Ever since the release of the Operation Mindcrime and Empire albums, every release of Queensryche has been compared against those milestones in rock. Some of those could compete, others were competent alright, but not of the same high calibre.
To me, this is another one that stands on it´s own feet. The band sound very inspired, maybe due to the chosen theme: war from the soldier´s point of view. Many songs are spiced with army men telling parts of their story. All the conducted interviews were used when writing the meaningful lyrics. No matter what we think about the war industry, it is good we are reminded that soldiers are human beings as well. I could have done with a little less sound clips. But on the other hand, it creates an authenticity that sits well with the album.
Queensryche still operate in the progressive metal field. So no experiments there. Geoff Tate sings as we like him to, and all Queensryche trademarks are there. Get it.
