Queensryche's well-intentioned American Soldier falls short

May 21, 5:43 PMSalt Lake City Pop Culture ExaminerVince Font

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Queensrÿche's 12th studio album "American Soldier".

Queensrÿche's new studio album "American Soldier" is about as noble an effort as they get. A concept album about war told from the perspective of those with firsthand experience, it is the culmination of lead singer Geoff Tate's personal interviews with veterans of foreign wars from WWII to Iraq. The album is intended as a tribute to the bravery and sacrifice of those who would risk their lives to preserve something most Americans take for granted. To see an album like this coming from a band not affiliated with Country Music Television is like coming up for air when you've been underwater too long. To see an album like this coming from a band like Queensrÿche is even better. The idea is groundbreaking. Musicians have been taking on the subject of war and peace since time out of mind, often resulting in the sonic equivalent of a sanctimonious op-ed piece. But "American Soldier" marks the first time that any high profile band has set its collective ego aside long enough to tell a story in the words of those who have actually lived it. It's a moving gesture that makes it all the more painful that "American Soldier" is such a disappointing album.

To begin with, it puts to bed any hope that Queensrÿche will ever do anything as good as "Empire" again. It's been almost twenty years; it should be obvious by now. Still, there's always the hope that an inspired idea might kick back to life the dormant spark of creativity that once existed--but if it didn't happen with "Operation: Mindcrime II" it stands to reason it wouldn't happen this time, either. Maybe it all flew out the window when lead guitarist Chris DeGarmo quit the band to pursue other endeavors (he's now a professional charter pilot), but the fact remains that his guitar isn't all that's missing.

Once upon a time, Tate was capable of spitting out poetically clever lyrical phrases without making them sound cumbersome, and delivering them in a manner that made them feel right at home next to a crunching metal riff. The effortlessness with which he pulled this off stands in stark contrast to his work on "American Soldier", where hackneyed lyrics like "remember me and all the times we had/remember me whenever you feel sad" sound forced and awkward.
 
To his credit, this is the first Queensrÿche album where the lyrics are not really Tate's own words, but the words of the very people he's paying tribute to, as told in the interviews he conducted (including those with his own father, who served in Korea and Vietnam). It's an approach that can't have been the easiest thing in the world to tackle. A great lyricist always speaks from the soul, and draws from the well of personal experience. The fact that Tate was able to divorce his personal and political opinions from the work and not wind up with a paralyzing case of writer's block says a lot. It's just too bad the end result isn't as powerful as it deserves to have been.

The inclusion of Tate's own 10-year-old daughter as guest vocalist on the track "Home Again" serves as another example of how honorable intentions don't always work out. The song tells the story of an overseas dad and stateside daughter sending letters back and forth, and plays on the irony that sometimes the people who make the biggest sacrifices are the family members who stay behind. The song works by appealing to the tearjerk factor (it actually goes for the jugular) but in the end comes off as a slightly cheesy bit of melodrama.

"American Soldier" isn't a horrible album. There are things to be said for it, and it's not all owed to the album's subject matter. The incorporation of audio clips from Tate's interviews into the music is skillfully executed. It would almost make sense to riddle the album with these sound bytes, and surely no one would have criticized the band for taking the easy route in this respect, but producer Jason Slater and engineer Kelly Gray demonstrate restraint by using them only when it serves to move the story forward. The majority of the songs, although sounding as if they were recorded before they were fully fleshed out, are sometimes aggressive and disorienting, other times reflective and mournful. They succeed in creating an atmosphere that offers the listener a peek at the unfathomable reality of military combat, and its psychological effects. It's not a relaxing listen, and it's not intended to be.

Tate, brandishing a voice only a bit worse for the wear after a quarter century of belting out notes that would make lesser men faint, still has what it takes to pull off a powerful performance. Lead guitarist Michael Wilton (formerly second fiddle to the departed DeGarmo) proves he has the chops to rock out with the best of 'em. Drummer Scott Rockenfield and bassist Eddie Jackson remain the solid foundation they've always been. The only things missing are the things that matter most, and unfortunately there aren't enough good songs on the album to change that.
 
"American Soldier" should do well for Queensrÿche, despite its shortcomings; the musical landscape is much different today than it was 19 years ago when "Empire" was released, and although it's difficult to predict how well it will do in the long run, by all accounts it appears to be selling well. That's a good thing for the band, who continues to express its support to members of the US military by offering them preferred seating at concerts, and by making personal appearances at military bases. It's also a very important thing for the American servicemen and women it pays tribute to, whose stories would otherwise go unheard.

For more info: www.queensryche.com