SCREAMING IN DIGITAL
                                       
The On-Line Queensryche Digest : Volume 172 - 02Jan95

   "Futuristic 'Rychean discussion." - Michael Wilton
   "Quite entertaining to read." - Chris DeGarmo
   
   Produced in cooperation with the Queensryche Campaign fan club.
   Hosted by Internet Online Services, a division of IDT.
   Edited by Dan "Shag" Birchall
   
   Mail: qryche@ios.com
   FTP : ios.com, /pub/users/qryche
   WWW : http://www.ios.com/~qryche/
   
   
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Screaming in Digital - Editor's Note

   Welcome to 1995, everyone. I hope you all had a happy New Year's
   holiday.
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Contents

   Songs Getting Airplay - Bryan
   Bridge Video - Jason
   Bridge Video - Diana
   Much Music Interview - Bryan
   Interview with the Vampire - Paul
   Operation: Mindcrime Comic - John-Arthur
   Vampires? Stop it Already - Greg
   Geoff a Smoker? - Blades
   Bridge B-Side? - Greg
   Promised Land Views - Blades
   Promised Land Theme
   I Am I and Damaged Joined - Bryan
   Mindcrime Soundbites - John-Arthur
   Rice's Influence on Rage - Scott
   
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Neue Regel - News & Reviews

   Songs Getting Airplay - Bryan (bryabeda@village.ca)
   
   It's tough to say exactly what singles have been released from the
   album. So far I've heard the following songs on local radio stations:
   I am I, Damaged, Out of Mind, Bridge, Promised Land, and My Global
   Mind or One More Time - I can't remember which. We know I am I is a
   single, and Bridge is starting to get lots of airplay, but it's
   interesting how many songs have made it to the airwaves so far. All in
   all though, this album seems to have gained no new fans. The usual
   reaction is still, "Queenswhat?" Not a household name yet.
   
   Bridge Video - Jason (cavalier@shadow.net)
   
   The Bridge single is out, and the video is being played fairly fairly
   regularly by eMpTyV. MTV is slightly inept - when I saw it, the VJ
   referred to Chris as lead singer - but they played the whole video
   from pre credit roll to post with no cutoffs.
   
   The video is directed by our good friend Matt Mahurin, and overall
   does what he usually does with Queensryche videos - translates the
   same message from the audio to the video. The video is nearly as
   emotional for me as the song, but there's one real problem with it. At
   numerous spots in the video, there's a shot of a man with a black mask
   over his face. Attached to the mask are three cords, 2 leading to the
   eyes and one to the mouth. We see this figure especially during the
   guitar solo, as the cords leading to the mask are shaking violently.
   Now, unlike the rest of the video, I have no idea what this is
   supposed to stand for! If someone can help clue me in that'd be great
   - it seems to break the entire mood generated by the video as it's
   thrown in every 20 seconds. Is it supposed to mean that the kid can't
   talk? Why shake the cords? A small stumble from otherwise a very
   finely done video.
   
   Bridge Video - Diana (balance23@aol.com)
   
   The new video for Bridge is being played on MTV. It's another Matt
   Mahurin blurry celluloid wank-off, and the band isn't in it. Perhaps
   they feel they're making a statement of some sorts, or they're too
   busy, or whatever. Or perhaps they need to get over themselves. If
   they're so bloody miserable being rock stars - with all the benefits,
   airplanes, yachts, Jaguars - and it's destroying their personal lives,
   my friend manages a bar that can use a couple of busboys.
   
