Rage for Order by Queensrÿche

Rage for Order by Queensrÿche, album from 1986.

Queensrÿche are an American band formed in 1980 in Bellevue, Washington, pioneers of progressive metal thanks to the fusion of classic heavy metal (Iron Maiden, Judas Priest) with complex atmospheres and intellectual themes.

You can find their complete biography in their dedicated page.

Released in 1986, Rage for Order is their second studio album and is considered one of the most important and avant-garde works of metal in the '80s, through its departure from the influences of Iron Maiden and Judas Priest and the introduction of modern progressive metal. 
The album blends heavy metal with synthetic sounds, big keyboards, and exceptional production by Neil Kernon. It is not a concept album by definition, but it deals with recurring themes in the tracks: technology, artificial intelligence, social paranoia, and the conflict between man and machine, all current topics addressed forty years in advance, and not by chance was considered a visionary album.
Geoff Tate is outstanding on vocals, with his frightening range that goes from baritone tones to extreme operatic highs, and the fantastic guitar work of Chris DeGarmo and Michael Wilton. 
 

The album consists of 11 tracks, all with an average duration of 4 or 5 minutes, for a total length of about 46 minutes.

Walk in the Shadows opens with power and melody, a beautiful classic of the band. I Dream in Infrared is an atmospheric track and The Whisper has great driving riffs and complex rhythmic structures. Gonna Get Close to You is a cover of Lisa Dalbello, but with a disturbing, theatrical tone, dealing with stalking. The Killing Words is a very intense ballad. Surgical Strike is a fast, aggressive track about technological warfare. Neue Regel is an experimental track with great use of electronics. Chemical Youth (We Are Rebellion) is, as the title suggests, a social rebellion anthem. London is a majestic track that slows the pace but grows in the grandeur of the sounds. Screaming in Digital is the most futuristic track, with sci-fi rhythms and atmospheres. I Will Remember is the acoustic and melancholic track that closes the album with a great performance by Tate. 
 

An album overshadowed by the commercial success of Operation: Mindcrime, but it is the band's most courageous and perhaps unique record, fundamental for the origins of technical metal and progressive metal, of high complexity, virtuosity, sudden tempo changes and great attention to production, characteristics that we will find in later bands, with a metal that does not focus only on brute force or speed, but rather on technical refinement and compositional intelligence.

From what I read, at the time of its release it was a divisive record: for some a masterpiece, an album too far ahead of its time; for others an inconclusive record. Listening to it today and thinking about when it was released, however, you realize its importance. A digitized, hi-tech production for the time, which paved the way for the progressive metal sound that would fully develop later. 

Historic album, a Must in any Progressive Metal collection.

Note: All links to the musicians' works are in the TAGS below the article title or on the "Artists" page

Tracklist

1. Walk In The Shadows (3:37)
2. I Dream In Infra Red (4:17)
3. The Whisper (3:37)
4. Gonna Get Close To You (4:37)
5. The Killing Words (3:56)
6. Surgical Strike (3:19)
7. Neue Regel (4:54)
8. Chemical Youth (We Are Rebellion) (4:14)
9. London (5:07)
10. Screaming In Digital (3:36)
11. I Will Remember (4:27)

Total Time: 45:41
 

LineUp

- Geoff Tate - lead vocals, keyboards
- Michael Wilton - guitars, backing vocals
- Chris DeGarmo - guitars, backing vocals
- Eddie Jackson - bass, backing vocals
- Scott Rockenfield - drums, percussion

With:
- Bradley Doyle - Emulator computer programming
- Neil Kernon - keyboards, production and mixing