Customer Reviews

Warning

5 star:		(42)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I bought "Operation: Mindcrime" on cassette when I was 13 and I remember being absolutely spellbound by it. So, a few months later while in a record store I eyed "The Warning" and immediately bought it with my hard-earned allowance money. Of course, I expected another Mindcrime...I was pleasantly mistaken. I'm 28 now and just picked up the remastered CD version of "The Warning" a few weeks ago. I am still surprised at the freshness and youthfulness of the music after all these years.

Geoff Tate has been one of my favorite metal vocalists for many years. Famed for his voice's operatic texture and a range about a mile wide, he doesn't disappoint here. My favorite aspect of "The Warning"'s vocals is the lyrical phrasing. The actual rythmn of the words takes you on a roller coaster-like journey through the album. Tate's word choice on this album is also sharp and intelligent, using "50 cent words" without sounding melodramatic or overdone.

The guitars of Wilton and DeGarmo compliment each other well, both taking turns shredding on every track. I seem to notice Eddie Jackson's bass more distinctively on this remastered edition (which is a plus). Rockenfield's drumwork is practically flawless in keeping time and tends to throw the listener a few rythmic curves every once in a while (to see if you're really paying attention!).

Without sounding too critical, "The Warning" is probably not what a neophyte Queensryche listener should start off with. This is due mainly to the fact that this album is not radio-friendly, even though I think I remember hearing "Take Hold of the Flame" on rock radio a few times. Try the two classics: "Operation Mindcrime" and "Empire"; then move to "Rage for Order" and "The Warning".

Progressive metal fans will like this album because it sometimes has hints of early Fates Warning (John Arch era). Though "The Warning" is purely original, one can feel a strong Iron Maiden influence in the music.

Choice cuts are "Deliverance", "Take Hold of the Flame", "Before the Storm", and the 9+ minute epic "Roads to Madness". The extra tracks on the remastered edition are filler at best - I usually stop the CD after "Roads to Madness".

P.S. The band's photo for the album (on the inside cover of the remastered edition) is one of the coolest (and yes, cheesiest) photos in heavy metal. I'm diggin' the all-black leather and eerie green mist motif!

When you first hear this album from the first song 'Warning", and you hear passages like, "The child of centuries, forgotten in time/You talk in circles of rhyme/Seer of places future and past/The warning you gave us is surely our last/...Warning!" You know this isn't the newer Queensryche that a lot of people are used to from the mid-nineties on up, absolutely not...it's far better!

Well, what can I say that most of the other people haven't said? This particular Queensryche disc, will in my opinion, always be my favorite for the incredible range that Geoff's vocals exude, and the abundant melodical guitar passages on this album. It has a very special meaning to me and many others that grew up with this incredible band back when they first came out of nowhere and opened up our minds to a whole new genre of metal! I don't think I would've gotten into a band back then if it wasn't for this album!

True, many people praise 'Operation Mindcrime' as their best work. I agree to only some extent, because it's a different beast; "Mindcrime" is a concept album fueled by modern day atrosities in religion, politics, and greed. "The Warning" is also a concept album, which takes you on a futuristic journey detailing what happens to mankind in the future when he eventually realizes his own demise from the very machines he has created, essentially, the computer age. As evident in the song 'N M 156', "Uniform printout reads end of line/Protect code intact leaves little time/Erratic surveys, free thinking not allowed/My hands shake, my push buttons silence/The outside crowd/One world government has outlawed war among nations/Now social control requires population termination."

Where did these hauntingly surreal lyrics come from? George Orwell's book, 1984! This served as a catalyst for the mood and imagery on this album.

Moving on, I still get chills sometimes when I lay there and listen to 'Roads To Madness' (topping out at almost 10 minutes) in the way that it takes you through an incredible array of powerful and emotional vocals that make you wonder how Geoff Tate get's enough energy to make it through this in live performances! After a little over 7 minutes into the song, it's tempo takes off and shreds through about another 2 minutes to end leaving you feeling like you really were there in the story line. A song like this is a fine example of why he will always have a top position as one of the best rock vocalists in history.

But that's only a couple songs out of many great tunes on this album! I think what really stands out on this album (besides Geoff Tate's vocals of course) is the incredible emotions displayed by guitarist's Chris DeGarmo and Michael Wilton, with their dual-lead guitar structures and beautiful melody lines along with Scott Rockenfield's extremely fluent and solid percussion work you can't ignore the incredible sonic journey it takes you through.

I'm very impressed with the new '24 bit Remastered' version I just received! It is definately an improvement over the original disc! I've started re-collecting all of the new 24 bit remastered versions now because of the better quality.

So, in closing, if you really want to know where Queensryche started their journey (besides their first EP from 1983 which is great, but more raw sounding of course) and hear them before they changed into a more commercial sound, buy this and put the headphones on and prepare to experience the beginnings of the Progressive Metal era from one of the masters!

This is one the finest metal CDs I've ever heard. A meticulously crafted album, with musical arrangements very well equilibrated and smart lyrics. Guitars are sober and accurate, while drums and bass are spectacular in the rhythmic baseline. I can't believe how mature sounds this band here, after listening their first public release, the Queensryche EP, which was a good attempt but still lacked of the sophisticated musicianship the band started showing from "The Warning".

