When
Queensrÿche issued their self-titled 2013 album they were engaged in a nasty legal battle with fired founding vocalist
Geoff Tate over the brand. He lost, leaving the title free and clear. It was their first with new singer
Todd La Torre.
Queensrÿche were so intent on reestablishing their brand trademark, he ended up sounding too much like
Tate. The hastily assembled collection also lacked their usual songwriting precision.
Condition Hüman offers fans the opportunity to re-evaluate
Queensrÿche on their own terms. With producer
Chris "Zeuss" Harris, this band is keen on reestablishing its identity as a prog metal unit with the accent on "metal."
Queensrÿche toured together enough to offer proof of their now cemented relationship on the set's two pre-release singles, "Arrow of Time" and "Guardian." Both offer hard edges. The former contains classic (à la
Iron Maiden) metal riffing and spiraling dual leads from guitarists
Michael Wilton and
Parker Lundgren. The tune spins and gallops with a fresh burst of energy. "Guardian" is a showcase for
La Torre and drummer
Scott Rockenfield.
La Torre still has
Tate in his delivery, but that's because he's a lifelong
Queensrÿche fan. Given this tune, he's obviously studied
Ian Gillan and
Bruce Dickinson too. He soars with clearly annunciated phrasing, highlighting each pass in the music's development.
Rockenfield's groove is iconic at this stage, but he is less celebrated for his impeccable syncopation. It's split evenly between snare, cymbals, and double bass drums on this jam.
La Torre really soars on "Hellfire," and its fiery guitar and vocal pyrotechnics recall the
Operation: Mindcrime period, while "Selfish Lives" with its political lyrics and rousing chorus touches on
Empire. Despite this return to harder prog metal,
Queensrÿche also resurrect a particular strength on
Condition Hüman not once, but twice: the power ballad. "Bulletproof," begun with a soft, liturgical female choir, introduces a swaying, infectious melody.
La Torre offers his most passionate delivery on the record before a killer dual guitar break in the bridge, making the tune an arena rock anthem. His approximation of new age Celtic melody in "Just Us," buoyed by strummed 12-strings and popping tom-toms, is the other number that the one and only
Queensrÿche could pull off without sounding cloying.
Eddie Jackson's nasty, fuzzed-out bassline kicks off "Eye9," a choppier, harder-edged, knottier jam than we've heard from
Queensrÿche before -- though the chorus is catchy as hell -- and it signifies a new musical direction. The title track closer, at just under eight minutes, is almost worth the price tag. It's an epic with four sections featuring a clean-tone, near operatic chorus (complete with chorale), a screaming
Wilton solo, and a breathtaking outro (think "Roads to Madness").
Condition Hüman isn't perfect and it's not altogether instantly accessible; it will take a few listens to completely absorb. That said, it's more creative than anything from
Queensrÿche in at least a decade and far better than we had any right to expect.