An interview with Geoff Tate on tour across America for over thirty dates on what will mark the band’s first major U.S tour of the with Mindcrime with friends and bandmates who performed on Operation: Mindcrime‘s new album “The Key”, including guitarists Kelly Gray (Queensryche) and Scott Moughton (Geoff Tate), drummers Simon Wright (AC/DC) and Scott Mercado (Candlebox) and keyboardist Randy Gane (Myth).
I got to talk to Geoff on the second night of the tour when the band had just returned from an extensive European tour in November and December that took them to such countries as Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The European adventure was the band’s first tour in support of its debut album, “The Key”, which came out on Frontiers Music Srl in September 2015.
How did you first show of the tour in Fresno go?
Geoff: It was great. It was a great first show. We had been to Europe already touring for five weeks and last night was our first show of the North American run and it was fantastic. The band is playing great and the set list is really interesting I think and covers all of the albums I have done in my career. It is a wonderful thing. We have a short acoustic set where we bring out acoustic guitars and a stand up bass and it is a very cool set.
What was the feeling like for you personally when you were actually standing up in front of a crowd on American soil and ready to rock – and start the tour – did that feel good?
Geoff: It feels good to be back on the road again. I love performing and I love travelling and going to all the different places and this year on the European run I went to my 60th country, Croatia, that was the first time I had played there. I am quite happy with that.
Did you see a lot of die hard fans at your show last night?
Geoff: Yeah, we met quite a few people. Most of the people I have met before – we have been coming to Fresno for quite a few years – I see a lot of friendly faces and people I recognize or have met many times.
How are you actually travelling, are you in a bus? Does it have “Geoff Tate” written on it so fans can maybe recognize it when you are on the road?
Geoff: (laughs)They might recognize it. It has some of my imagery on the bus – in a kind of subtle form so you can’t really tell at first look what it is, but the more closely you look at it you can see it – sort of like the music I write!
What can you say to fans about meeting you if they want to – are they having meet and greets?
Geoff: Yeah – we have meet and greets and some of them are before the show and some of them are after the show depending on what is planned at each show. We also have our Insignia wine events before the shows and they are always fun – wine and rockstars and people– you never know what is going to happen!
I am going to ask you a fun question. The last time I ever met you, you had long, long hair and every time you perform you have a slightly different image. What is your image right now?
Geoff: (laughs). I have some hair – I have grown some hair and am sporting a Mohawk, but of course I don’t know if that will change by the time I get to Houston!
What would you like to say to fans coming to the show?
Geoff: Well we are playing songs from all my albums over the last 35 years or so… and some new songs from The Key…we have a short acoustic set in the middle show and it is a very intense musical show – familiar songs to everyone and some new ones as well!
How is your voice sounding?
Geoff: Oh excellent. It sounds great!
Great! Venues will have to tie the roofs down before you come!
