Queensrÿche vocalist Todd La Torre has opened up about the band’s work on the follow-up to 2022’s Digital Noise Alliance, revealing that the next album will revisit a concept rooted in the band’s 1983 debut EP and carry a distinctly old-school sonic character.
In a new interview with Marko Syrjala and Arto Lehtinen of Metal-Rules, La Torre described the current state of the sessions: “I have a ton of songs at home that the guys have worked on and written — a lot of really good demo stuff. I’ve already put vocals down on a couple of songs, but I have a lot of material staring me in the face, waiting for me to write lyrics and melodies. The problem is that we play so much”
“Even when we leave Europe, I go home for two days, then I’m out for four days in the States. Then I’m home for another two days, and after that I’m gone all through July. So I only get a little break in August when I can really try to work on stuff, because you need your ears to decompress. You also have things at home to take care of. But yeah, we’re writing a new record,” he added.
On conceptual direction, La Torre confirmed the album will not continue from where Digital Noise Alliance left off: “This is going to touch on a subject that Queensrÿche hasn’t talked about since the very first record. This album is going to be based around a concept that happens on the first album but is never talked about again in Queensrÿche’s history. So it has nothing to do with ‘Operation: Mindcrime.’ This is a whole different thing. Musically, I’d say everything I’m hearing sounds much more old school — more like the EP, Warning and Rage for Order, maybe with a little newer flavor — but it definitely sounds like classic Queensrÿche.”
Regarding the album’s structural approach, La Torre described a non-linear storytelling method more akin to film than traditional concept records: “Writing a concept album where every song leads directly into the next one isn’t really what I’m interested in. It’s more like when you watch a movie. Sometimes the beginning starts where the ending is, and then they add pieces throughout the story in different parts of the movie until it all comes together. You could literally move one song over here, and another song over there, and it still works.”
He suggested the thematic scope may extend beyond a single release: “There’s no way you can tell everything in one album. If this were the last record the band ever wrote, there would still be storytelling there — and maybe that could be enough. But it would always be open to evolving further. It won’t be just a beginning, a middle, and an end. It’s a story that can go on and on.”
Guitarist Michael Wilton addressed the timeline separately, telling Finland’s Kasarin Lapset: “In between our rigorous touring schedule, we’ve managed to get a lot of really great demos recorded. At some point we’re gonna not tour as much and really concentrate on the album — but the band will determine when it’s finished.” He told Mark Strigl in February that the band is “pushing the envelope,” retaining “the progressive element, the melodic element, the heavy metal element,” and targeting somewhere between 15 and 20 songs before narrowing the record down.
The album will again be produced by Zeuss, who previously worked with Queensrÿche on 2015’s Condition Hüman, 2019’s The Verdict, and Digital Noise Alliance. Drummer Casey Grillo continues to handle live and recording duties in the continued absence of original drummer Scott Rockenfield, who stepped away from touring in early 2017. Guitarist Mike Stone, who rejoined in 2021, contributes second guitar and solos.
Queensrÿche is Todd La Torre (vocals), Michael Wilton (guitars), Mike Stone (guitars), Eddie Jackson (bass), and Casey Grillo (drums).
