Geoff Tate

I travelled from Iceland with three childhood friends to see Geoff Tate in Southampton. We flew to London and then took the train down to Southampton, full of excitement and nostalgia. When we were young, we played Operation: Mindcrime and the other classic Queensrÿche albums endlessly, so this was much more than just another concert for us. It felt like stepping straight back into a very important part of our youth. The show absolutely lived up to our expectations. In fact, it exceeded them. The atmosphere was fantastic, the venue gave us a real sense of closeness to the band, and the musicianship was outstanding throughout. The band was tight, powerful and clearly fully committed to doing justice to songs that mean so much to so many people. Geoff Tate seemed a little rough around the edges during the first few songs, as if his voice needed a little time to warm up. But once it did, everything fell into place. And to be fair, these are not normal songs to sing. They are demanding, dramatic and vocally unforgiving. After those first few numbers, he sounded strong, present and completely in command. What made the evening even more moving was something we only learned at the end of the concert. Geoff had lost his father earlier that day, either that morning or earlier in the day. Knowing that afterwards put the whole performance in a different light. The fact that he still went on stage, gave the audience everything he had, and delivered such a powerful show says a great deal about his professionalism, strength and connection to the music. For four friends from Iceland who grew up with these songs, this was a night we will never forget. A brilliant concert, a powerful performance and a deeply human evening.