Rage for Order

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Rage for Order
Original vinyl edition cover art
Studio album by
Queensrÿche
ReleasedJune 27, 1986
Recorded1985–1986
StudioM.D.H. Studios, Bellevue, Washington with Le Mobile Remote Sound Studio
Mushroom Studios, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Yamaha Studios, Glendale, California
Genre
Length45:42
LabelEMI America
ProducerNeil Kernon
Queensrÿche chronology
The Warning
(1984) 		Rage for Order
(1986) 		Operation: Mindcrime
(1988)
Alternative cover
Second edition cover art
Singles from Rage for Order
  1. "Gonna Get Close to You" / "Prophecy"
    Released: August 1986
  2. "The Whisper" / "I Dream in Infrared"
    Released: 1986[1]
  3. "Walk in the Shadows"
    Released: 1986[2]
Audio sample
"Gonna Get Close to You"
Audio sample
"Screaming in Digital"

Rage for Order is the second studio album by the American progressive metal band Queensrÿche, released on June 27, 1986. The album was re-released on May 6, 2003 with four bonus tracks.

Overview[edit]

Rage for Order was more progressive than the band's previous releases, with a layered and complex musical structure that employs a two-guitar approach, but also brought keyboards forward in the mix.[3] Lyrically, the album explored social/personal, political and technological themes, among others highlighting the dangers of artificial intelligence and government intrusion.[3] The concept of robotics was emphasized through the use of staccato rhythms and vocal effects such as a reverse echo.

The band's management insisted on Queensrÿche taking an image associated more with glam rock, glam metal or gothic metal.[4][5] As a result, the promo photos and album artwork depicted the band members wearing trench coats, heavy make-up and perms.

The cover of the Dalbello song "Gonna Get Close to You" was chosen as the album's first single.

The tour supporting Rage for Order spanned approximately seven months and included being the opening act for Ratt, AC/DC, Bon Jovi and Ozzy Osbourne, although their music was not quite compatible.[3]

Some tracks recorded during the sessions for Rage for Order were not used on the album. "Prophecy" was released as the B-side of "Gonna Get Close to You" and later included on the 1989 re-issue of the Queensrÿche EP. Other songs such as "From the Darkside" and "The Dream" remained demos.[6] The band had also written "Rage for Order" as a title track. Although it was not included on the album, the main riff from this song was worked into an instrumental piece played during some shows on the tour in support of this album and eventually morphed into the track "Anarchy—X" on the Operation: Mindcrime album, released in 1988.[6]

Rage for Order was the first album cover of Queensrÿche to prominently feature the band's Tri-Ryche logo, as nearly all later album covers would, each time with subtle changes made to the logo. Although not credited, the front cover was designed by the late English-born metal and rock journalist Garry Sharpe-Young, who later also founded MusicMight.[7] It had originally been proposed for a 12" picture disc, which never materialized, but was used by EMI-America without permission for the album cover. A few thousand initial copies bear a bluish-silver banner that was later changed to black, in order to make the artist and title easier to read. The original cassette edition also had all the gold accents on the cover changed to white.[6] CDs bearing the blue ring cover are even more rare. Only a few hundred copies were printed before the ring was switched to black.

Despite the band's emphasis on keyboards and digital technology tricks such as the "reverse echo", Rage for Order was recorded and mixed in analog. On a short television documentary which aired in 1986, Scott Rockenfield stated that the drums were recorded in a stone warehouse using Le Mobile recording studios. Michael Wilton said that to get a guitar sound that they were happy with they "used two old Marshall's that were on the verge of exploding" by using a Variac causing the transformers to work harder.[4]

Music[edit]

Musically, Rage for Order has been described as a progressive metal[8][9] and glam metal album.[10]

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[11]
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal7/10[12]
Kerrang![13]
Rock Hard (GER)9.5/10[14]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[15]

In a retrospective review, Robert Taylor of AllMusic had a mixed reaction to Rage for Order. Taylor stated that the band had "lost their edge a bit on this release" and compared the album's sound to the glam metal movement of the time. The review praised Geoff Tate's vocals, but called the lyrics "heavy-handed" and stated that they had not aged well.