   Much Music Interview - Bryan (bryabeda@village.ca)
   
   I was doing some channel surfing the other day and landed upon Much
   Music (Canada's answer to MTV). I stopped flipping since I could see
   it was an interview with Chris. Actually, their whole "Power Hour"
   show - metal videos, et cetera - was centered around an interview in
   Toronto with Chris and Geoff. I've really started to notice a trend
   about this pair. It seems like Chris is always the one doing the
   talking. You would expect the frontman to be the talker, but Geoff is
   really quiet. He generally sits back and lets Chris ramble on. Chris
   has a lot to say about what Queensryche is trying to do with their
   music and what they're trying to say. He makes a lot of comments about
   the current state of society. Geoff said very little, and when he did
   say something, his remarks were usually negative ones about the music
   industry. He loathes the commercial side to making music, like the way
   albums and musicians are reduced to being nothing but products to the
   record companies. It was a great interview though. I only caught the
   last 10 minutes of it, but it was nice to have my feeling renewed that
   Queensryche is a band with brains. They showed the new video at the
   end of the show and I really don't think it's quite as bad as everyone
   says. The first and last 15 seconds are great but everything in
   between is far too plain.
   
   
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Speak - Comments & Questions

   Interview with the Vampire - Paul (vanyel@crl.com)
   
   I finally saw Interview with the Vampire yesterday. Did anyone else
   see it and think at the end, "Gee, Queensryche should have had the
   chance to do a song for the soundtrack, not Guns 'N Roses?" Back when
   the film was in pre-production there was talk of Queensryche being
   involved with it in some way - it's disappointing that something
   couldn't be arranged.
   
   Operation: Mindcrime Comic - John-Arthur (mysterio@ra.isisnet.com)
   
   I think an Operation: Mindcrime comic book could be the coolest thing
   in the entire universe if it was done well. Make it dark and gritty
   like Aliens and Star Wars. Basically, make it an airbrushed Dark Horse
   comic. If this were done well, I would sell my computer to get it.
   Next to its original format and the live show, a well-done comic
   format would probably be the best way to get the story across.
   
    Of course, I think that the album itself couldn't be topped for
   expressing the feelings, I think that a comic book would be very good
   as well. It could be abstract in parts where Nikki isn't sure what
   happened, and just imagine the scene where Nikki tells Dr. X that he
   wants out.
   
   Vampires? Stop it Already - Greg (per_pawlack@ohio.gov)
   
   Vampires? Where? Look, folks. I know it's the "in" thing to analyze
   and discuss lyrics, but finding topics where they aren't gets a bit
   nauseating to read after a while. Most of Rage for Order does not
   contain vampiric overtones, no matter how closely you listen or
   examine the words, so please, cut it out. It's like saying Take Hold
   of the Flame is about arson, or I Will Remember is about Christmas -
   the 'star' reference.
   
   Rage is a very loosely-packaged concept album that I, after listening
   to it for several years, am just beginning to appreciate. Back in my
   teen metal days when it came out, I sold it back after listening to it
   a few times. I thought it was techno-crap. Now it's one of my
   favorites. Why didn't it sell? I think it's because they released
   Gonna Get Close to You as the first single. It was way left of
   mainstream at the time - there was no "alternative" then - and bombed
   so badly, there wasn't even a second single released. If that album
   came out now, it would sell better than it did in the 80's.
   
   Geoff a Smoker? - Blades (blades.oliva@cyberia.com)
   
   I also don't know where some people get the idea that Geoff smokes.
   I've read interviews where he talks about the environment, and he is
   very into that kind of thing. He believes that being a vegetarian is a
   healthier way to live. If he is interested in living healthy, why
   would he smoke? If he smoked, you would be able to tell more in his
   voice. I have seen him in concert 6 times, and he was never smoking.
   He wouldn't be able to sing night after night like he does if he was a
   heavy smoker. It just doesn't fit.
   
   
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Spreading the Disease - Info & Resources

   Bridge B-Side? - Greg (per_pawlack@ohio.gov)
   
   Does anybody know what's on the B-side of the Bridge single? I can't
   get singles here.
   