You must remember that 1984 was a good year for metal fans, and I think that "The Warning" was one of the big protagonists of that show. There is no bad theme in this album. "Warning", "En force", "Deliverance", "Before the Storm" (those choirs!) and "Child of Fire" are bombastic, powerful, and at the same time beautiful and magnificent...; "No Sanctuary" and "Roads to Madness" are soulful and majestic. The latter, whose orchestration was done by Michael Kamen, is a real masterpiece and a vocal exercise of virtuosity by Geoff Tate, who also peaks to the heaven in "Take Hold of The Flame" (which is, by the way, one of the biggest songs ever written by Queensryche). "N M 156" is a weird song, very authentic, with harmonies that are not so common in the rock world.

Five stars is few to qualify this album, which is a refined expression of the best heavy metal and progressive rock heritage. Clever and brilliant. Worth the price, and even more!

This is another one that I bought on LP when it came out and I loved it then and I love it now !

The title track is very worthwhile, NM 156 is another gem along with No Sanctuary, En Force and Before the Storm.

Roads to Madness however, will leave you feeling pretty emotional - if it doesn't bring a set of chills to your spine, then you should definitely consult your physician and TOSS your Prozac in the nearest receptical !

Tates pipes were/are among the best of all time - period !
and the rest of the band aren't slouches either

The Warning is Queensryche's first full-length album (their first release was an EP) and it is an amazing piece of work. Listening to this album conjures up images of Iron Maiden and, oddly enough, Van Halen (I think Queensryche's guitarists are using the same equipment that Eddie Van Halen was using in the early '80s). But, even though the music was obviously influenced by Maiden, Queensryche stands on their own here. Their unique style of prog rock (Pink Floyd & Queen) inspired metal would, in turn, influence and inspire the entire progressive metal genre. Sure, the progressive touches are just that -- touches. But where The Warning is mostly straight forward metal, Queensryche would continue adding more and more prog structures with subsequent releases.

The "big three" songs on this album are "Take Hold of the Flame", an excellent soaring (and I do mean soaring) song. This is perhaps lead singer Geoff Tate's best song vocally, he's brilliant here. "NM 156" is a very unusual but fascinating song. It is almost hypnotic with it's creepy vocals and catchy chorus. The album finishes with the epic masterpiece "Roads to Madness". I get chills everytime I hear this dark and sweeping journey. This may be Queensryche's best song.

The other songs are all good, too (especially the sad "Sanctuary"), I'm just pointing out the best songs. I don't wanna be here all night, ya know.

Anyway, if you like "metallic opera" (think Queen plus Iron Maiden), you'll probably enjoy The Warning.

Without a doubt, this is the pinnacle of the Queensryche experience. The sheer energy of this album is remarkable. It's 100% solid, start to finish; there are no weak moments. It is perhaps one of the best albums by any band ever. Warning - this is a lot heavier than anything that comes after it. If you're looking for Silent Lucidity, look elsewhere. There are many shades of early Rob Halford here, and 80's Iron Maiden. Sorry folks, but it was all downhill after this, and fairly rapidly at that. A++++ This album is a "must listen" for all metal fans.

Some people dismiss this album as just mediocre at best. Out of my many metal albums, death metal to thrash, this definately holds a top spot. Geoff Tate's vocals are so beautiful that he puts to shame most vocalists in his range (besides maybe Bruce Dickinson). The songs are so moving, particularly En Force and the epic brillance of Take Hold of the Flame. The songwriting is excellent, and the guitar work is pretty good as well. Anyone that likes classic metal with good vocals (Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Savatage, Armored Saint) will love this album. This was before Queensryche's Operation:Mindcrime, back when they were just a classic metal band. Non-fans of classic metal might dismiss this as a mediocre album, however. I recommend you give this album a listen and see if it moves you the way it moved me.

Queensryche is a metal masterpiece from the 80`s. It`s one of my top ten albums out of my 250 CD collection and my favorite Queensryche album. My favorite songs are: "Road to madness, Warning, Child of fire and No sanctuary. Anyway the whole album is great. I highly recommend this album to any hard rock or metal fan of the 80`s.
It`s just too bad that a person gave a 1 star review to this album. And on top of that, he came back 3 times to give a bad review, criticize and uses bad words. This guy is a real leech and his reviews should be banned from this Web page. C`mon, it`s a review, not a forum !!!
So, this album is really a must. It has lots of good guitar riffs, great drum sound and the vocals and songwriting are just incredible.

I am 43. I've been into hard rock and metal since the days of early Sabbath, Scorpions, Mountain, Rush, Led Zep, etc. BEFORE the term 'metal' was coined, with over 3,500 CD's in my collection. 'The Warning' is, without question, one of metal's most brilliant and expressive moments hands down!!! It is an artistic 'tour de force' of mega proportions, and quite possibly, one of the top 10 hard rock/metal releases EVER. And remastered on a top notch stereo system, it sounds beyond belief. If you don't have 'The Warning' in your collection, shame on you!

Whoever this last guy was obviously is ate up with jelousy towards Queensryche. To think that 80's joke called "helloween" is even in the same class as Queensryche is quiet comical. This album, although a bit dated in production and sound, was a jumping off point for one of the most influential bands of the 80's. helloween was a weak attempt at a Spinal Tap cover band. C'mon "helloween" how original is that? Queensryche stretched as artist every album including their next 4 albums after The Warning. Operation: Mindcrime is a must but if you liked heavy metal from the 80's, without the glam and more of the well thought out melodies and harmonies, then give The Warning a try. and trust me when I say nobody will ever miss helloween so get a life brother