October 26, 2011

Rating:  

Reviewed By: Roger Scales

It’s hard to believe Queensryche has been recording and touring for 30 years, seems just like just yesterday I was seeing them open for KISS at the Worcester Centrum in November 1984.  Having seen Queensryche in Hit Paradrer and Circus Magazine I had never even heard one song or watched one video but I recall being amazed at the range of lead singer Geoff Tate.  The energy of the band also impressed me and I went out the next day and bought The Warning on cassette and have been a fan ever since.  Well 30 years later Geoff doesn’t have quite the range he did back then but makes up for it in his stage presence, charisma and basically being the ringleader on stage for Queensryche in 2011. 

What Boston fans were hoping for was a trip down memory lane and a set loaded with “vintage Ryche” and they did get that..sort of.  Trying to touch all the bases in their history the band tried to please everyone by offering at least one selection from each of their 12 studio albums.  For me personally I wanted the bulk of the set to consist of heavy doses of Rage For Order, Operation: Mindcrime and Empire..arguably their three most popular releases.  I got that but the set had no flow to it because it jumped around too much and hearing individual Mindcrime cuts (for example) out of order does not do the album any justice. This is not a “hit single” sort of act..”Silent Lucidity” notwithstanding. Maybe that’s my problem with a “greatest hits” type set list.  My list is so drastically different from what was performed at the House of Blues I left feeling underwhelmed. 

I bought Dedicated to Chaos, this year’s new album out of loyalty to the Ryche tradition.  Although not a bad album I never had a moment where I truly rocked out or got excited over any one track.  So having the set open with “Get Started” from that album didn’t surprise me at all it also didn’t get me all fired up either.  In fact much of the first half of the set consisted mainly of tracks from my least favorite Ryche albums.  Not until 9 songs into the night did my attention get grabbed when they performed “Real World” from the Last Action Hero movie soundtrack from 1993.  Performed brilliantly it was probably Geoff’s best vocal of the night. Geoff has a gift of making the fans feel like one big happy family by frequently acknowledging the crowd and interacting between tracks so that the songs may have a little background or short story to them prior to being performed.   

The second half of the set was more vintage Ryche and included such classics as “NM 156”, “The Lady Wore Black”, “Take Hold of The Flame”, ‘Walk in the Shadows” and “Eyes of a Stranger”.  All some of my favorites and all had an old school metal feel to them something the newer material sorely lacks.  I would like to say that guitarist Parker Lundgren has come a long way in 2 years and seems to be filling in for Chris Degramo better than I thought he would, given his inexperience and young age.  Yet in making that statement NO ONE can really replace Chris in terms of what he brought to the bands song writing, guitar work overall appeal.  The band has never been the same since his departure although one could argue that they have survived in spite of this not because of it.

I’m a huge Queensryche fan and always will be.  I think the best thing for the band to do is play entire albums in their entity and let the fans decide which ones and see what happens.  I read that played Rage for Order in its entirety in NY a few nights after Boston.  This is what the band should strive for in terms of road survival.  Besides Degarmo returning to the lineup seeing Queensryche is like watching a regular season Bruins game.  Yeah it’s hockey and it’s great but there is nothing like the playoffs.  Bringing back Degarmo, playing Rage from beginning to end along with a few other vintage Ryche tracks would be like watching the Bruins win another Stanley Cup.  I’ll drink to that..

Set List
1. Get Started
2. Damaged
3. I Don’t Believe In Love
4. Hit the Black
5. I’m American
6. My Empty Room
7. A Dead Man’s Words
8. Desert Dance
9. Real World
10. NM 156
11. Screaming In Digital
12. The Lady Wore Black
13. Walk In The Shadows
14. The Right Side Of My Mind
15. Around the World
16. Silent Lucidity
17. Take Hold Of The Flame
Encore:
18. Eyes Of A StrangerPlay Video

 

Concert Review: Ace Frehley at The Junkyard in Nashua, NH

Ace Frehley
The Junkyard
Nashua, NH
October 23, 2011

Rating:  

Reviewed by:  Roger Scales
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CD Review: House of Lords / Big Money

House of Lords
Big Money
Frontiers Records
Release Date:  September 27, 2011

Rating:  

 Reviewed by:  Roger Scales
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Concert Review: Cinderella, John Corabi & Mass at Club Casino in Hampton Beach, NH

Cinderella, John Corabi & MASS
Club Casino Ballroom
Hampton Beach, NH
August 10, 2011

Rating:  

Reviewed by:  Roger Scales
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Catching Up With John Wetton

John Wetton may be most well known for his involvment with Asia, but the multi-talented bassist, singer and songwriter recently released a new solo album titled Raised in Captivity.