In 2005, Rage for Order was ranked number 343 in Rock Hard magazine's book The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time.[16]

Track listing[edit]

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Walk in the Shadows"Chris DeGarmo, Geoff Tate, Michael Wilton3:32
2."I Dream in Infrared"Tate, Wilton4:19
3."The Whisper"DeGarmo3:35
4."Gonna Get Close to You" (Dalbello cover)Lisa Dalbello4:37
5."The Killing Words"DeGarmo, Tate3:56
6."Surgical Strike"DeGarmo, Wilton3:20
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Neue Regel"DeGarmo, Tate4:58
8."Chemical Youth (We Are Rebellion)"Tate, Wilton4:15
9."London"DeGarmo, Tate, Wilton5:04
10."Screaming in Digital"DeGarmo, Tate, Wilton3:39
11."I Will Remember"DeGarmo4:24
2003 CD reissue bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
12."Gonna Get Close to You" (12" version; 0:00-0:29 and 4:33-5:16 are exclusive to this version)Dalbello5:46
13."The Killing Words" (live at The Astoria Theatre, London, U.K. on October 20, 1994)DeGarmo, Tate4:10
14."I Dream in Infrared" (1991 acoustic remix)Tate, Wilton4:02
15."Walk in the Shadows" (live at Madison and La Crosse, Wisconsin on May 10–12, 1991)DeGarmo, Tate, Wilton3:39

Personnel[edit]

Queensrÿche
Additional musicians
  • Neil Kernon – keyboards
  • Bradley Doyle - emulator programming
Production

Charts[edit]

Chart (1986) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[17] 94
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[18] 85
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[19] 31
Finland (The Official Finnish Charts)[20] 21
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[21] 58
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[22] 47
UK Albums (OCC)[23] 66
US Billboard 200[24] 47

Certifications[edit]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[25] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Accolades[edit]

Rage for Order was ranked No. 88 on Kerrang! magazine's "100 Greatest Heavy Metal Albums Of All Time" in January 1989.[26]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ The Whisper / I Dream in Infrared (track listing). Queensrÿche. EMI. 1986. SPRO-9862.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  2. ^ Walk in the Shadows (track listing). Queensrÿche. EMI. 1986. SPRO-9692.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  3. ^ a b c "Queensrÿche: 1986–1987". Anybody Listening. Archived from the original on March 28, 2013. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
  4. ^ a b Loudwire (January 11, 2017). "Queensryche - Wikipedia: Fact or Fiction?". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
  5. ^ "Watch Geoff Tate Perform Acoustic Version Of QUEENSRŸCHE's 'Eyes Of A Stranger' In Italy". Blabbermouth.net. December 10, 2019. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  6. ^ a b c "Rage for Order". Anybody Listening. Archived from the original on March 31, 2013. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
  7. ^ Wiederhorn, Jon (March 19, 2010). "Garry Sharpe-Young Dies at 45". Noisecreep. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  8. ^ Wagner, Jeff (2010). Mean Deviation: Four Decades of Progressive Heavy Metal. Bazillion Points Books. p. 51. ISBN 978-0-9796163-3-4.
  9. ^ Rivadavia, Eduardo (April 25, 2017). "Queensryche Albums Ranked". Loudwire. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
  10. ^ Kerber, Scott D. (November 1, 1991). "QUEENSRYCHE TAKES ITS METAL TO THE LIMIT". The Morning Call. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  11. ^ Taylor, Robert. "Rage for Order - Queensrÿche". AllMusic. Retrieved September 7, 2011.
  12. ^ Popoff, Martin (November 1, 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 275. ISBN 978-1-894959-31-5.
  13. ^ Oliver, Derek (July 10, 1986). "Kage the Ragers". Kerrang!. Vol. 124. London, UK: United Magazines ltd. p. 12.
  14. ^ Trojan, Frank (1986). "Review Album: Queensryche - Rage for Order". Rock Hard (in German). No. 18. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  15. ^ Rolling Stone list
  16. ^ Best of Rock & Metal - Die 500 stärksten Scheiben aller Zeiten (in German). Rock Hard. 2005. p. 72. ISBN 3-89880-517-4.
  17. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  18. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0715". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  19. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Queensrÿche – Rage for Order" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  20. ^ Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
  21. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Queensryche – Rage for Order" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  22. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Queensrÿche – Rage for Order". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  23. ^ "Queensryche | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved August 22, 2021.
  24. ^ "Queensryche Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  25. ^ "American album certifications – Queensryche – Rage for Order". Recording Industry Association of America.
  26. ^ "Kerrang! 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Albums Of All Time". Rocklist.net. January 1989. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
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