{"id":39742,"date":"2006-05-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2006-05-01T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/reviews\/operation-mindcrime-ii\/"},"modified":"2006-05-01T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2006-05-01T00:00:00","slug":"operation-mindcrime-ii","status":"publish","type":"review","link":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/reviews\/operation-mindcrime-ii\/","title":{"rendered":"Operation Mindcrime II"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

Let me first say that I understand why Queensryche
\nwanted to make this sequel to the original classic concept album.
\nThe first Operation Mindcrime<\/i> hooked me as a fan from that
\nfaithful day that I sat in Chad Elick’s bedroom and heard the nurse
\nmutter, “Sweet dreams . . . you bastard” followed by the narrator
\nsaying, “I remember how it started. I can’t remember yesterday, I
\njust remember doing what they told me. . .” for the first time.<\/p>\n

I became an instant Queensryche fan. Songs like “Eyes
\nof a Stranger” and “I Don’t Believe in Love” took me over the edge.
\nI did my research, got “The Warning” and “Rage For Order” and their
\n4 song EP and immersed myself in the band. When Empire<\/i> came
\nout, I bought it almost immediately and savored in the band’s
\npower, especially the opening track “Best I Can.” Then sometime
\nafter Empire<\/i>, I lost track of them. I listened to
\nPromised Land<\/i> and thought the band I loved was gone. I
\ndidn’t really pay attention to the band after that as my musical
\ntastes led me to other places.<\/p>\n

Therefore, I was skeptical when I first heard that
\nvocalist Geoff Tate felt he had something to add to the original
\nstory. Most likely, Tate came up with “What would happen next for
\nthese characters?” and felt he needed to get the rest of his band
\nto present that story to the masses. On the surface, it makes a lot
\nof sense. However, like all sequels, it’s very difficult to capture
\nthe spirit of an original masterpiece years later. Sequels can
\ntarnish the legend of the original and at times Operation
\nMindcrime II<\/i> comes close to doing so.<\/p>\n

In general terms, Operation Mindcrime II<\/i>
\ncontinues the story in the original. The guy gets out of jail and
\nis obsessed with finding out what has happened to his world since
\nhe was in jail. The world has definintely changed and, basically,
\nhe’s out for revenge. With that concept in your head, you’d think
\nthis might be a fast-paced musical journey. Well, you’d be wrong.
\nOnly the opener “I’m American” has an urgent tempo. I really like
\nthis song. The tempo is fast and drummer Scott Rockenfield gets a
\nMaster Of Puppets<\/i> style snare fill that sounds awesome.<\/p>\n

But it goes downhill after that. “One Foot In Hell”
\nplods along and isn’t very interesting. “Hostage” doesn’t get much
\nbetter. The mix is amazingly unclear and muddy, which is
\ndisappointing because most Queensryche albums have a crisp sound to
\nthem. Instead, the instruments sound like there was a blanket over
\nthe microphone in the studio.<\/p>\n

Then, remarkably, this release treks its way up a
\nlong hill. Starting with “The Hands,” this release begins to sound
\nmore like the original Operation Mindcrime<\/i> sound. Vocalist
\nTate hits the classic vocal style that made him a legendary metal
\nvocalist and either the mix becomes clearer, or my ears adapted to
\nthe sound to pick up the individual instruments. Guitarists Mike
\nStone and Micheael Wilton suddenly play some interesting solos and
\nriffs while Rockenfield gets some interesting parts on “Signs Say
\nGo.”<\/p>\n

One of the trademarks of the first Operation
\nMindcrime<\/i> was the use of dialogue between the songs as a way to
\ntell the story. Queensryche decided not to do that as much on this
\nrelease. Instead, they use silence between the tracks “Signs Say
\nGo” and “Re-Arrange You,” which is interesting. Whereas the
\nstoryline was pounded into the listener’s ears on the original,
\nhere the story is told more through the lyrics. Therefore, it’s a
\ngood thing that the lyrics are printed in an easy-to-read font.<\/p>\n

There’s also silence between “Re-Arrange You” and
\n“The Chase.” On my first few listens, this silence annoyed me, but
\nnow, I don’t notice it as much, and after all, “The Chase” includes
\na guest vocalist appearance from Ronnie James Dio. However, when
\n“All The Promises” ended, I was disappointed. The lack of a
\npowerful ending leaves me feeling empty. Not even the way the
\nlyrics try to summarize the story about love and desire can do it
\nfor me.<\/p>\n

Now, having said all that, I have listened to this
\nalbum multiple times, and as time has gone on, this release has
\ngotten stronger. If you are tempted to pick up OM II<\/i>, I urge
\nyou to listen to it more than twice — probably five times is what
\ndid it for me. The complaints I have about this release still stick
\nregarding muddy sound and the final track being anti-climatic
\nmusically. I am planning to put this album aside for a couple of
\nmonths now. Only time will tell if this should have been rated
\nhigher than the B I am giving it today.<\/p>\n

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