History & Biography Seattle, Washington, USA-based Q5 was a hard rock band with a science fiction affinity that was founded by Jonathan K and Rose in 1982 and disbanded in 1988. The two founders were in C.o.r.e., a band which had opened locally for Sammy Hagar. Several members of TKO, which had its roots in Mojo Hand, had decamped over to join Floyd Rose and Jonathan K, in 1983, who had already written a few songs together. Floyd is known for his guitar playing, but was actually both a singer and guitarist in the past. As such, Q5 was a union of members of C.o.r.e and TKO. The guitarist, who was the inventor of the eponymous locking tremolo for the guitar in Reno, Nevada in 1978, and who later lived in California, left after two records and the remaining band members founded Nightshade. The new band remained on Music For Nations.
Q5 re-appeared for a show at Headbangers Open Air in 2009, went back into slumber and then played at Sweden Rock Festival in 2014. Frankie Rongo of Nightshade drummed in 2009. Sweden Rock instigated the name Q5 being resurrected. The group’s 2016 record featured mostly original members except for Rose who was long gone. Guitarist Dennis Turner was on the record, but would leave in 2018. Another major overhaul occurred in 2020 leaving only singer Scott K. standing. Bassist Sheeley had departed in 2019.
The debut record Steel The Light – note the spelling – featured music from Demo 1983 and Demo 1984. The album was independently issued by the band’s manager before Music For Nations gave it a new cover and a re-release in Europe. Atlantic took over in Canada. Ken Kinnear, who managed Heart through Albatross Productions, was impressed by the demos and had signed the band to a management deal. The man had actually managed Mojo Hand first. The debut record, which was planned to be an EP earlier, was well promoted in Europe. MFN also issued a promotional Steel The Light mini-LP in 1985. Q5 opened for Twisted Sister/Y&T and Lita Ford. The second album, When The Mirror Cracks, featured the same line-up as the debut, but did not garner as much attention as its predecessor. It was watered down with keyboards. The band had ditched its logo and was aiming for an AOR sound with Sheeley doing double duty on bass and keyboards. Nonetheless, QPrime Management (Metallica) and the Squawk label were interested enough to sign the band and release the record in the USA. New songs were in the works, but the band broke up due to pressure from the same new management and label to commercialize, as well as internal differences. Jonathan and Rick were the first to leave. They initiated Nightshade. Evan Sheeley, Floyd Rose and Gary Thompson recruited Canadian singer Marty and recorded an album. The demos ostensibly went to Ted Templeman who had worked with Eddie Van Halen. The guitarist and Floyd Rose were not friendly and had rival claims on the tremolo system and so, the story goes, Eddie vetoed Templeman and Warner Music signing Q5 and the Canadian singer. Sheeley would own the Bass Northwest shop in Seattle later.
Nightshade’s debut featured material written for Q5 initially. In fact, and to remind fans of the connection between the two bands, Nightshade's debut Dead Of Night featured the same spaceship that was on Steel The Light. Q5’s European festival appearance in 2009 coincided with Nightshade appearances with shared members doing double-duty. The first Nightshade album featured a sticker heralding the status of the members as being formerly of Q5. The reformed group was at Sweden Rock Festival with guitarist Rick Van Zandt of Metal Church in 2014 and called it a one-off, yet signed to Frontiers Records in 2015. “One-off” notwithstanding, the band had also played at Rock You To Hell festival II in Greece and also Cyprus in November 2014. Jeffrey McCormack of Nightshade, an old Q5 fan himself, drummed on New World Order. This record was due in 2015 initially. The group appeared at the Keep It True XX and attended NAMM in 2017. The band again hit Europe in 2018 playing Steel The Light in its entirety, but Rick Pierce had disappeared from the act. Guitarist Duffy Delgado came and went and was replaced by Chris Egar in 2020. Bassist Michael Self of Priest also came and went. The band uploaded a new track in 2021. Floyd Rose was contributing on guitar. The group was at Keep It True Rising 2023. Rick Pierce was in RPG to which Floyd Rose also contributed. RPG had promised a (delayed) album.
Great White, October 31, Powergod, Wolf and others have covered Q5.
Reviews Q5 - STEEL THE LIGHT - MUSIC FOR NATIONS 
The cover artwork, for the rerelease of Steel The Light, made me a fan of this album even before hearing the music. The album was advertised in all the metal magazines of the day and not only sported a distinctive and bright cover artwork, but was also attractive to a sci-fi fan. The record was released by Q5 independently before being reissued by MFN over in Europe and, in the process, given a makeover. Either way, the band’s futuristic logo predated the new artwork. Incidentally, a couple of years later Agent Steel’s Unstoppable Force artwork would remind me of the original Steel The Light cover.
