One of the most anticipated shows on the Batavia Downs 2021 concert schedule was the Queensryche show. There has been lots going on in the Queensryche camp as of late. Longtime drummer Scott Rockenfield took a hiatus and his current status within the band remains mum. Now, with the recent departure of longtime guitarist Parker Lundgren, the band recently added another former guitarist in Mike Stone. Stone’s previous time in the band was back in 2003-2008 when original guitarist Chris DeGramo departed. As you can see, there have been a lot of moving parts in the last few years of the bands lineup. Currently, the band is led by founding members Michael Wilton on guitars and Eddie Jackson on bass. They are joined by Todd La Torre on vocals, Casey Grillo on drums and as mentioned, Stone on rhythm guitar.
The band played a setlist that only concentrated on the bands hits. They came out and played the “The Needle Lies.” They really dove back into their catalog quite often which I’m sure really was appreciated by longtime Rych fans. Songs like “Prophecy’ and “Take Hold of the Flame” sounded great! One of the hardest songs to sing in rock period is “Queen of the Reich.” The high vocal range needed throughout the song is insane. Few can pull it off. La Torre was up to the task. In fact, his vocals were spot on throughout the entire evening. Of course, everyone in attendance sang the hits like “Jet City Woman” and the bands biggest hit, “Silent Lucidity.” Wilton, who is one of the most sound players in rock, was masterful on the 6th string all night. Even though Stone has played with the band in the past, you can tell Stone is still getting his feet wet a little bit as it was one of his first shows back with the band. That was understandable. Jackson was locked in with Grillo and provided a very heavy rhythm section all night.
So for me , I was curious on how these moving parts would play out in the bands performance. With La Torre’s similar vocal presence to that of original singer Geoff Tate, the band is able to continue to do what they do without missing much a of a beat.
Setlist:
The Needle Lies
Walk in the Shadows
Prophecy
Blood of the Levant
I Am I
Man the Machine
The Lady Wore Black
Breaking the Silence
I Don’t Believe in Love
The Whisper
Silent Lucidity
Jet City Woman
Take Hold the Flame
Queen of the Reich
Eyes of a Stranger
Encore:
Operation: Mindcrime
Screaming in Digital
Empire
We would like to thank Ryan Hasenauer of Batavia Downs for the credentials to review the show.
