HEAR IN THE NOW FRONTIER

After the Tate-influenced Promised Land it was Degarmo's turn to be the main driving force behind an album - Hear In The Now Frontier. As with the album Empire, Degarmo attempted to create a more commercial sound which was aimed at the masses rather than the fans of the classic Queensryche sound. Whilst Empire sounded like a commercial Queensryche, Hear In The Now Frontier rarely sounded like Queensryche at all.

Sign Of The Times: A catchy rock song with a nice solo, structurally and lyrically basic however. (7/10)

Cuckoo's Nest: A very watered down sound as with the first track, rock not metal with no dual guitar passages or subtle keyboards. (7/10)

Get A Life: Heavier than the first couple of tracks with an excellent chorus, still no real progressive elements coming through. (8/10)

The Voice Inside: Fairly bland melodic rock track. (6/10)

Some People Fly: This track retains the melodic rock (rather than progressive metal) feel of the album but is still a very nice song. (8.5/10)

Saved: The track which comes closest to sound like the Queensryche we know so far. A few nice interwoven sections. (8/10)

You: Solid but forgettable rock track. (6/10)

Hero: Soft Rock track with a sensual feel. (6.5/10)

Miles Away: Melodic rock, once again mildly enjoyable but instantly forgettable (6/10)

Reach: Glimpses of the the classic Queensryche are overpowered once again by you guessed it, melodic rock. (7/10)

All I Want: Mediocre Rock song. (5.5/10)

Hit The Black: A well needed injection of energy with a heavier sound but still no real progressive feel. (7/10)

Anytime/Anywhere: Heavier than the majority of the album but still lacklustre and forgettable. (6/10)

spOOL: The best track on the album. It has some nice progressive elements and sounds more like classic Queensryche than any other track. Also contains a more varied and interesting structure than most of the other tracks. (9/10)

Overall: 69/100

An enjoyable yet forgettable album that leaves fans asking, is this really Queensryche? I dont understand why Degarmo who was responsible for the metal elements to Queensryche wanted to produce a more commercial sound as well as ignoring the progressive elements of the band brought by Geoff Tate. Certainly a step in a new direction for the band, many would say the wrong direction however...