Operation: Mindcrime II is the ninth studio album by the American progressive metal band Queensrÿche. It is a concept album and the sequel to the group’s 1988 release, Operation: Mindcrime, which had achieved both critical and commercial success. Mindcrime II was released on April 4, 2006 in the United States,[1] on March 29 in Japan, on March 31 in Germany, and on April 3 in the rest of world, with the Rhino Entertainment label providing distribution. The lead single, titled “I’m American,” was performed by Queensrÿche during their 2005 tour, which they took in support of the group Judas Priest.
The album resumes the story of Mindcrime, which is that of Nikki, a drug-addicted political revolutionary who had worked as an assassin before his disillusionment and arrest. Nikki had been jailed for the murder of prostitute-turned-nun Sister Mary at the end of Mindcrime, with his sanity slipping as he genuinely didn’t know who had killed Mary and had grown close to her before her death. As Mindcrime II begins, eighteen years later, Nikki is released from prison and begins to plot his revenge against Dr. X, a manipulative demagogue from the first album that had treated Nikki as his puppet.
Vocalist Pamela Moore reprises her role as Sister Mary for the album. The role of Dr. X (played by actor Anthony Valentine on the first album) went to famous heavy metal singer Ronnie James Dio. Singer Geoff Tate handles the vocals for the protagonist.
Following the split between Geoff Tate and the rest of Queensrÿche in 2012, it was revealed in a sworn declaration by producer Jason Slater that the album received very limited contributions from the band members aside from Tate and Mike Stone. Much of the music was recorded by studio musicians due to conflicts between Tate and his bandmates.[2] Drummer Scott Rockenfield did not play on the album at all. As well, most of the guitars, including Michael Wilton‘s tracks, were re-recorded by engineer Mitch Doran.[3] Some of the bass tracks used are demo recordings played by Slater, while the drum track to “I’m American” is a MIDI recording made by Doran that was not originally intended for use on the final album.[3]
The album debuted on the Billboard 200 album chart at No. 14, the highest chart position for a Queensrÿche album since Promised Land peaked at No. 3 in 1994.[4] The tracks “I’m American” and “The Hands” have been released as singles, with accompanying music videos being created.