Ruben Mosqueda of Rock Confidential recently interviewed QUEENSRŸCHE drummer Scott Rockenfield, an excerpt follows:

How involved is each member in the songwriting process and how does it differ from previous writing sessions?

"That’s exactly why we’re excited and there’s all this enthusiasm behind the new album. We’re finally... let me back up. Unfortunately, over the course of the past, many records that we’ve done hasn’t been a complete ‘band’ effort. We’ve run into a lot of conflicts of musical tastes or directions that we should take. I think the band has suffered because of it. It was something that wasn’t always done with the music always in mind. That’s why a lot of this has transpired and turned into what it did and we had to move on."

"Our goal has always been for Queensrÿche to this particular type of band. One thing we wanted to do was to revisit what that was and that to us is what made Queensrÿche – our classic material. Why were we so excited then? Let’s find that ‘excitement’ again. We wanted to do that for a while but we haven’t been able to do that. We weren’t ‘allowed’ to do that is probably a better way to put it. In a nutshell that’s what we’re doing. So to answer your question, all five of us – Michael, Parker, Eddie, Todd and I are all writing the material. It’s a huge collective effort. We’re all playing the material and then with 'Jimbo' in the fold as our producer and engineer – he’s like the sixth member of the band. The chemistry level is huge and that’s something that we haven’t had in a while. I think that’s what the fans are excited about and the anticipation is so high. Having said that—it’s a hell of a lot of pressure! Whatever, we’ll get through it! (laughs) We’re having a lot of fun. Last week in the studio was really a lot of fun.

To read the interview in its entirety, click here.

Catch Queensrÿche - fronted by Todd La Torre in place of original singer Geoff Tate - live at the following shows:

December

21 - Masonic Temple - Detroit, MI
29 - Marquee Theatre - Tempe, AZ
31 - Fremont Street Experience - Las Vegas, NV

January

12 - Kewadin Casino - Sault Ste. Marie, MI
19 - Speaking Rock Casino & Entertainment Center - El Paso, TX

February

27 - Auditorio BlackBerry - Mexico City, Mexico

March

8 - Bergen Performing Arts Center - Englewood, NJ
9 - Penn's Peak - Jim Thorpe, PA
10 - The Emporium - Patchogue, NY
12 - Wildhorse Saloon - Nashville, TN
14 - Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Biloxi - Biloxi, MS
15 - The Ritz Ybor - Tampa, FL
16 - 20 - Monsters Of Rock Cruise - Fort Lauderdale, FL
22 - House Of Blues - Lake Buena Vista, FL
30 - Mohegan Sun Casino - Uncasville, CT

April

11 - Sweden Rock Cruise - Stockholm, Sweden
13 - Club Teatria - Oulu, Finland