Greetings all, and Happy Thanksgiving! This month, I have the voice behind Queensryche, Geoff Tate, but not in the Queensryche context. No no. He has ventured into the solo arena, to be able to express another side of him that most would think of as being non existent. For those of you who are expecting a Rychean-like concept within this magnificent opus, be prepared to be disappointed. If, however, you are open minded enough to open yourself to Mr. Tate through his musical genius, then I believe you'll more than enjoy this album. From start to finish, there is not one disappointing tune within - all are equally diverse and magickal, and allow the mind to freely float away into another realm of empathic fantasy.

Starting with the first song, called "Flood", you'll notice lyrics characteristic of Mr. Tate's ongoing style, but the musical energy is very different. In this song, it starts on a plateau and works its way up to something like an emotional wave of energy, crashing over you again and again, and you can't help but be carried away in the flood. Notice how he sums up what it's like to be plugged into a source of energy - and love is a very strong source which you can tap into, and extremely vibrant and invigorating. And he is quite right - it is a form of chaos, because your emotions go all over the place, but this is good chaos, if there is such a thing :o)

"There's some hope of love
Left in those rainbow eyes.
On your way up
To touch higher ground,
You said you'd never change
this revolution heart.

Say what you will
You fly with me and
I couldn't love another.
Now ask me what I believe...
I'm lost in your chaos...
Here comes the flood
Let it all in.

Can you feel it?
Flood of life.
Feel it coming? Overflowing? Yeah.

It's this love of life.
Open up this flood of life.
If you'll open up you'll see
Just what love could be.

Where you're standing now,
Just feel the love.
Flood of life.
It's taking over, let it all in. Yeah"

I wish I could share this whole song with you all. I know you'd get the same as I do from it. It's so powerful. Geoff is one of those who cares about his art - that is to say, he doesn't simply write to sell himself. He writes what is within him, and makes it aesthetically as well as intellectually pleasing. Almost like a mindscape. It takes you out and away from the confines of reality, and brings you within a comfortable, juicy melange, where you can just be free of your surroundings. The next song is called "Forever (who wants to live)", and the lyrics, to me, present a challenge between two people - she proposes it, and he thinks about it hard. It's a scary move, will he do it? Will he take the plunge? Or will it be too much for him to handle?

"Jump in." She says.
"High tide." Yeah she promises.
"Dive under." She says.
Raging water. She gives to me.

So still and silent.
Holding breath, close my eyes
And take her hand.
Feel my body surrender,
Who wants to live forever?
My feet can't touch the ground.

Should I swim for the shore?
Should I sink into the black?
Should I breathe now?
Would you"?

In the end, he realises the depth of his feeling for this lady, and he goes ahead and jumps. How deep it is, means little, because she is there with him, and they fathom this together. Forged by their love, they begin the journey. I think probably many people feel like this when love is offered to them so freely, and on such a deep level. It can be scary. But it can also be hugely intoxicating. Most people fear what they can see no end to. So they make no move to change their current situation. It's very like swimming, you're ok to tread water while you can see and feel the bottom, but move into deeper waters where you cannot, and you begin to find ways of backing out. I was glad he used that imagery here, because it perfectly conveys this message. The next song begins with a deep inhalation, and then whispered exhalation. It's called "Helpless". Musically, this is a great song as well, and made very different with the added flamenco-like guitar and castanets in the background. And here, we have a case of one who isn't sure, and one who would go the distance to hold it all together. There is an element of desperation here - "I can't let you go", and a fair bit of fast talking. Her fears become his, but he can't understand her need to be saved from herself, her own fears.

Ask yourself... do you believe.
Ask yourself... why?
I feel your need of helplessness
So much I can't help myself.
Why do you need me to... save you?

I can't let you go...
Can't let you go.
Save you...
I can't let you go.
I can't let you...

I surrender.
Do you feel the same?
I watch your mouth
For a sign.
We blur the distance
Between the line.
I don't care if it's wrong...
All I know... is I need you.

Ask yourself why you feel
Like you need me to...
Save you from yourself.
And if you cared and
If you shared
Everything you feel,
You'd find me... waiting.

Oh, and I'd be waiting"...

