QUEENSRŸCHE Bassist EDDIE JACKSON Says New Lineup 'Genuinely Feels Like A Rebirth'

Nottingham Post recently conducted an interview with QUEENSRŸCHE bassist Eddie Jackson. A few excerpts from the chat follow below.

On the split with original QUEENSRŸCHE singer Geoff Tate:

Jackson: "The three of us got together and once we'd made the decision to continue we started to map out the future. Geoff had been working on solo stuff for a while, so QUEENSRŸCHE had been shelved for a while so we'd been developing a side project called RISING WEST with the three of us, Parker Lundgren [guitar], who was with us for the last couple of albums, and Michael [Wilton, guitar] knew [new vocalist] Todd La Torre through another side project.

"When things went the way they did, we decided to return to the QUEENSRŸCHE name."

On returning to the band's musical roots following the split with Tate:

Jackson: "We always wanted to revisit the older material, even back to our original EP from 1983. But for whatever reasons, we were never allowed to do it.

"With the energy we have now, the songs all stand the test of time. It's been fun to go back."

On QUEENSRŸCHE's new, self-titled album:

Jackson: "For a few years, we haven't felt we've had the chance to express ourselves musically, but on the new album, all five of us contributed equally.

"With the first five or six QUEENSRŸCHE albums, the group of us created our own sound and if you bring in a bunch of different musicians, even if the songs are the same, they won't sound the same.

"We have our own styles and techniques that make up our sound and I thought that was missing from the last few albums.

"With [once again working with producer] Jimbo Barton, this album is a return to our characteristic sound. Lots of fans have commented that the album sounds like it could have been released after [their most successful album in 1990] 'Empire'.

"We had so much fun making it. The key word for me throughout this whole process has been freedom."

On how the new lineup has breathed new life into QUEENSRŸCHE:

Jackson: "With no one controlling things, we're just free to express ourselves and musically we can be who we are.

"So much has gone on, but we just want to play music — the passion is still there and with the new lineup it genuinely feels like a rebirth.

"We can play songs from our entire history and that freedom is inspiring."

On what the audience can expect from concerts by the La Torre-fronted version of QUEENSRŸCHE:

Jackson: "Heavy, hard rock, melodic excitement. There's such an energy in the band the now and we're revisiting a lot of the songs the fans have been asking for so we'll have a setlist reflecting the entire history of the band."

Read the entire interview at Nottingham Post.