More than three decades in, Michael Wilton, guitarist for Seattle progmetallers Queensryche tells Brendan Crabb about their new lease on life.
Even many years removed, Queensryche’s chart-topping peak — platinum certifications, Grammy nominations and MTV exposure included — remains somewhat surreal for guitarist Michael Wilton. Besides, this was a band sufficiently sophisticated to craft lyrics like “There’s no raison d’etre” during glam’s heyday. “I think the albums that collided with public taste in the ’90s, I think those are definitely our most popular albums,” the axeman recalls. “When a band like Queensryche hit the mainstream, that kind of shocked us.”