Geoff Tate (the man) is probably best known as the lead singer of Queensryche. "Geoff Tate" (the album) is not likely to be confused with an album by Queensryche. However, why should it be? Although Tate's position as lead singer of Ryche might lead someone to think that he and the band are one and the same, the connection just is not so. What Tate has done with his solo debut is to try to strike out into territory that is decidedly unQueensryche. To that end he recruited a team of musicians and created a whole new band. Those musicians are C. Fox-bass (Bitter End), Scott Moughton-guitar, Evan Schiller-drums (SADHAPPY), Howard Chilcott-keys (The Fabulous Jetsens) and Jeff Carrell-guitar. I had the opportunity to speak with a few of the guys recently, and they said essentially that this album was a learning process of how to work with each other…just like any new band. So, all of that leads to the reminder that Geoff Tate-Geoff Tate is NOT a Queensryche album.

So, what kind of an album is it? Well, about the closest pigeonhole you can find would be that of a modern pop-oriented rock sound. One of the things it does share with Ryche is that it is "thinking man's music". The textures on the album range from a nearly dance-oriented pop to Spanish guitar inflections and even electronic neo-symphonic leanings. As one would expect from a solo album from a Ryche'er, the release has a very professional and thought out feel to it. It does however have its shortcomings. For one thing, it has a bit of a tendency to drag in places. Also, much of the percussion, as in dance music, has an artificial feel to it and is too far up in the mix. To the band's credit, though, the material really does come together well live, losing that drum-machine sort of texture. It somewhat goes without saying that the vocal performances are top-notch. What else can you expect?

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2002 Year Book Volume 2 at  garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2001-and-2002.