Customer Reviews

Queensryche: The Art of Live

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I just cannot rate this DVD highly. Art of Live is not an adequate depiction of Queensryche performing live, and on top of that, the DVD is marred with several other annoying flaws.

First of all, the band performs well here. It's too bad it was poorly recorded and mixed. The band is muddy here, and it just doesn't sound right. Just listen to the drums to see what I mean.

There's a good mix of songs on here; I find Tribe to be an excellent album. I just find it poorly represented here. This is just not what Queensryche sounds like live. I've seen them live, just this year even, and they sound much better then what is to be found here.

There's also the annoying issue of this whole thing is in black and white. It was clearly done to cover-up the poor lighting on the film. This is probably a result of using camcorders. This DVD is also not a full set. The songs just fade in and out from one another. A lot of great songs played on the Tribe tour aren't found here.

That said, there are a few good things here, like "Desert Dance", and "Breaking the Silence". There are also some neat extra bonuses here, but nothing earth-shattering.

Unless you can find this used, I don't recommended you purchase this. Go see Queensryche live for yourself, it's much better then what you'll find here.

Art of Live was recorded by the band's crew on their 2003 tour in support of the album TRIBE (Sanctuary Records, 2003). It was originally shot in color, but according to vocalist Geoff Tate, the stage lights overpowered the equipment, resulting in moments where the color is blurred out. The band then elected to go with the old-style golden "black and white" scheme, for an "artsy" feel to the release.

Positives:

1. The DVD features totally different songs than 2001's Live Evolution DVD release. It highlights the recent TRIBE album, and includes some interesting renditions of old songs, including an acoustic set.

2. This DVD has two selections performed by Queensryche AND Dream Theater (Comfortably Numb by Pink Floyd and Won't Get Fooled Again by The Who), with all 10 band members on stage.

Negatives

1. Obviously, the lack of color, in an age where DVD has so much capacity, is a major let down.

2. Advertised as a 5.1 mix, the band announced due to mastering "problems" they either had to delay the release, or eliminate the 5.1 audio. The elected for the latter.

3. The DVD is NOT, I repeat NOT widescreen.

4. Lack of easter eggs and hidden bonus features. The interviews are nice, but there could have been much more done.

Overall, the DVD is unique in some aspects (the tracks with Dream Theater, the acoustic set), but after the STELLAR quality of 2001's Live Evolution DVD release (Producer Mike Drumm did an excellent job), the quality of this "home made" release is rather dissapointing.

It's worth a look if you are a prog rock/metal fan, but if you can live without the two tracks with Dream Theater, you can live without this DVD. But quite simply, Art of Live is primarily for diehards, and unfortunately, Queensr˙che didn't invest the time and money into this release to make it stand out for them, either.

I went to one of the concerts on this tour, and it was incredible. I was blown away by the power and intensity that Queensryche produced that night.

The DVD, quite simply, doesn't convey the true power of the concert. For example, during the concert, there was a screen at the back of the stage with videos that helped explain the song or had other cool effects (for one song, everything was silent while we watched a bomb's-eye view of a city - the city just kept getting larger and larger, then suddenly we were hit with a wall of sound as the band started playing when the bomb "impacted" - the effect was great, but the DVD doesn't capture this at all). The video is just the band playing, and as others have mentioned it's "fade in - play the song - fade to black" - all of the continuity of the concert was lost.

I have no problem with them doing it on a low budget, and I'm kind of glad that they showed it could be done that way. But they could've gotten the whole concert (and I don't necessarily mean all the songs, although that would've been nice, too - I mean, everything else that was going on onstage). And I really think it should've been in color. Reserve the black-and-white for artsy videos; I was looking for a memoir of the concert.

The Operation: Livecrime DVD made me feel like I missed an excellent concert. This DVD made me feel like I missed a mediocre concert - but the concert was GREAT; it's the DVD that's mediocre.

It's amazing. Queensryche is such a great band, and perhaps because of the limited budget this DVD kinda sucks. Tate's vocals are way too processed, it seems they turned on the 70's 'Dolby noise reduction' button and every single word he sings sounds squashed (too much compression maybe) and without dinamics. The drums sound amazing thouugh and I believe Rockenfield's Paiste Cymbals raise the bar even more with that wonderful crisp ride cymbal sound. The Guitars sound good too and bass is ok.

The show itself (in black and white - lame!) is good, I enjoyed it, but if only production would have been more careful this DVD would be a hit. Come on guys, enough with the slow-mo cameras and the matte finish! This is 2004. Oh well, I will probably sellthis DVD on eBay in a couple of weeks. The Dream Theater appearence at the end is awesome though.

First and foremost I am an avid Queensryche fan, new and old material, and I saw them live this year on the same tour they filmed this DVD. The show live was fantastic and worth every penny. It was refined, energetic, and colorful in ways that I believe only Queensryche can do it.

