INTERVIEW: Bass Player (Eddie Jackson)

Knights of the Roundtable: Queensrÿche’s Eddie Jackson and Armored Saint’s Joey Vera Discuss the State of Metal Bass

Even though Queensrÿche and Armored Saint were cornerstones of the ‘80s metal scene neither one fit neatly into any exclusive sub-genre of that particular era. The first two records released by Seattle’s Queensrÿche in the early ‘80s were clearly influenced by the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, but by the time they got to their third record, Rage for Order (EMI, 1986), a singular sound began to emerge. Incorporating a more layered and progressive quality to their songs, along with the digital recording technologies that were beginning to emerge at the time, Queensrÿche began to separate themselves from the rest of the pack. The “Queensrÿche sound” was solidified on their fourth record, Operation: Mindcrime (EMI, 1988), an ambitious concept album regarded by many as the band’s defining masterpiece.

Armored Saint was also clearly influenced by the NWOBHM early in their career. Their debut full-length,March of the Saint (Chrysalis, 1984) and follow-up, Delirious Nomad (Chrysalis, 1985), have more in common with Judas Priest and Iron Maiden than Mötley Crüe, Dokken and Ratt—some of their LA-based contemporaries. But because they emerged from and during the Los Angeles hair metal scene, they were often, and erroneously, lumped into that category. Other times, they were inexplicably thrown in with the Bay Area thrash metal scene. In actuality, they had little to do with either. While Armored Saint never achieved the commercial success Queensrÿche has, they did carve out a similar, unique niche for themselves within the metal community. They are also held in very high esteem individually, as musicians, by their peers.