Queensryche Tell Story of the ‘American Soldier’

"Nothing is more moving than actually experiencing something yourself. The music can give you insight into things, provide receptors, enhance your imagination and that's what we tried to do. We wanted to put the listener into the lives of these soldiers so they can relate to them a little better," explains Geoff Tate, lead singer of Queensrÿche, to Noisecreep. The band will soon hit the road in support of their new album 'American Soldier.' This is the band's first album of all-original material since 'Operation: Mindcrime II' in 2006. Today, progressive superheroes take a look at life through the eyes of soldier. Interviews from former and current soldiers are inserted into album tracks, creating a more complete sonic story for the listener.

The idea for 'American Soldier' came from Tate's background: his father was a career military man. A conversation with his dad lit a spark of creativity, and suddenly Tate found himself talking to every soldier he could find. Casual conversations lead to more formal interviews and before long, filming the soldiers as they spoke. "That really helped down the road when we started writing songs for the record – we would actually watch the interviews," explains Tate. "That would be a huge motivator for us in actually composing the music because we could actually hear their emotions and physically see what they were going through. It helped us to really establish what the story was and to pull an atmosphere from what they were talking about and create an atmosphere musically."

Tate handles most of the songwriting for Queensrÿche and worked especially hard to translate a soldier's enlisted experiences to an entertaining and respectful metal journey. "Even if [listeners] don't experience warfare, this might give a little insight into what people do experience – the sacrificing and laying their lives down for our freedoms," says Tate. "I think in our culture, we have a tendency to take what they do for granted. I know did until I talked with all these different soldiers and realized what it is they do and looked at it from their point of view. It was quite an education."

'American Soldier' is available now on Rhino Records.