Why Queensryche Won't Be Donning Their '80s Vampire Outfits Anytime Soon

Even many years removed, Queensryche's chart-topping peak — platinum certifications, Grammy nominations and MTV exposure included — remains somewhat surreal for guitarist Michael Wilton. Besides, this was a band sufficiently sophisticated to craft lyrics like "There's no raison d'etre" during glam's heyday. "I think the albums that collided with public taste in the '90s, I think those are definitely our most popular albums," the axeman recalls. "When a band like Queensryche hit the mainstream, that kind of shocked us."

The melodic metallers subsequently experienced a downturn in fortunes, both commercially and creatively. An acrimonious split with original singer Geoff Tate, and ensuing legal settlement resulted in founding members Wilton, Eddie Jackson (bass) and Scott Rockenfield (drums) retaining use of the Queensryche moniker. Meanwhile, Tate formed Operation: Mindcrime (derived from Queensryche's classic 1988 Orwellian concept opus), and gained exclusive rights to perform the titular record and its 2006 sequel in their entirety.

"The funny thing is, half the time, people in the back of the venue, they're having a great time and they didn't even know it was somebody different."

"I think that's beat to death," Wilton remarks of playing said releases start to finish, seemingly a dig at his estranged former bandmate. "Our fans really want to hear a variety of songs. So we tend to play a few songs from Mindcrime, but as well as [1986's] Rage For Order, [1984's] The Warning, the EP [self-titled, from 1983]. We haven't really had any complaints; 'Play the whole damn Mindcrime album, please,'" he laughs.

They also focus on fresh material. Queensryche's current line-up, completed by frontman Todd La Torre and guitarist Parker Lundgren has released two LPs, including last year's Condition Human. "They're younger than we are, and so it's a shot of adrenaline in the arm," Wilton gushes. Although aforementioned legalities were aired publicly, not all fans are aware of these developments. Do many attend shows who don't realise they've changed vocalists, or even mistake La Torre for Tate? "All the time, and you know what? It's one show at a time, and sometimes there's the curiosity factor from the person that hasn't seen us since 1995, coming out to see how the band's going, and usually it's great," Wilton enthuses.

"We blow people away. But unfortunately that's the way it is, when you make such a big change in the band you've got to go out there and prove it, and we prove it every night. The funny thing is, half the time, people in the back of the venue, they're having a great time and they didn't even know it was somebody different," he chuckles. "They thought everybody was the original people. I think the fans just want to hear the energy, the communication and the vibe, the chemistry of the band on stage again. That's what we've been doing, and it's working."

Listeners old and new certainly won't encounter onstage references to their mid-'80s aesthetic during upcoming performances though. "I think I have them in a closet somewhere, and that's where they're gonna stay," the guitarist jokes of early, questionable fashion selections. "I think that was more of a management situation, saying, 'You guys need an image.' Our whole thing was, 'The music is the image.' In those days, new wave music was big, vampires, all that, it was just a crazy time. My kids look at that and they go, 'Oh my God, Dad, what were you thinking?'" he laughs.