QUEENSRŸCHE unleash their new album, American Soldier, today (March 31st). The band will be begin their US tour on April 16th in their hometown of Seattle.

Queensrÿche singer Geoff Tate has checked in with BraveWords.com correspondent Deb Rao to discuss the unveiling of American Soldier.

Q: How did the concept of American Soldier come into fruition?

A: "That was something that sort of evolved. As I collected interviews I really started seeing commonalities in their stories and their experiences. So I focused on what those commonalities were and created outlines of their stories and that is what we intended to focus on in constructing the songs. We really just tried to paint the picture of what their experiences were. When the project first begin. It was really just a project of asking questions and collecting answers really. The whole thing really evolved fairly quickly within a few weeks that it would be a good idea to record them, the words and impressions. As I got more and more conversations recorded I realized that the emotion in their voices and just the authenticity of their experiences would really be better if I recorded them. We started filming them and actually conducting interviews with proper microphones so we could use the audio."

Q: Was it hard to orchestrate the music to this album? There was a lot of spoken word by the Soldiers on the album.

A: "What we tried to do is paint the picture musically in support of what the words were saying. The words were of course taken from the interviews. Actually, the interviews were really invaluable in writing the songs. Because you could sit and listen to the audiotapes and watch the film interviews you would really walk away from those with a musical impression. It really helped us write to it".

Q: One of the most moving songs on the albums is a song that you did with your daughter Emily on 'Home Again'. In retrospect, after listening to the song it can take on two meanings being a Father on tour away from his family, or a soldier leaving his family for war. What was the inspiration behind this song?

A: "It was an interview that I did with a Soldier that was talking how difficult it was to be away from your family and be thousands of miles away and being in a very dangerous situation. We were kind of plotting in that concept in a sense because of the amount of time that I spend away from children. I can definitely relate to his opinion on it. As he was talking about his experience I was really relating to it that is the inspiration for the song. I had just finished writing the song actually; my daughter came home from school. She asked, ”What are you doing?" I said," I just finished writing this song. Do you want to hear it?" She said, "Yeah". So I was playing it down for her. After she listened to it I said, ”What do you think?" She looked up from reading the lyrics and she had tears rolling down her face. I said, ”What is wrong? Why are you crying?" She said, ”Well I am just so happy that you wrote a song about me." So I said,” You think that is about you?" She said,"Yeah, you are gone all the time. I really miss you. I get scared sometimes. I call you and you don't answer the phone". It hit me right then that she really connected with this song. I said, "do you want to sing it with me?" She said,"Yeah". So I quickly put the microphone up and got her headphone mix going and she sang the song. We took two or three takes on it. But the emotion and the innocence that she had in her delivery was really special I thought. It really captured the feeling of the song really well."

Q: The album cover has a picture of the Soldiers combat boots on the cover. What does this denote to you?

A: "Do you know the old saying, 'How can you know me until you walk in my shoes?' I think the album cover really says that. It is an hour of music where you get to walk in the Soldiers boots for a while. You really get to understand their experiences first hand."

Queensrÿche tour dates:

April

16 - Snoqualmie, WA - Snoqualmie Casino
17 - Snoqualmie, WA - Snoqualmie Casino
18 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theatre
19 - Chico, CA - Senator Theatre
22 - Anaheim, CA - House Of Blues
23 - San Diego, CA - House Of Blues
24 - Los Angeles, CA - House Of Blues
25 - Las Vegas, NV - House Of Blues
26 - Salt Lake City, UT - The Depot
28 - Denver, CO - Paramount Theater
29 - Kansas City, MO - Voodoo Lounge @ Harrah's
30 - Milwaukee, WI - Northern Lights Theater

May

1 - Milwaukee, WI - Northern Lights Theater
3 - Walker, MN - Northern Lights Casino
5 - Grand Rapids, MI - Intersection
6 - Cleveland, OH - House Of Blues
7 - Chicago, IL - House Of Blues
8 - Chicago, IL - House Of Blues
9 - Mt. Clemens, MI - Emerald Theatre
10 - Greensburg, PA - Palace Theatre
12 - Verona, NY - Turning Stone Casino
13 - Stamford, CT - The Palace Theater
14 - Sayerville, NJ - Starland Ballroom
15 - New York, NY - Nokia Theatre
16 - Atlantic City, NJ - House Of Blues
17 - N. Myrtle Beach, SC - House Of Blues
19 - Tampa, FL - Ruth Eckerd Hall
20 - Lake Buena Vista, FL - House Of Blues
21 - New Orleans, LA - House Of Blues
22 - Houston, TX - House Of Blues
23 - San Antonio, TX - Hemisfair Park
24 - Dallas, TX - House Of Blues
29 - Albuquerque, NM - Kiva Auditorium
30 - Phoenix, AZ - Dodge

June

4 - San Francisco, CA - Fillmore
5 - Kelseyville, CA - Konocti Harbor