Now, this next song is just the greatest. I strongly recommend listening to this while having a session with your partner, because this is totally what this song is about. It's aptly named "Touch", and he describes touching in some truly unique ways without it sounding vulgar. He is trying to make up for his own feelings of inadequacy by being proficient in the bedchambers. That, and enforce to his lady that he is still the man - her man.

"There is a simple purpose to my life.
And there is a meaning that will complete me
in time. There is a mountain of opinion,
Telling me that my time could be better spent.
There are complicated circumstances.
They say you belong to a better man.

Baby you're mine.
Baby you're mine
Yeah you're mine.
Baby you're mine
Yeah you're mine.

Baby you're mine
Yeah you're mine.
Yeah you're mine.
You just don't know it yet.
You don't know it yet.

Now when I'm right beside you do you ever see...?
Do you see me?
And when I'm so deep inside you
Will you know,
Ever know me?

And when I move in you.
And I do all of those things that you want me to?
You're my world, I'm your satellite,
Always free floating outside of your gravity.

When my finger tips touch your skin,
You will know.
When I whisper your secret sins
You will know.
When my finger tips touch your skin,
You will know.
When I whisper. when I whisper your...
I whisper your name.

When my finger tips touch your skin,
You will know.
When I whisper your secret sins...

Baby you're mine. All mine"...

Ohhhh man, talk about a totally sexy song, and the music is completely in keeping with the mood and the lyrics. You will be swept away in this song, that or you're simply dead and untouchable inside. Geoff, you're definitely the man, baby ;o) Sorry folks, but I HAD to include the whole of that song here. It was too good NOT to share. Ok, moving on. This next song, musically, is my favorite. The lyrics are very unique also, because in certain circumstances, they really speak to me as though I am in this situation - and I have been. It's called "Every Move We Make", and this song has many depths. It can be interpreted in many ways, so I won't carve it up too much. I'll leave this one to speak to you however it will.

"This is not your breakdown,
Woman raise your head.
Come on.
This is not your madness
Everybody feels this.
Woman raise your head.

With every feeling in your soul
And every loss of your control,
You can't sleep at night
Cause sleeping sometimes drives the pain away.

And no matter where we stand,
Our beginning has no end.
Cause everyday we live
We make it just a little better.

This is not our game.
We play it just the same.
With every move we make
We make it better.
Everything's the same
Nothing slips away.
With every move we make
We make it better.

Everything that you can give
Is the very thing that I would take from you.
I'd take from you.
With every reason why you live
Is every reason I would die for you.
I'd die for you"...

This, to me, is one friend to another, lending strength. Come on, don't drag your head in the dirt - lift your chin up, get through this. Hey, haven't we all been there/done that at least once? And on both sides of this coin? You bet we have. We have all been in a position to feel like what we do, simply isn't good enough, especially if it is met with complaints..Hey, we can't please everyone, right? And we are definitely our own worst critics - we sure don't need someone else to point out our faults, when we do a great job of that ourselves. And consequently, we have all helped someone else through a moment like this. Given them words of encouragement when they were despairing. I could develop this even more, but I think I'll leave it here and save my thoughts for myself - This song has a little more meaning to me than simply what I have mapped out, here. This song segues very nicely with the next song, called "This Moment". It's kind of sad. She has really begun to sink deeper within herself, and is having a hard time coming out. Or maybe it's that she doesn't want to. Sometimes, you get used to being treated a certain way, and when you get different/better, you're not sure how to react, so you shut off, and withdraw. Obviously, if it were a perfect world, as he outlines, things would be perfect in this situation. But they aren't, and he is suffering. The music reflects his sadness, and hers too. You might say this song is a lament of what could have been - even should have been.

"Her heart is like a fortress.
She clings to her silence like a lover.
She wishes you were cold and heartless
So she wouldn't...
Wouldn't have to... feel.

Oh and when she lifts her head,
And your eyes meet,
She walks to your effortless,
With suffocating grace.
And you're caught up in the moment
And someone speaks,
And whisks it all away.

But this moment never ends,
It goes on and on inside my head.
And this moment never ends.
This moment never ends"...

