Some of these people talking about how it is "barely metal" need to get a room

go back and listen to "Operation Mindcrime", because many of the songs on that album were more hard rock-oriented than heavy metal

If that Geoff Tate bullshit is what you expect to be one of the better albums of the year, I question what exactly is bad to you.

So yeah, the closest actual examples I can think of would be when Rod Evans was walking around with his fake Deep Purple under the active Deep Purple's nose, the two rival Survivor line-ups in the 90s, or the same thing with LA Guns in the 2000s.

I will say this much: That track was a step up from Wot We Do. But I'm also pretty sure that Bossa Nova Beatles album by DJ Zen at the local grocery store is better than Wot We Do. So, you know, gold star, you get to ride the short bus home today.
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With Tate having released a solo album in Nov 2012, it's hard to imagine where he could have found enough inspiration for 10 or so new songs.

Well there's a difference between wanting to write a better album (while being a young, up-and-coming musician just finding his way) than the other guys, and wanting to be first (and being a fat washed-up old has-been). Dave Mustaine actually formed a real band with other fresh new talents, built up a repertoire, and released an album when he was ready to (by the time Killing is My Business was released, Metallica were already touring on their second album), while Tater rounded up a bunch of hair band musicians who should have retired 20 years ago and threw something together in a few months.

Think of it this way--Frequency Unknown is a means to an end (for Tater to win his legal battle against Queensryche) while Killing is My Business was the end itself.

After 30+ years of music making, most bands are content to simply trudge along, putting out the same old type of album again and again, trying to recapture the glory of days past. Not this band, not Queensrÿche. With every new release, Geoff Tate and company push themselves into new directions, new sounds, and dizzying new heights. The result is that Queensrÿche is just as vital and musically relevant today as they ever were. Even when they revisit older ideas, as they did in 2006 with the long awaited sequel to Operation: Mindcrime, the result was one of the most thrilling releases of their extraordinary career. Now, a new chapter is about to be written, a new album, and a new line-up that unites frontman Tate with a stellar group of new players and seasoned vets. Arguably the heaviest version of Queensrÿche ever assembled, the band not only wrote and recorded the 10 brand new songs on Frequency Unknown, but also will be hitting the road to perform the entire Operation: Mindcrime album at select venues across the nation in celebration of that album’s 25th anniversary. Make no mistake about it, Queensrÿche is still a musical force to be reckoned with and their legions of fans will undoubtedly be celebrating in 2013!

You're assuming marketing copywriters have souls. I dispute this assertion.

I refuse to believe that was written by a professional, it bleeds cringe-worthy facebook-bio.