No need for a DeLorean, all that was needed to
go back in time was a ticket to the sold-out Queensryche show
down at the Théâtre Beanfield this past Saturday night. Once inside the historic old building, you
are instantly transported to the early days of entertainment in Montreal, as
some of the murals that date back to the 1920s still decorate the walls. A quick adjustment of the time circuits had
us speeding through time at 88mph, or 142km/h Canadian, to 1984. A time when the North American heavy metal scene
was beginning to explode, denim and leather were the fashion de jour and it was also the year that two Queensryche released their debut album, The
Warning. An album that is still heralded to this day as one of the most important to be released so early in the genres history. During this tour, headlined by
Queensryche,
they celebrate that moment in time as they play that entire album in full, as
well as their self-titled EP which was released the year before. Their set opened with the four songs from the
Queensryche EP before the air raid sirens began to wail and we were off to the
races. Queensryche already has a long standing relationship with the city. It was here that former singer Geoff Tate came up with the idea behind what is possibly one of the greatest concept albums of all time, Operation: Mindrime, and the band was not about to let down a sold out room full of their fans. They were spot on from the moment that singer Todd LaTorre hit the stage adorned
in his Montreal Canadiens jersey.
LaTorre’s vocals are very true to the original versions and 
with original
guitarist Michael Wilton and Eddie Jackson on bass, there was never any doubt
that the music would be spot on. Which
it was. Queensryche’s most recent album
was 2022’s Digital Noise Alliance, though you won’t be hearing any of those
songs on this tour. The joints may be a
little more sore and the hair might be a little more grey, if any remains at
all. But, for a few hours, it was 1984
all over again, and nobody would have minded if the Flux Capacitor had broken
and left us there for the rest of time.
The first photograph was taken at f/3.2, 1/3200sec, ISO 2000 at 24mm, the second photograph was taken at f/3.2, 1/640sec, ISO 2000 at 24mm and the third photograph was taken at f/3.2, 1/200sec, ISO 800 at 70mm. Here are several more photographs that I took while Queensryche were on stage.
f/3.2, 1/640sec, ISO 2000 at 61mm
f/3.2, 1/200sec, ISO 2000 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/1000sec, ISO 2000 at 47mm
f/3.2, 1/4000sec, ISO 2000 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/2000sec, ISO 2000 at 55mm
f/3.2, 1/4000sec, ISO 2000 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/400sec, ISO 2000 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/400sec, ISO 2000 at 70mm
f/3.2, 1/1000sec, ISO 2000 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/640sec, ISO 2000 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/800sec, ISO 2000 at 70mm
f/3.2, 1/320sec, ISO 2000 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/1600sec, ISO 2000 at 35mm
f/3.2, 1/640sec, ISO 1600 at 70mm
f/3.2, 1/500sec, ISO 800 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/1000sec, ISO 1600 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/2000sec, ISO 1600 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/640sec, ISO 1600 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/200sec, ISO 1600 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/500sec, ISO 800 at 70mm
f/3.2, 1/125sec, ISO 800 at 70mm
f/3.2, 1/200sec, ISO 800 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/500sec, ISO 800 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/640sec, ISO 800 at 24mm
f/3.2, 1/500sec, ISO 800 at 53mm
f/3.2, 1/1000sec, ISO 2000 at 70mm
f/3.2, 1/800sec, ISO 1600 at 24mm
If you'd like to find out more about
Queensryche and their music, you can do so by following the link to their website. A big thank you to Stephanie Shoulders of
Unchained Management, Chip Ruggieri of
Chipster PR & Consulting as well as Christopher Gonda of
V13 Media for getting me a pass to shoot the show. As always, it very much appreciated. You can also see some photographs of
Armored Saint, who opened the evening, by following the link.
If you’re a fan of music from this time, or just wanting to experience
it first hand for yourself, be sure to drop in when Queensryche
bring their show to your town.
Armored Saint had the task of opening our trip through musical history at the Théâtre Beanfield on Saturday night. The venerable band who got back together a few years ago after a brief hiatus didn't show the effects of time at all they they played such a great set that there was some discussion amongst us photographers over whether our opening band had just stolen the night from the headliners. That wasn't the case as Queensryche (check out the pictures by following the link) hit the stage a little later and performer a terrific set of there own, but Armored Saint definitely set the table for them with one of the best 'opening act' performances that I had ever seen. Of course, Armored Saint isn't your typical 'opening act' They've been playing together since the early 1980s when their debut album, 'March of the Saint' helped usher in a new wave of North American metal to
the music scene. Singer John Bush reminisced about that time and how the band had actually been here in 1985, opening for Metallica in the long gone, but not forgotten, Le Spectrum. It was a different time, they were much younger and, as John Bush said himself, he had much more hair, but they never forgot those shows, and Montreal has certainly not forgotten them as well. Armored Saint threw down the gauntlet by performing a set of classics and some
songs from their most recent album, Punching The Sky, released in 2020, that
rocked the old building to its foundations. It's been a week since the show and I wouldn't be surprised if the walls are still shaking. The first photograph was taken at f/3.2, 1/320sec, ISO 3200 at 24mm and the second photograph was taken at f/3.2, 1/400sec, ISO 3200 at 24mm. Here are several more photographs of Armored Saint's performance.
