#nick pollock

Photo: adarkwave

Nick Pollock and Layne😘Who could blame him for planting one on him?

Frustrated Queensrÿche fans likely had something else in mind when Michael Wilton announced the formation of Soulbender as an outlet for the compositions his main band presumably wasn’t recording.  For while songs like “Clockwork and Compass” were full of heavy riffing and aggressive vocals courtesy of My Sister’s Machine frontman Nick Pollock, they bore little resemblance to the prog-metal violence diehard fans were probably hoping for. That said, the song and accompanying Soulbender album were more intense than anything Queensrÿche had done in a long time, and even if Wilton wasn’t dropping the hammer the way most were expecting, he did bring precision and intensity to the proceedings, while Pollock growled convincingly.  Certainly, it was strange to hear Wilton playing a version of alt-metal that was likely 10 years past its sell-by date, but not any more so than Queensrÿche records like Tribe or Operation: Mindcrime II, so there was that.  Despite plans for Soulbender being an ongoing concern, the band didn’t do much after this one record, but “Clockwork and Compass” was a nice showcase for Wilton’s versatility, showing that he could still deliver the heaviness even if it came in a different form.

Layne Staley and Nick Pollock performing with Sleze (early Alice In Chains)