This next song reminds me of a daydream. But possibly not the best of daydreams. There seems to be alot of questioning here - Did I say the right thing? If I had done this different, would it have made a difference? I'm seeing a trend here. It feels to me like the relationship is suffering. Sad really. It was all very wonderful in the beginning, as relationships tend to be. And then, she sort of lost her way, and he tried to bring her back, but it doesn't seem as though he is having much in the way of luck.

"We see... what we want to see,
But only a drop of what could be.
Stop me if I'm going on...
I dream in stale complacency.
And in other words...
Tell me you're all right.
Just a whisper and I dreamed you cry,
But I survived, courageous here...
And in other words...on other worlds.

And when my hands begin to bleed
Will you stay and comfort me?
I feel afraid I might be living. Yeah.

And if I had to the ends of Time
Would I ever make you mine?
Just a whispered "yes" is all I need".

Even though this is a song, you can't help but feel the emotions within it, and you wonder if this was written about true life accounts. Then it dawns on you, yes, these probably were written with the same experience and depth of emotion as are being so openly displayed and shared here. I am going to share the whole of this next song, because it speaks so profoundly here, and it's hard to leave any part of it out. It'll speak in terms that can't be ignored. His feelings are right out there on his shoulder, and that's painful. :o(

"I'm looking back
At what just happened,
A little bit lost, apprehended.
I've made mistakes.
Could I say it any clearer?
I've not been sleeping,
It feels like a week.
Our conversations in my head
And my body aches.
I'm not sure what's real anymore.
I'm not sure anymore...

And I feel like a passenger on a train.
Just watching the world fly by...
Only a passenger.

A little entangled and short of breath,
When you look at me that way,
You're so hard to resist.
I wish I could say what I feel like you...
Yeah, it's easy for you.

What we're going through right now,
We need time to understand.
There's needs that are different
Between a woman and a man.
But I know I love you
As clear as this window
I'm looking though.

And I'm just a passenger on this train.
Always watching the world fly by,
Trying my best to explain.
Please forgive me if this seems
Like some "phase" I'm in.
I'm busy watching where I've been.
Just like a passenger...

I search your eyes but you're not there.
I reach for your hand try to pull you near...me
But you move... away.

I feel like a passenger on a train.
Always had so much time,
Never had to explain.
There was my life
Gone in the blink of an eye.
And I feel like a passenger.
A passenger.

And I feel like a passenger
On this train.
And I feel like a passenger.
A passenger"...

The next couple songs are what I'd term as musical arguments. They have all the stinging words that two people normally say to one another in the heat of the moment -

"Though you try your best in letting go.
They smile the words, keep you in the flow.
And drooling wide-eyed on the floor as you beg,
This dog, someday, will have your leg".

All about control, isn't it? No one is listening anymore, it's just verbal warfare. Who can outdo whom. The last song, is titled "Over Me", and it is what it says - the end. It's a lament, and the emotions are so apparent in this song, that it just grabs at me. This is one of those songs that forces you to take notice, and pay attention. He realizes once and for all that she is gone, and is never coming back..

"I should have had you,
I should have had you over last night.
We could have talked about the things
That mattered to you.
I should have seen this.
I should have seen the color of your eyes
But I was somewhere else
Or I was looking though you.

Are you feeling helpless?
Are you feeling selfish?
Or are you feeling anything at all?
Are you seeing something?
Am I close to nothing?
Will I ever be the one you want to call?

Now I'm going down.
I'm drowning, I'm drowning.

Now you're over me.
And there's nothing I can say to bring you down.
Now you're over me,
Now you're over my head.
And you're never coming back to me are you"?

Well ladies and gentlemen, all I can say is, buy this album. It's really an excellent album. You're hard pressed in this day and age to find an album in which every track on it is decent, but this is a rarity. Amazon.com, of course has a few of the tracks up for you to check out - you'll of course need media player, or real player. The songs can be heard by clicking here . All the tunes they have available, are the first 5 on the album, which is great. Conversely, you might wish to visit Geoff's site . There is an mp3 of "Off The TV", and a couple of his videos, plus Ryche info as well. Pretty decent, streamlined site, I have to say. Ok folks, that's a wrap for this month. Enjoy the coming holidays, and be good! See ya next month :o)

All Blessings,

Silver

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