TWRY recently caught up with him to get the scoop on the new album!

Interviewed by:  Roger Scales
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Concert Review: KISS at the Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester, NH

KISS
Verizon Wireless Arena
Manchester, NH
July 12, 2011

Rating:  

Reviewed by:  Roger Scales

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Concert Review: Def Leppard & Heart at the Comcast Center in Mansfield, MA

Def Leppard & Heart
Comcast Center
Mansfield MA
June 30, 2011
Reviewed by:  Roger Scales
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Catching Up With Jesse James Dupree Of Jackyl

Jackyl’s Jesse James Dupree is not a fan of idle hands.  When he’s not rocking out with Jackyl he’s brewing his Jesse James America’s Outlaw Beer or co-producing Full Throttle Saloon, a realith show on Tru-TV.  Amidst all of that, the band is preparing to head out for a summer full of tour dates, including three New England Stops so be there! 

I recently caught up with the outspoken, unapologetic rocker himself to talk about all things Jesse James and Jackyl.

Interviewed by:  Roger Scales

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Spotlight Band: Mindflow

Although not exactly a household name just yet in North America, Mindflow has been tearin’ it up in their home country of Brazil for over six years now.  Their progressive hard rock sound is starting to make some waves and the band is currently out on tour with UFO here in The States.

TWRY had the opportunity to catch up with founding members guitarist Rodrigo Hidalgo and drummer Rafael Pensado prior to their show in Foxboro MA at showcase Live and find out a little bit about who they are.  Check it out!

By: Roger Scales

You’re currently out on the road supporting UFO here in the US.  Have you toured here in North America previously and what have the crowds been like thus far?
This is actually our 4^th time here, although most of the dates have been on the West coast and Southern part of the US.  So far on this leg it’s been awesome.  Every show the crowds seem to get bigger and that’s a good sign.  We did play the Prog Power Festival in Atlanta in 2009 and I think that was our biggest show here in America up to this point.  We love the American crowds and they seem to be really into the music.  You guys are all rockers at heart and we are very happy to be here once again.

With Bare Hands is your 4^th studio album and the first with Nightmare Records.  Was the recording experience/location any different than you’re your previous releases?
Yes it was.  It was a very different experience than in the past because the initial recording started out within a project called “365” where we worked on 1 song a month for an entire year.  So we kind of worked on the song, recorded it and released it one at a time.  We did move around a bit working at several different studios during this process.  We once again got to work with Ben Grosse (Marilyn Manson, Slipknot, Disturbed, Breaking Benjamin, and Sevendust) producing some of the tracks on this new record so we were real happy having his contributions and experience at our disposal.  We were very pleased with how the final mix came out and we hope the fans do as well.

After watching and enjoying the video for the first single “Break Me Out” I’m curious where that was shot and do you have any interesting stories coming from it?
Everybody always asks about the girl!!  No none of us are dating her! Basically that location is a major trucking spot in Sao Paulo Brazil where sand is gathered for distribution to various construction sites throughout the area.  We had a lot of fun working on that track  I think the director got the most out of us that day and the performance shots are really a good representation of who we are as a live act.

I also watched the video for the new single “Thrust Into The Game” which was a lot different from a stylistic approach than the first video from this album.  What is the game referenced in that song?
That “game” is a reference to Brazilian politics and what seems to be going on in local government right now.  There was lot of corruption that was going on at that time.  It was in the news daily and we just couldn’t help but be affected by it and it came out in this song.  It’s all about taking the people and the government and throwing them all in one pot and trying to create a stabilized environment.  It’s still a work in progress.

