Trinity at B.B. King Blues Club & Grill

Left to right, Blaze Bayley, Geoff Tate and Tim "Ripper" Owens

Trinity is a trio of heavy metal singers. Geoff Tate was in Queensryche during its glory years, Tim “Ripper” Owens replaced Rob Halford in Judas Priest from 1996 to 2002, and Blaze Bayley replaced Bruce Dickinson in Iron Maiden from 1994 to 1999. Tate's current band, Operation: Mindcrime, was recording an album and Tate invited Owens and Bayley to sing on a song, "Taking on the World." The three were shooting a video for the song in Tate's hometown of Monroe, Washington. What was at that time planned to be the beginning of an Operation: Mindcrime tour turned into Trinity, a 10-night northeast tour where the three vocalists would sing pivotal songs from their careers backed by Operation: Mindcrime.

The brief tour closed tonight with a headlining engagement at B.B. King Blues Club & Grill. The two-hour concert began with the three vocalists singing together on the song that brought them together, "Taking on the World," from Resurrection, the second album in a concept trilogy from Tate's Operation: Mindcrime project. For the bulk of the show, however, the vocalists rotated time on the stage without the others. Tate sang two Queensryche songs, Bayley sang two Maiden songs, Owens sang his namesake Priest song, "The Ripper" and then a song from his more recent band, Beyond Fear. The three vocalists then rotated again for three songs apiece before the three reunited onstage together for a cover of Maiden's "Wrathchild" and later, a finale encore of Priest's "Living after Midnight." The band did much of the heavy lifting, providing strong backup to the three vocalists, who also performed to their strengths. In the end, however, just as Owens began his music career in a Priest tribute band, no one attempted to break new ground beyond the opening song but instead made for a unique retrospectives band.

Setlist:

1.       Taking on the World (Tate, Bayley, and Owens on vocals)

2.       Empire (Queensrÿche song) (Tate on vocals)

3.       I Don't Believe in Love (Queensrÿche song) (Tate on vocals)

4.       Run to the Hills (Iron Maiden cover) (Bayley on vocals)

5.       The Trooper (Iron Maiden cover) (Bayley on vocals)

6.       The Ripper (Judas Priest cover) (Owens on vocals)

7.       Scream Machine (Beyond Fear cover) (Owens on vocals)

8.       The Stranger (Operation: Mindcrime song) (Tate on vocals)

9.       The Needle Lies (Queensrÿche song) (Tate on vocals)

10.   Jet City Woman (Queensrÿche song) (Tate on vocals)

11.   Man on the Edge (Iron Maiden cover) (Bayley on vocals)

12.   Fear of the Dark (Iron Maiden cover) (Bayley on vocals)

13.   The Number of the Beast (Iron Maiden cover) (Bayley on vocals)

14.   Burn in Hell (Judas Priest cover) (Owens on vocals)

15.   When the Eagle Cries (Iced Earth cover) (Owens on vocals)

16.   Breaking the Law (Judas Priest cover) (Owens on vocals)

17.   Wrathchild (Iron Maiden cover) (Tate, Bayley, and Owens on vocals)

18.   Eyes of a Stranger (Queensrÿche song) (Tate on vocals)

Encores:

19.   Highway to Hell (AC/DC cover) (snippet; Owens on guitar and singing one verse) >>

20.   Living After Midnight (Judas Priest cover) (Tate, Bayley, and Owens on vocals with Owens on guitar)