Customer Reviews

Mindcrime at the Moore (Ocrd)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Regardless of what visual theatrics are missing from the cd alone (duh), there is no excuse for such a poorly mixed live album. The overall sound is flat and lifeless. This is supposed to be a ROCK concert, but the drums have the softest-hitting sound I've ever heard recorded. It doesn't even sound like they were mic'ed properly.

Another issue is the backing vocals, which at most times are effective, however other times are so out of tune its not even bearable. The choruses to "The Needle Lies" (one of my favortie Mindcrime tunes) are all completely ruined by this. In moments like these, I'd rather they not even sing; silence would be far better.

On the plus side of things, the band itself is spot on. I don't care what anyone says, Geoff Tate sounds fantastic. Of course, its good setlist (I enjoy both Mindcrime albums) and the two encore tracks make it somewhat of a well-rounded QR show - though maybe one more crowd-pleaser would have been welcomed.

Let me offer up a disclaimer for continuing with this review-- I am not one for retro acts-- the recent trend that seems to be emerging of acts touring behind 20-30 year old catalogs or playing old records start to finish and either not bothering to put out any new material or ignoring it completely has been one that's been difficult for me. And while I thought Queensryche's "Tribe" was a reasonably good record, I really disliked "Operation: Mindcrime II", feeling it was an attempt to capitalize not only on prior successes but abandoning progress in exchange for trying to capture a previous sound. I waffled back and forth as to whether or not I should pick up "Mindcrime at the Moore" but in the end my long standing love of the band won over. Nonetheless, my review is clearly tempered by my feelings about the band's decision to release a sequel album and this sort of performance.

One thing that's immediately obvious to me is a mixing oddity-- it seems one of the guitarists (Mike Stone) is mixed way too low. The clearest illustration of this is on "Suite Sister Mary"-- the piece opens with the gentle arpeggios before a blast of distorted guitar kicks in. Well on this recording, that blast has significantly less effect because it's buried in the mix. Even Stone's solo at the end of that piece seems subdued compared to Michael Wilton's rhythm guitar performance. Further accentuating that is the fact that the rest of the record is mixed fantastically-- there's a nice balance and everything sounds great except that one guitar. This sonic oddity aside, the band sounds pretty good-- they're clearly into what they're doing and as much as I dig out retro accusations, they've made a good attempt (moreso than on "Operation: Mindcrime II" in the studio) to really modernize the sound of the record-- gone are many of the few details that made the original record sound a bit dated these days-- some of the goofy backing vocals, the harmonized guitar leads, etc. All of this is really to the benefit of the sound. And while vocalist Geoff Tate has lost a bit of his high end since the band's heydey (and should stay away from trying to reach it-- he sounds awful when he tries the shrieked vocal just prior to the guitar solo on "The Needle Lies"), his voice is still a fantastic instrument.

But the bottom line on the first disc is that it works out pretty well and the band's played with the material enough to keep it interesting even to an anti-retro type like me, whether it's fantastic performances ("Speak" is positively on fire) or great rearrangements (the extended ballad portion of "The Mission" accentuates the mood and feel of the piece). And while some of the theatrical elements that probably come off better on the DVD end up being a bit goofy on audio only (Mary and Dr. X's interaction prior to "Electric Requiem"), by and large, it's a good performance.

The second disc is, well, it's "Operation: Mindcrime II", an album I just still can't get my head around. The performance stays a lot truer to the material than the first disc, no doubt as it was recently recorded, and as on the record, the theatrical sound of the piece tends to sit badly with me ("One Foot in Hell", "Speed of Light") and in fact, these pieces, designed seemingly with a stage show in mind, feel completely lacking on record (which was pretty much my problem with the studio record). Having said that, it proves to be a really energetic performance, and if you liked the album, you'll probably love this (the only song from "Operation: Mindcrime II" I really love, "I'm American", practically leaps off the recording). The show closes up with a brief encore of two old hits-- "Walk in the Shadows" from "Rage for Order" and "Jet City Woman" from "Empire". Both have been played by the band so many times they can't help but get great readings.

In the end, this is a decent performance, but mixing oddities and questionable material keeps me from rating it too high. Further, I find I prefer the "Operation: Livecrime" take of the first volume of 'Mindcrime'. This is probably worthwhile for diehards and anyone who really enjoyed the last record, everyone else can probably skip it.

I was disappointed in this cd, especially since I was really looking forward to it. Queensryche is one of my favorite bands, even though most of their quality stuff is in the 80's and the rest is...lackluster. When I heard that they were going to be releasing a live cd of both Mindcrime albums, I was really pumped, especially since Mindcrime 2 is their best album since Promised Land. However, the sound is terrible. There is no energy. The Mindcrime performance on Operation:Livecrime is much better. Better sound, better production and much more interesting to listen to. Geoff Tate's voice is not as strong as it used to be and there is a lot of straining heard here. I am glad I did not pay full price for this cd. You should not, either.

