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Rating: Released in 1982, an almost perfect album even with its mini LP length. It has that primordial hint of hairdresser's perm on bushy heads devoted to genuine heavy metal with a touch of kitschy studded gadgets that propel the evolution of a hard sound that had yet to integrate the soft and hard vapor-progressive hallmarks simultaneously.
It gets you hooked, the vocalist elevates our hidden (but adored) castrated side, the immaculate sado-maso is the result: "We are ready to die, we are ready to die"...
The fluidity of the rhythm changes skates us into umlaut zones where a tender exhilaration makes us bad enough to forget to praise our refinement and silences that little voice that has been echoing in our head for some time now, saying things like: "Go play golf, go play golf"...
They hit just right, they arouse monogamously, they herald what Seattle will be in 10 years. Meanwhile, along with something from Malmsteen with Rising Force (Marching Out, if you know what I mean), I hold tightly onto this little jewel which satisfies all expectations above and below for that semi-glamorous and soberly exhibitionist heavy side it possesses, having a cadence full of a zest for life.
All four tracks are remarkable; let's skip the opening of "Queen of the Reich", a classic of all time including video clip, because if we even try to keep up with Geoff Tate's voice, we risk losing our vocal cords.
It gets heavier on "Nightriders" but the weight glides on molten wheels at times splendidly baroque-classic, leaving a groove that will be followed by many other bands.
In the third track (Blinded), we are literally "blinded" by the dynamism of the musical flow, and then there’s always that voice that shatters crystals.
Then comes the metal ballad (Lady Wore Black) with a bit more intelligence quotient, but it suits everyone with its longing.
Being from the American town of Bellevue reminds me of a Franco Sensi (then-president of AS Roma) overwhelmed by TV microphones where journalists asked about goalkeeper Pellizzoli and the rumors that he was about to be sold... And he replied: "Where's he going? He's good, he's young, he's tall... He's also handsome!"
Well, for Queensrÿche it's the same thing, they’re also handsome...
What more to add except... "Queen of the Reeeeeeeeeeeeeeich"!!!
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 Queen of the Reich (04:25)
In the dead of night
She'll come and take you away
Searing beams of light and thunder
Over blackened plains
She will find her way
Flying high through the night
She will hide your fate
As she takes your soul from under
And the blinding light of the castle fades
There is no escape
It's the ending of your precious life
Your soul slipped away
It belongs to the Queen of the Reich
The Queen of the Reich
Yeah she's coming for you
You're fading away
Your life cast astray
A victim the beast shall obtain
The light will not shine
For you'll die tonight at her shrine
And black is the last thing you'll see
Over and over
Dreams of dying fill your head
It's the sign of the cross
That you'll find ahead
No one will answer
The light is fading away
Captive souls are screaming out in pain
There is no escape
It's the ending of your precious life
Your soul slipped away
It belongs to the Queen of the Reich
You're fading away, No, No, No
The Queen of the Reich
You're slipping away, yeah
The Queen of the Reich
02 Nightrider (03:48)
Beware of night for we all know he's loose again
Behind him lies the eyes of mercy and despair
Forever living out his nightmare comes to life
From hell this spell will find its way to you
Tonight
Tonight
A thousand cries are heard, they echo in the wind
And still the rider will unleash his chosen sin
The victims of his rage are soldiers of his mind
His scream will heed the call of those who stand behind
The nightrider sails away
The nightrider sails yeah
By day the rider will have vanished from all eyes
Seen from within the only answer to him lies
But as the rays of light begin to fade away
The rider will return to carry out his stay
The nightrider sails away
The nightrider sails yeah
Beware of the night
Beware of the night
Beware of the night
Oh god, beware of the night
03 Blinded (03:07)
From the night comes a roar of thunder
Beholding light on the spell you're under
And the signs of death descend your way
Fighting back from the devil's hunger
Freeing souls from their chosen number
And the sword of right will guide your way
And thus you'll find that only demons fill your mind until you wake
But only time will tell the answer you've been blinded from today
Burning dreams cause your mind to wonder
Iron crosses are the calling numbers
And the fight for the answer still remains old
But the night will reflect the hunger
And the blackness will pull you under
Still the sword of right will guide your way
And in the night you'll hear the voices calling down and they will stay
But only time will tell the answer you've been blinded from today.
04 The Lady Wore Black (06:12)
On a lonely walk this morning
A light mist in the air
Dark clouds laughing at me in silence
Casting shadows through my hair
In the distance I saw a woman
Dressed in black with eyes of grey
She wore her pain like a shackled spirit
Eternal life was her debt to pay
The lady wore black
It's the sign of the prisoners lives
The lady wore black
See the years through the tears in her eyes
The lady wore black
Her mystic power calls to me
The lady wore black
Her love can set me free
The wind song whispered a warning
Telling me to beware
Of the quiet shadowed woman
And of the sadness I would share
We sat together for sometime together in silence
Never speaking in words
Of all her thoughts she spoke with her eyes
And I listened remembering all I heard
The lady wore black
It's the sign of the prisoners lives
The lady wore black
See the years through the tears in her eyes
The lady wore black
Her mystic power calls to me
The lady wore black
Her love can set me free
The words she spoke were of forgotten lives
And of all knowledge gained
Mem'ries I had and didn't know why
With a smile she explained
I should have listened to the wind's cold warning
And walked the other way
I touched her soul and now I bear her sentence
But for her love I'll gladly pay
The lady wore black
It's the sign of the prisoners lives
The lady wore black
See the years through the tears in her eyes
The lady wore black
Her mystic power calls to me
The lady wore black
Her love can set me free
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By sfascia carrozze
The tracks generally convince and, at worst, always appear at least decent; the much-discussed change behind the microphone...does not make one miss the void left by the despotic Tate in the slightest.
It is a substantial and essentially successful back to basics that will certainly satisfy longtime fans hence of strict progressive-metal allegiance.
