Former Queensrÿche frontman Geoff Tate recently opened up about his experiences encountering tribute acts and interacting with the public incognito. Speaking with author and “rBeatz” host Terry Hudson, the vocalist detailed his complex feelings regarding musicians who replicate his signature singing style.
“I think it’s quite a compliment, actually. [It] really is. I’ve heard some really good imitators. There’s been quite a few, actually,” Geoff Tate explained. “It’s kind of weird when you hear that kind of thing happening, especially if I’m not expecting it and I’m out traveling or something and I come across a band and they’re playing one of my songs. It’s so surreal and strange. It guts me every time I hear it. I think, ‘What are they doing?’ And then it’s very flattering too. It’s hard to describe.
The conversation also touched upon his current level of public recognition. Despite his extensive tenure in the heavy metal industry, the singer noted that his altered physical appearance allows him to occasionally go entirely unnoticed, even when engaging directly with people wearing his former band’s merchandise.
“What I find really interesting is how many people don’t recognize me — and how many people do,” Geoff added. “I don’t look like I did 20, 30 years ago — I have a different hairstyle now— and people still recognize me on the street, and come up and talk to me and tell me about the songs, tell me about the music, how it’s affected them. A million stories about the songs — so many stories. And then I have other times where people don’t recognize me at all. Like I’ll see a guy with a Queensrÿche shirt on, and I kind of make a point of walking up to somebody with a Queensrÿche shirt on and I go, ‘Hey, I love that band.’ And nine times out of 10, they say, ‘Yeah, me too. I love that band. I’ve seen ’em 16 times.’ I go, ‘Oh, yeah. I’ve seen him so many times, I can’t even count.’ And then that’s it. And I walk away. They walk away, and they have no clue.”
Shifting to his current musical endeavors, Geoff Tate is scheduled to release Operation: Mindcrime III on May 3. Billed as a solo effort outside of the Queensrÿche moniker, the album marks the third installment in the acclaimed conceptual series. The project is preceded by the lead single, “Power“.
The new track was co-written by the singer and guitarist/producer Kieran Robertson. The recording lineup includes Geoff Tate on vocals, Rich Baur on drums, Disturbed bassist John Moyer (who also serves as co-producer), and guitarists Dario Parente and Amaury Altmayer. Synthesizers and string arrangements were handled by Geoff Tate and Kieran Robertson, with mixing and mastering completed by Juan Urteaga at Trident Studios in Pacheco, California.
Narratively, the new record revisits the intertwined lives of the characters Nikki and Dr. X. However, this third chapter shifts the narrative focus entirely. Outlining the new album’s concept, the vocalist confirmed it will detail: “how the story happened from his point of view. Which is kind of interesting, I think, because we’ve only heard it from Nikki‘s point of view, and he’s been sort of this victim throughout the whole story.”