This recording sounds like it was taken straight from the soundboard and polished for about 5 minutes. The crowd is inaudible at times and sounds like they only can make it into the recording by bleeding into the onstage mics. Make no mistake: the producer/mixer for this record absolutely massacred any potential at having a good cd here.

The drums are mixed to sound like they belong on a soft rock record (think Toto). The guitar harmonies are completely absent at points, such as in the intro to "Revolution Calling". It's hard to stomach that a drummer as highly regarded as Scott Rockenfield sounds this bad on a record. He truly gets shafted by the awful mix and production. Tate seems to have regained a bit of range, Wilton and Stone seem fine on guitar, Scott is a bit sloppy on occasion, but sounds fine on the uptempo material. The poor mix really kills parts like the new "The Mission" intro, giving them only a semblance of the power QR must have been looking for.

For the most part, the performers perform fine for an average show, but not enough to warrant wide release. What could be the reason for its release, then? The release, as evidenced by its title, is a gimmick to capitalize on the popularity of the Mindcrime saga.

This type of raw live record has been done by other metal bands (notably Candlemass's "Doomed For Live") but I can't think of any other record right now that's more of an argument for post-production than this one. In Kiss's hands - a band notorious for cleaning up their live records - this one may have come out decent. Not the case here.

It took a while to wrap my head around OM2 but once I watched the DVD I was hooked and loved it and immedialty went out and bought the double CD pack.

This wil be short and sweet:
If you enjoyed OM 1 & 2...this is a perfect live recording for you.
If you ONLY liked OM 1...1/2 of this cd will be the same ol same ol.
If you ONLY liked OM 2...then the songe here are heavier and sound blistering on here.
And if you are like me, A QR fans since 1984...this is more of the same brilliant music QR has given us for over 2 decades...with more to come.

Oh, the horror. I cannot accurately describe just how bad this album is. Geoff Tate's voice sounds strained and off-key at times. Even the background singers sound old and tired. Tate even appears to have trouble remembering the words to the songs on OM:I, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt....he could just be ad-libbing or something due to having sung those songs over and over for the last 10 years. Chris DeGarmo is not on this album, and it shows. Kelly Gray was a poor replacement for him, but Mike Stone is just abominable. Operation: Mindcrime is one of the best albums *ever* made, and I'll be damned if I want some talentless idiot taking "creative license" with the lead guitar parts. In addition, the mixing of this album is just abominable. I am a huge, huge Queensryche fan, and listening to this disaster really hurts.

I am a queensryche nut, and of course whatever they put out I will have a copy of. I must say though, this double CD is good because it does mindcrime 2 live (esentially Livecrime 2), and the first disc, mincrime I is an up to date live version of the original masterpiece that complete the saga when played back to back. But, I must say, if you have limited money, buy the DVDs first, and then come back for the CDs when you get the cash. The full livecrime experience is when you see it on stage live, and playing the DVD's back to back gives you that. You can only immagine with the CDs. Overall the CD recording quality was decent, no big complaints with it, and the performace was good. So must have for the collector, but advise the DVD first and then the CD if on low budget.

Queensryche returned to their most famous work when they released the somewhat ill received Mindcrime 2. The sequel is similar towards other recent Queensryce releases in that it is much softer and leans more towards the progressive side of music rather than straight heavy metal (as the original MC).

However, this live CD/DVD should bring many fans to the new release and might win a few MC 2 critics over as well.

The show featuring over 32 songs (covering both MC and MC2) was a massive effort. The music is also fronted by changing sets, live actors and a myriad of props to help convey the story of the seminal concept albums (which, missing in the cd, greatly reduces the performance).

Geoff Tate (The lead singer) voice has diminished little over the past years and sounds almost as good as he did in the bands early live works. Singing with such intensity and acting well is something that Tate should be quite proud of, as no other aging metal singer can claim a similar feat.

There is little in the music world that can compare to Mindcrime at the Moore. The release features great songs, but it is the sheer intensity of the performance that distinguishes it from other similar acts. Rob Halford was quite right when he said that the band was as similar to and opera as it was a metal act.

The DVD is definitely not to be missed, but the CD is. The performance focuses on the visuals as much as the music and the CD suffers because of it. Skip the CD.

This is the soundtrack to the theatrical production of the DVD release of Mindcrime At The Moore. The sound quality is decent. The reason why I only give this album 2 stars is because there are parts of this recording that only makes sense if you are watching the DVD. People who own the DVD know what I'm talking about.

Only buy this album if you want to complete your Operation Mindcrime collection (just as I did) or if your a die hard Queensryche fan (which I'm not.)