QUEENSRŸCHE Guitarist On Lineup Changes: 'If You Miss The Bus, It's Not Gonna Wait For You'

March 4, 2019

QUEENSRŸCHE guitarist Michael Wilton says that drummer Scott Rockenfield "gave his blessing" for the band to continue without him.

For the past 23 months, Rockenfield has been taking time off from QUEENSRŸCHE's touring activities to spend time with his young son, who was born in early 2017. Filling in for him has been former KAMELOT drummer Casey Grillo.

While Scott has not publicly addressed his status with QUEENSRŸCHE, it was recently revealed that the drum tracks on the band's latest album, "The Verdict", were laid down by singer Todd La Torre.

Witon spoke about Rockenfield's current status in QUEENSRŸCHE during a brand new interview with "Rock Talk With Mitch Lafon".

Asked if Scott's absence from QUEENSRŸCHE is permanent, Michael said (hear audio below): "Well, we don't know. As far as Scott, he's been drumming [in QUEENSRŸCHE] for 35 years and he just said he wants to do something else, and we respect his privacy. He's just gone down a different path. He's got a family, he's working and he's spending time with [them]. So it's an open door if he ever wants to come back and tour. But otherwise, QUEENSRŸCHE is a machine, and if you miss the bus, it's not gonna wait for you. You've gotta move on and continue. He gave his blessing and everything. He's [doing] his own thing right now, and we respect his privacy."

Wilton also talked about QUEENSRŸCHE's resilience and ability to bounce back despite being faced with several key lineup changes over the course of its nearly four-decade career.

"We're dedicated to the cause," Michael said. "We like to think we're writing music that's relevant now. We like to always be moving forward, as far as our evolution. You know what it comes down to? It comes down… It's simple — it's the song, it's the songwriting. If the song moves people, it doesn't matter who wrote it or who played it or whatever — it's about the music. And that's kind of the way it is. Look, you've got some key DNA in the band, so when the longtime fans hear the music, they hear a bit of the old style, and they go, 'Wow! That sounds like QUEENSRŸCHE.' Well, you know what? There's DNA that isQUEENSRŸCHE that came up and wrote the music for QUEENSRŸCHE that started the band that's inQUEENSRŸCHE, so I guess it's gonna sound like QUEENSRŸCHE."

"The Verdict" was released on March 1 via Century Media Records. The disc was produced, mixed, and mastered by Chris "Zeuss" Harris (ROB ZOMBIE, ICED EARTH, HATEBREED) at Uberbeatz in Lynwood, Washington; Planet-Z in Wilbraham, Massachusetts; and Watershed Studio in Seattle, Washington.

QUEENSRŸCHE's spring U.S. headline tour with special guests FATES WARNING kicked off on March 2 in Orlando and will make stops in major markets such as New York, Atlanta, Chicago, and Los Angeles before wrapping up on April 3 in Seattle.

Find more on Queensryche
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).