The DVD: I was impressed with the sepia toned look of the opening song "Tribe". I thought it looked very dramatic and set the mood for the rest of the dvd.
Then the second song came on and it was still sepia toned. In my opinion....big freakin mistake. The WHOLE dvd is filmed in the same fade in and out sepia shade, like old vintage film footage. I am listening to the DVD in the background because it is almost unwatchable to me. I don't want to watch Queensryche as if they were filmed by Time/Life video. I find it interesting that such a versatile band would resort to 1 trick wonder video to bring down the excellent music on the dvd.

I purchased this shoddily shot DVD for 24.99, and there was no cd included. A while back I purchased Linkin Park's DVD, which was an excellent concert video, and came with an accompanying cd for 21.95. I am not trying to compare the 2 bands, for they are very different, but I think that the art of live is a relative ripoff compared to other recent concert DVD's.

Save yourself money, buy the cd(the music is still fantastic), or better yet.....spend the money to go to their show. But use the DVD for a coaster.

Having been a Queensryche fan for many years - first catching them supporting Dio in '84 - I was totally looking forward to this release, as Queensryche on stage is the beast in its natural habitat.
The bands decision to film in B&W is indeed a brave one and I must say that the direction does indeed enable the band to pull it off.
The set list is extremely well balanced considering it is only 2 years since 'Evolution'. Obviously the emphasis is on material from the more recent 'Tribe' album and here, the songs benefit from the added dynamics of a live performance. Although there is no Dolby 5.1 option, I first listened to the disc while wearing headphones and the 2.0 sound mix is a killer. The opening track is indeed brutal and sums up all that we like about QR. Rockenfield's firecracker drumming, Jackson's menacing bass lines, Wilton's soaring breaks and of course Tate's rich vocals. 'New Guy' Stone's riffing fits in perfectly with the other elements and at times his body language is reminiscent of 'Dirt' period Jerry Cantrell - not a criticism, just an observation!
The inclusion of a mid-set acoustic piece varies the pace and contains an interesting version of 'Roads to Madness' however my only gripe is the inclusion of 'My Global Mind' - a song that certainly does not make my list of favourite QR tracks. The 2 'MindCrime' tracks pick up the pace again - well received by both the audience and this reviewer! The encore numbers of 'Comfortably Numb' and 'Wont Get Fooled Again' whereby the band are joined onstage by Dream Theater is a blast. To hear 2 sets of amazing musicians playing 2 classic songs on the same stage - and having a lot of fun in the process - is just superb.
So if youre a fan of the band, listen and enjoy! If you're not but willing to give the boys a listen, buy 'Evolution' instead.

Once again I bought it...poor production quality and no 5.1..bla not very good song selection.

Let's just say this is a good DVD. Not much more. I saw two of their shows in April of '04 and those shows should have been recorded for this DVD. Queensryche is an amazing band to see live, and I believe that is why they are still around today. They are as good as they were today as to 1988. This DVD was recorded by their own crew and not done professionally (Geoff admits this in the interview). They filmed this DVD as cheap as they could and used today's technology to edit and prepare it for DVD. There is no 5.1 sound and it is filmed in various cities in black and white. Queensryche is probably one of the best bands to see live ever! The effort the five members put into their shows is amazing. I wish they would put the effort into the filming like they did with their recent tour. I love this band and the members. I just wished they filmed this recent tour with Pamela Moore. She was great and missed by fans for 13 years. Overall, if you are a die-hard fan, buy this if not, rent it.

Okay, so the dvd is in black and white? If you want color, pop in any of their three other dvds. Yes, it's a little unusual looking, but it doesn't detract from a wonderful performance.

It's nice to see a lot of material from Tribe, and the songs sound dead on with the cd. The Tribe cd in itself is a great cd and the songs translate well live. Tate has lot a little of his voice, but he still has one of the best vocals in the industry.

The cover songs with Dream Theatre are good, and shows that Tate can sing a wide range of songs. Particularly impressive is the instrumental playing in 'Won't Get Fooled Again.'

My only complaint is, the misleading cover of the cd, showing color images, and the obvious lack of 5.1 working. A glaring omission, and completely inexcusable.

Having seen the Ryche twice in a six month span recently, it is nice to have the recent tour on dvd, sit back, and relive the memories of seeing them perform.

No matter what Queensryche does, they will never disappoint this diehard fan.

The back of the box shows color screen shots, but this DVD is black and white. Are you friggin' kidding me?? After the beautiful Live Evolution they put out this CRAP? There is no 5.1 audio (the back of the box says there is but there isn't). Can you say FALSE ADVERTISING???
The song selection is also very poor, could have had at least 3-4 more tracks that were performed on that tour. The only reason I gave this piece of garbage 2 stars instead of 1 is because I am a huge Queensr˙che fan. Don't believe me? Check out my other reviews of their stuff.
Bottom Line: If you liked and enjoyed Live Evolution, do yourself a favor and do NOT waste your money on this nonsense.
A MAJOR LETDOWN from Queensr˙che.