Geoff Tate, whose iconic voice fronted Queensryche for three decades (1982-2012), passed through Atlanta, Georgia, Saturday night for the latest stop on his Big Rock Show Hits Tour. Hosted by 37 Main Avondale Estates, this historic building with a capacity of 500 was built back in 1924 and has a hallowed past that even includes a performance by Elvis Presley back in 1956. This musical footnote is proudly displayed in murals along the venue walls. As a side note, fans of this venue also benefit from Avondale Estates owning the charming title of being named the “Best Small Town Beer Scene” in the United States, with a downtown area that plays home to Wild Heaven Beer, The Lost Druid Brewery, My Parents’ Basement and Little Cottage Brewery.
Supporting act Mark Daly from Ireland opened the evening shortly after 8:00pm. Out on the road promoting his latest EP Nothing to Lose, Daly was backed by James Brown on guitar, along with the majority of Tate’s touring group which included the lively duo of Alex Hart (guitar) and Jack Ross (bass), and rounded out with Danny Laverde behind the Roland drum kit. Having never been exposed to Daly before, my initial reaction was that he was like an Irish Eddie Vedder (Pearl Jam), if there can be such a thing.
Daly’s 35-minute performance highlighted his wide vocal range and guitar talent (he grabbed his acoustic for a handful of songs), delivering an in-your-face rock-and-roll tone that captured the attention of the early attendees. His engaging personality was also on full display, joking that “he doesn’t like bands that pressure fans to buy merch, but he has two little kids at home back in Ireland that he promised to buy gifts for while touring America, so who is buying my new EP?” The levity seemingly worked, as Daly did have a long line of supporters at the merchandise table following his amazing set.
Mark Daly and The Ravens
Mark Daly – Vocals
James Brown – Guitar
Jack Ross – Bass
Alex Hart – Guitar
Danny Laverde – Drums
Following a fairly quick turnover from Daly, the 63-year-old Tate took to the stage at approximately 9:15pm. Backed by Hart, Ross, Laverde, and now with guitarist Kieran Robertson also in tow, the band launched into “Empire” and “Another Rainy Night (Without You),” two popular Queensryche tunes from their triple-platinum 1990 studio album, Empire. In fact, this was the first time I had seen Tate perform live since Queensryche’s 1991 Building Empires headlining tour, and he did not disappoint.
The show was filled with cuts pulled from across Tate’s lengthy musical career, but what surprised me the most was my unexpected recognition (and appreciation) of the song “Real World” from the 1993 movie soundtrack for Last Action Hero. I had always liked that song, and the band nailed it. Following “Real World,” the band rolled into back-to-back fan favorites from the Operation: Mindcrime album, “Breaking the Silence” and “I Don’t Believe in Love.” Daly’s Brown joined Tate’s band on stage during “Breaking the Silence,” which brought a thundering third guitar sound to the setlist for the remainder of the evening. Sadly though, these were the only two tunes lifted from Operation: Mindcrime, leaving “Eyes of a Stranger” as a missed opportunity.
Prior to ending the main set with “Jet City Woman” from Empire, a song Tate dedicated to his wife Susan, the band crushed performances of the Queensryche classics “Walk In the Shadows” and “Take Hold of the Flame.” Fists were flying in the air as the crowd chanted back “take hold!” to Tate as he executed the powerful anthem that dates back to Queensryche’s first studio album from 1984, The Warning.
After taking a quick break, the band returned to the stage and Tate teased for a moment the song they were about to play. He reflected that “this is the song he is always asked about” and that he has heard about it being used “for a wedding song, a burial song, a song to have a baby to, or a song to make a baby to,” which brought a huge cheer from the crowd. With cellphones in the air, the familiar chords of the Grammy-nominated “Silent Lucidity” began to dimmed venue lights, leading to a passionate performance of the chart-topper.
It was refreshing to hear Tate deliver upon the tough auditory expectations I am sure everyone came to the show with, especially when the band put the exclamation point on the night with an emphatic execution of “Queen of the Reich.” You go to Tate’s show to hear his distinctive 4-octave range, which was still as powerful as ever and on full display throughout the 16-song set Saturday night.
Tate’s Big Rock Show Hits Tour continues on through Saturday, January 14, where he will celebrate his 64th birthday at the Amaturo Theatre in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. He then embarks on an international tour, where he joked he will finally get to cross Peru off his travel bucket list.
Band
Geoff Tate – Vocals
Kieran Robertson – Guitar
Jack Ross – Bass
Danny Laverde – Drums
Alex Hart – Guitar
Burno Sa – Keyboards (* didn’t appear in Atlanta)
Setlist:
1.) Empire
2.) Another Rainy Night (Without You)
3.) Desert Dance
4.) I Am I
5.) Sacred Ground
6.) Best I Can
7.) Real World
8.) Breaking The Silence
9.) I Don’t Believe In Love
10.) Cold
11.) Bridge
12.) Walk In The Shadows
13.) Take Hold of the Flame
14.) Jet City Woman
Encore
15.) Silent Lucidity
16.) Queen Of The Reich
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Elliott is a music photographer covering shows in Atlanta, Georgia, and the surrounding area. The highlight of his photography career was back in the early ’90s, when he sold Neil Diamond the rights to his negatives from a show and then purchased a set of tires for his 1979 280ZX during college with the money.
