story by Melanie Falina

One tends to think that if a rock star is awake at 7:30 a.m., the rock star hasn't been to bed yet. But for the heavy metal band Queensryche, lead vocalist Geoff Tate has just finished washing his car and getting his kids ready for school while basking in a rare, bright and sunny Seattle morning.

While trying to balance both domestic and band duties, Queensryche has got a full year ahead of them. After releasing their ninth studio album, Tribe, last summer and then touring in support of that album, the band is now currently on the second leg of that tour.

"The most difficult part is being away from the family," says Tate in an in-depth conversation with Chicago Innerview. "We have a different [touring] set-up for summer and for winter. In the summer we usually bring our families out with us on the road, especially in the States. Everyone likes to go to Disney Land, Disney World, all the big cities where there's stuff to do and things to see. We're museum fans so we take them to museums and art galleries, so [the band members' children are] kind of world travelers."

TATE'S INNER VIEW "There’s something about playing your music in front of a foreign audience that kind of freaks you out a bit because you’re spanning all kinds of cultural gaps, and you’re seeing music become this bridge between two radically different cultures."

And the dichotomy of family-man-versus-rock-star has had a profound effect on Tate and the other members of Queensryche.

"I think [parenthood] has changed me the most of anything I've ever done in my life. It really humbles you. Kind of puts you on a whole different mindset and path of thinking that's completely different. You're constantly measuring yourself to how you're doing as a parent versus how your parents were to you. Awh, man, it's a mind trip everyday."
One of the other changes that the band has had to endure due to family responsibilities is the departure of guitarist and Queensryche co-founder Chris DeGarmo. DeGarmo, who left the band in 1997 and is now a jet pilot, did return to the studio for several of the tracks on Tribe, however he chose not to join the band on the tour.

"He's kind of a weird cat to read. I think he probably wanted to [do the touring] but his wife didn't want him to. You have to be away from home a little longer with the band and it's one of those things you kind of wrap your head around and you're pretty engrossed in it. Where being a jet pilot, you go to work then come home and you leave it at work - you don't bring it home with you. Music is something that you're constantly doing. You can be having dinner with your kids and all of a sudden my wife's going, 'Honey, honey…the kids are talking to you'."

One of the projects that has recently kept the band a little distracted is readying for the release of a new DVD. "We shot a live video for the tour on the last leg. I've been staying up way late at night. I just finished [editing] it last night so I can get back to normal sleep patterns for awhile.

"We recorded it on our soundman's laptop so it's all kind of bootleg-ish and rough but yet it's pretty intimate [and shot from] the viewpoint of the camerawork, because it's all people in our crew. You know they view things in a different perspective. This is not glossy at all. It's very rough and just gritty and dirty and kind of difficult to watch at times, yet really interesting to watch at other times. It's a cool project," Tate continues, "[and] we're calling it 'The Art of Live'."

As if a new release and tour aren't enough, Queensryche is already plugging away at their future album as well. "We'll probably go into the studio in May for a couple of weeks before we head back out on tour. We like to throw some stuff down. Everyone's chops are up and are used to playing.

"We do some writing on the road, some writing at home, and some writing last minute in the studio - writing all the time really, which is really nice now-a-days with technology. I have a home studio, and as soon as I wake up in the morning usually are some of my best ideas, and I just go down for like a half-hour or an hour and just write. I'm into that process of constantly writing to keep up with it, you know, there's no learning curve. You just write everyday and [it's like] a stream of consciousness.

"Then we're taking off to Europe in June for a pretty extensive tour over there for a couple of months. We're going to some places we're never played before which will be really exciting. Istanbul - never been there. We're really looking forward to going there."
When asked about his obvious excitement in playing abroad, Tate replies, "Maybe it's an ego thing. There's something about playing your music in front of a foreign audience that kind of freaks you out a bit because you're spanning all kinds of cultural gaps, and you're seeing music become this bridge between two radically different cultures. Something about that really excites me. I love seeing people from Bulgaria standing up and singing songs from Empire.

"It is humbling, it's an amazing experience. Especially considering I'm from Seattle and I wrote most of those songs sitting in Seattle, and to see someone from a completely different country, background, everything, singing the songs, it's definitely something that makes you think."

On the current tour, fans can expect some surprises this time around.

"We have Pamela Moore, who's an old friend, who's going to join us for some of the Operation Mindcrime songs. We're pulling out some songs we haven't done in a long time, and special renditions of some of the tunes that some people haven't seen before. It's difficult just choosing what [songs] to do. There's a lot to choose from and in that respect, I guess it's good because you have more choices, but sometimes when you have more choices it's difficult to make a decision."

One song audiences will be expecting, however, is the Queensryche ballad and mega-hit "Silent Lucidity." The Grammy-nominated song is one that Tate has some ambivalent feelings about.

"It's a lovely song and people love to hear it. Whenever we play it live it always gets a big reaction and [audiences] are affected by it in a real positive way. I'm tired of hearing that song, but when we play it onstage it's a different thing because you have the audience's reaction and how they feel about it which affects you as a performer - so it's the best song ever to play."

So what has 23 years in the music industry taught Geoff Tate?

"Probably not to take myself, and everything, so seriously. I've had this issue of taking music and entertainment so seriously because it's really important to me what it is we do, and I expect everyone to take it the same way but it doesn't work that way. I guess over the last 10 years I've come to realize that, 'hey, it's just music.' It's just somebody's idea about something that's sort of translated into how I look at the world now. Instead of getting so upset and uptight about political issues or disagreements, viewpoints or religious differences - now I just kind of chalk it up to, 'hey, that's just somebody's opinion. Cool.' And try to understand where they're coming from. Just try to lighten up and enjoy life, it goes by so fast."

That newfound outlook on life is obvious as Tate relays a story about the Experience Music Project, an interactive music museum in Seattle:

"They have this whole Queensryche exhibit there, [our] memorabilia and Scott [Rockenfield]'s drum kit with all the chains and stuff, and they've got this giant movie screen that's playing videos from Queensryche. A couple years ago my daughter went there with her class for a tour and in that Queensryche room all the kids were giving her a bad time because her dad was wearing tights," he laughs, "She was a little upset about it."

Queensryche will play at House of Blues April 16 and 17.