   
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Discussion

   Promised Land Views - Blades (blades.oliva@cyberia.com)
   
   Promised Land is the second-best Queensryche album that has ever been,
   behind Operation: Mindcrime. I don't understand why people are
   slagging it so badly - even a good friend of mine said after hearing
   this album that he expected Chris to put a banjo in the next one. All
   the people who were criticizing Queensryche for "selling out" with
   Empire are now criticizing them for being too non-commercial. People,
   make up your minds. Let each album stand on its own. Queensryche
   evolves, and their music reflects that. Change is supposed to be good.
   I think Disconnected is one of the best songs on the new album,
   because it is so different from anything they have done before. If you
   like bands that never change, listen to bands like Pink Floyd -
   they've been stale for decades.
   
   As for me, I'll stick to being on the edge, and if that means cool
   vocal effects, sound effects, and samples of sounds in music, then so
   be it. I Am I has the best vocal effects I have ever heard, as an
   audio engineer. I'd also encourage everyone to get the Japanese import
   - the full band version of Someone Else? shreds.
   
   
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The Killing Words - Interpretation

   Promised Land Theme - (srh20@hermes.cam.ac.uk)
   
   Someone mentioned rumors about Promised Land being something of a
   continuation of the Operation: Mindcrime storyline. I must admit that
   this struck me the other day, when reading the lyrics for Damaged. In
   particular, the lines: "The one that lays beside me is sharing scars
   of my broken yesterdays" and "Mother Mary in control." Mary is, of
   course, a name we know well :} and I could certainly suggest one major
   character in Mindcrime who can claim to have a damaged mind.
   Similarly, the title track can also be seen this way, insofar as it is
   about someone regretting some past choices made. It's perhaps
   reflection of the quality of the writing that, even if we can find
   these continuations, the songs stand on their own as well.
   
   I Am I and Damaged Joined - Bryan (bryabeda@village.ca)
   
   I had a thought the other day. It seems like Damaged is a cadence to I
   Am I. When I listen to I Am I, it doesn't feel complete until I've
   heard Damaged. Obviously I'm not the only one who feels this way,
   since Z-Rock always plays them back to back. It is not at all that
   station's style to play two songs in a row by the same band, so there
   must be a reason for it.
   
   Mindcrime Soundbites - John-Arthur (mysterio@ra.isisnet.com)
   
   Has anyone ever tryed to figure out what the chanting in Suite Sister
   Mary is saying? I know it's Latin, but I've never heard what the
   words were, and the translations. I'd also like to know from whence
   came the quotes: "Doctor Blair, Doctor Blair, Doctor Jay Hamilton,
   Doctor Jay Hamilton" and "Doctor Davis, telephone please, Doctor
   Davis, telephone please." These sound bites seem to show up whenever
   there is a hospital scene anywhere, especially on television cold
   remedy commercials. I am reminded of I Remember Now whenever I hear
   them. When ever I am reminded, I have to listen to the whole album
   again. When ever I listen to the whole album, I have to listen to all
   the albums again. *sigh* It's fun, but it's a bloody waste of time. :)
   
          The "Doctor" soundbites are off an industry-standard
          sound-effects disc. As for Suite Sister Mary, it's reportedly a
          chant known as the Dies Irae or "Wrath of God." Check the
          back-issues for many mentions of both topics. -sh
          
   
   
   Rice's Influence on Rage - Scott (qnsryche@aol.com)
   
   About three years ago, Chris was interviewed in either Hit Parader or
   Circus, and was asked about the inspiration for the different albums.
   He said that Rage for Order was influenced by Anne Rice's books, as
   they were all reading her Vampire Chronicles at the time they wrote
   the album. Rice's works include many of the same themes found in Rage.
   I've also found that listening to Rage while reading Rice's books
   helps to enhance both.
   
          It's really not surprising that Rage and Rice's works are so
          compatible - Rage has been described as a study in order, or
          orders, and Rice's works could also be described as such, at
          least in a social sense. Just a thought. -sh
          
   
   
   
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   That's all for now - see you all again next week, and don't forget to
   write. But let's try to find something to talk about other than
   vampires. ;)
   
   'Ryche on,
          -Shag