Speaking of games..tell me a little bit about the Alternative Reality Game ‘Follow Your Instinct”.  Who came up with the concept, how many people have been playing this game and at what stage is it at currently?
The band came up with the general idea for the game and the concept of the game in 2005 that situates the players as detectives in pursuit of a dangerous serial killer.  We thought it would be fun and it started out with about 3,000 players in the first edition of the game that lasted a little more than 1 year.  It combines fictional situations with reality, making use of media channels from the real world.  The game takes place in websites, e-mails, phone calls, and some other media sources.  It’s now up and over 10,000 players at this point.  It has a special connection with our younger fans because it’s similar to a video game.  We put clues in each of the albums so it combines our records in the game as well. 

It’s a little tough to categorize Mindflow into just one musical direction.  Hard rock rhythm section with a melodic flow and power vocals is the best description I could come up with.  Certainly you appeal to different fans and age groups for different reasons.  Did you ever have a goal in mind as a band to overtly attempt to have mass appeal or did it just happen naturally as the band evolved over time?
I think it’s just a natural progress over time.  As a band we never tried to limit ourselves or categorize the act into one particular style or direction..just let it flow.  That’s how we came up with the name of the band.  With the new record With Bare Hands we did try to be more aggressive and heavier for sure so it should resonate with the metal fans all over.  We really wanted to share the energy with the crowd when we recorded this new record and couldn’t wait to start playing these songs live and feel that vibe up close and personal by getting back on the road. 

In your native Brazil you have played some major stadium type shows and also supported some major acts throughout Europe as well.  What has observing these rock veterans in these environments taught you about life on the road, interacting with fans and building the Mindflow legacy?
Great question because we all believe the best experience you can get “cutting your teeth” and creating a band for the long haul is just tour, tour, tour.  We need to bond and work as  family and friends and you can only gain that connection by going out on the road.  Seeing some of these guys that have been doing this for 20 or 25 years just gives us the motivation to someday be that vetern act headlining on a bill with 4 or 5 other bands.  Most of these bands we have toured with have been super supportive and we have appreciated the guidance and advice.

There was a recent photo of the band from this tour with Mike Portnoy..now drummer free agent!  What was that meeting like and did you think Dream Theater will be the same band without him?
He has been one of the biggest inspiration to us and one of the most important metal progressive performers of his generation.  To have him in the audience at our gig watching as a fan was a huge thrill for all of us.  We got to talk to him for a bit after our set and Rafael got to ask a few drumming questions which defiantly made his day!  He was so cool.  We gave him one of our tour shirts and he wore it!!  He is a real music fan who just happens to be the best rock drummer in the business.  Having Mike Mangini replacing Portnoy in the band they will lose very little from a skill perspective and his style and technique are so similar I can see why he got the gig.  But Portnoy was so much more than just the drummer.  From a business standpoint it will be different.  His spirit is what flowed through the band and it will be interesting to see not only the quality of the new music but how the fans react no matter how good it is because Portnoy is not there.  On the other hand maybe the other band members will step out of the shadows and showcase another side from them we have never seen; either way no matter what happens Mike Portnoy will be back in Dream Theater at some point in the future playing like he always did and has with reckless abandonment.        

What does the future hold for Mindflow in terms of touring for the remainder of this year, another studio album or maybe a live cd/dvd?
We have actually been filming quite a bit of material since we started in the hopes of putting together a bulk of material for a live DVD package.  We have some more touring planned for the summer in Brazil and then possibly back in the studio to start work on a new record by year’s end.  Writing, touring, writing touring.  We feel the whole spirit of the 1970’s is starting to come back with bands constantly working and trying to release an album a year to keep their momentum going and fan base growing.  We strive for that as a band.  We have  a lot of energy burning inside each of us and want to get it out live on stage and then back to the studio to create new reasons to keep come seeing you guys here in the US!  We love it here and want to thank all of the fans on this tour for coming out early to check us out before seeing UFO.        

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For more on Mindflow:
Website
Mindflow US Tour Dates
Mindflow on Twitter
Mindflow on Facebook

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