QUEENSRŸCHE's TODD LA TORRE: 'I'm Hopeful That We Can Start Tracking' New Album 'Next Month'

Earlier this week, Rustyn Rose of Metal Nation Radio conducted an interview with QUEENSRŸCHE singer Todd La Torre. You can now listen to the chat using the PodOmatic widget below.

Speaking about the progress of the songwriting sessions for QUEENSRŸCHE's follow-up to 2013's self-titled album, Todd said: "We're still in the demo thing. We've got fifteen-plus songs that, most of them are all there. We're doing pre-production right now. There's still… I got an e-mail from Scott [Rockenfield, drums]: 'Hey, new song's coming your way soon.' 'Okay, great.' I'm hopeful that we can start tracking next month. I was hoping we would be tracking by right now, but we're just not gonna rush."

He continued: [Our record] label, Century Media, they're awesome; nobody's up our ass, saying, 'Hey, c'mon now. You've gotta get this…' It's not like we're dragging, really, but with touring, and then the lawsuit [with former QUEENSRŸCHE singer Geoff Tate] and our personal lives and trying to write songs…

"I live in Florida and [the other guys] are in Seattle, so it's not like I'm in the same room with them every week working on things. It takes time. And this is the sophomore record with me in the band. That's a scary thing, because you can like the songs, but you don't know how it's gonna be perceived. And so, when you've got five guys that, everyone has different musical backgrounds… I mena, we all have a common likeness for a style and sound… But, you know, I'm always pushing for… It's a fine line, because I'm always pushing for heavy. And it has to be QUEENSRŸCHE; it can't be over-the-top heaviness… I don't wanna change the dynamic. Nobody in the band wants to change the real core sound and dynamic and style of the band. With that being said, QUEENSRŸCHE's never been afraid to try new things."

La Torre added: "The songs that we have right now are, I would say, melodic. There are some heavy tunes on there that are just, like, really rocking. I mean, some of the songs remind me, again, of 'Rage For Order', '[Operation:] Mindcrime'… We'll probably slip in something that's got a commercial… Not that we're trying to… Something with a more commercial appeal, like the song 'In This Light' did on the record that I did before. But, overall, I'm hopeful that, when it's all said and done, this record will have a really good drive, great, melodic choruses, great guitar parts, very dynamic... A little more prog… There's a little more proggy elements…

"When you've got two years [between albums], you don't want [people] to say, 'Wow, that's the best they could come up with?' You never want that. You always want, 'Hell yeah! This is another great QUEENSRŸCHE record.' And that's all that you can really hope for. But it's definitely going to have, again, what I consider all of the elements that the true QUEENSRŸCHE fans will enjoy: great drumming, solid foundation, bass driven, great guitar work and harmony things… Vocally, there's some things where I get into the upper register pretty good.

"I always wanna keep that metal… [Laughs] Sometimes I think [the other guys in the band] get sick of hearing me saying that. I'm, like, 'I wanna melt their fucking faces off.' [Laughs] But I have to do what the music calls for. And, overall, it's been a great process. It's always a learning experience.

"I'm finding, as a songwriter, what my stylistic things are, musically. I love ALICE IN CHAINS harmonies; they always had these interesting harmonies in their music. And I always find myself, when I'm writing and I'm recording, doing new things, I kind of lean on those types of harmonies. So I'm finding out things about myself as a writer that I didn't know before. And so it's a lot of fun.

"We're super eager to get these songs totally wrapped up and get in the studio. I mean, once we start tracking, it's gonna be a really…. I think, a smooth process, because everyone knows the songs, everyone will be prepared and will go in there and, you know, really hammer things out."

QUEENSRŸCHE recently launched a PledgeMusic campaign, "Building The Empire", for the band's next album. QUEENSRŸCHE is offering everything from limited-edition vinyl and merchandise to the actual instruments played on the upcoming album and a chance to hang with the band in their hometown of Seattle. In addition, the band is attempting to raise $2 million by selling stakes in what QUEENSRŸCHE securities attorney, Marc LoPresti, called a "new holding company for all things QUEENSRŸCHE" that will receive the revenues from its tours, merchandising, album sales and digital downloads.

For a minimum investment of $50,000, fans who pass an independent accreditation process can purchase an equity ownership stake from a private consolidated holding company that entitles them to "a fixed percentage" of future revenue.

QUEENSRŸCHE's stock deal utilizes a provision of the 2013 JOBS Act that allows promoters to publicize a private stock placement, though only "accredited investors" are eligible to invest.

An internal board of directors comprising Rockenfield, Jackson and Wilton and band counsel Thomas Osinski will oversee the corporation.

QUEENSRŸCHE's latest, self-titled album sold around 13,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 23 on The Billboard 200 chart. The record arrived in stores on June 25, 2013 via Century Media Records.