Where you know them:  Queensryche will perform Extended Suites: Rage for Order/American Soldier/Empire at their Boise gig.  With the band's third album, "Operation: Mindcrime,"  the Seattle quintet transcended the metal label assigned them and cemented its reputation for cerebral music and heady lyrical vision. Now more than two decades after their inception, the bands has sold 20 million albums and toured 22 different countries.

Why you should go: The band combines distinctive vocals, crunching guitars and a heart-pounding rhythm section that will tempt you to turn it up to a level just below the point of blowing out your speakers and perhaps your eardrums. The music is powerful, dramatic, progressive, diverse and electrifying. Ford has been a smokin' rock chick for longer than we can remember.

The lowdown: The band plays with ageless rock beauty Lita Ford tonight. Showtime is 8 p.m. a the Knitting Factory, Boise; tickets are $25/advance, 28/door and $60/platinum skybox, available at The Record Exchange, 800-965-4827, 466-TIXX (8499, at TicketWeb.com or KnittingFactory.com.