Steel The Light is quite an amazing hard rocker and not just for a peculiarly amazing Seattle-area scene with bands like Queensrÿche, Culprit and yes TKO, but also for a band that often crosses the border into AOR country. In fact, be forewarned, the Q5 debut is an album of two sides. The first side is almost perfection, while side B goes off into commercial rock territory. It has been a question mark at Metallian Towers what the backstory to that is. Anyone? Regardless, the first side is so good that it knocks the overall ratings’ average off kilter.
Missing In Action is a barnstormer with the technical word for the vocals, guitar and its lead work, the rumbling bass and drums being ‘wow.’ It goes for the jugular immediately and doesn’t let go for three minutes. Not sure if this is an advertisement or detractor, but the song could be described as AC/DC going speed metal. There is a riff here in the vicinity of Blacklace’s Speed Of Sound. Singer Jonathan Scott K. (previously Scott Palmerton) spews fire and the guitar spews electricity. Certainly, none of the instruments are MIA even for a moment. Lonely Lady may be a commercial song with a commercial topic, but it is sublime nonetheless because the galloping structure, as well as the catchy and upbeat refrain belie a complex structure and off-the-charts’ instrument proficiency. The guitar solo is a classic and that bassist is almost too modest in his understated presence. Floyd Rose’s tremolo invention gets a proof of concept on this song no doubt. The track is not a ballad like Crimson Glory’s Lonely, but many of the characteristics described, as well as the high-pitched harmony and catchiness, are commonalities to both songs. Lonely Lady captures some heavy metal drumming for you to emulate. It fades out like a pop song. The title track is the longest song of the LP and a clear hard rock tune, but it would be lying to say one doesn’t hear a Journey/Eye Of The Tiger vibe. It is melodic, powerful and just a showcase for the virtuoso nature of the involved players including a crackling bass and extended soloing. Too bad the band introduces synthesisers to hammer home its sci-fi point. I need an equaliser that omits the keyboards even if the song begins with a lick reminiscent of Rush’s Tom Sawyer. Still, heck of a chord progression. Everything else is impressive on the well constructed and powerful song that the band clearly deliberately keeps in second gear. It would be easy to mistake Scott K. with Journey’s Robert Fleischman as he performs on the dual channel. The vocalist has a lot of control and is a chameleon with his tonality at will. The drum sound is crisp. The lyrics tell a tale of fantasy on this gem of a track. The fascinating lyrics could be referring to Prometheus and the gift of fire. It is obvious that this track is from the same era as Accept’s Princess Of The Dawn. Pull The Trigger - notice the AC/DC connection? - begins with the vibe of Queensrÿche and sliding guitars that sound like a siren, but those are the vocals of Kix (who followed) and a couple of riffs from Balls To The Walls for most of the song. It is hard rock heaven when the guitar revs. Metal guitar fans will not be left wanting after this song.
Ain’t No Way To Treat A Lady begins the next side and is a mere two minutes long. Winger had the 17-year-old. Q5 has the 16-year-old. Take that Winger! The track has a glam metal vibe too. And, for the record, the reason she isn’t being treated like a lady is because she is not a lady. The vocals on In The Night are tonally different. The song itself is more tepid. The AOR edge that is nearly alway threatening to bust out from under the hard rock and heavy metal makes a bigger appearance. The lyrics go, “Streets are cold and damp from a midnight rain” and a M. Rain is credited as a co-songwriter. Mike Rain was actually the bass player for The Core. Come And Gone is a cheesy ballad, but the lead work is immaculate. Still, obviously side B is turning out not as successfully as side A. Rock On is 100% Jackyl. Does Jesse James Dupree know who his father is? If not, tell him to call me. Topically, Teenage Runaway reminded me of Bon Jovi’s teenager in Runaway. The music is influenced by AC/DC. Not only is Side A better than B, but also titles like Rock On are incongruous with the sci-fi presentation. At times, it’s like two different bands. It is likely unfair as a semantic expression, but the mark given is primarily for the face the band puts forward on the first few songs.
One last thing, this record has a very good sound, and was actually ahead of most bands in 1983/1984, and even more so considering how it was recorded independently. - Ali “The Metallian”
Q5 - WHEN THE MIRROR CRACKS - MUSIC FOR NATIONS 
Look, the last album from Q5, 1984’s Steel The Light, hinted at AOR and commercial sounds, but a mere two years later it is 1986 and the act’s second album begins with a song called Livin' On The Borderline and all one could think about is Glenn Frey and The Heat Is On. It is a poppy piece of AOR replete with synthetic instrumentation, computerised music and a blatant attempt at garnering radio play. It is a commercial ploy alright, but given the strength of the debut of the group one could imagine forgiving the band for having procured themselves a hit single before getting back on the saddle with subsequent tracks. What the heck? Next track, Your Tears (Will Follow Me) is as silly and obvious. A cool solo, but the song would make Bon Jovi and Europe sound positively metal in comparison. “But you were my lover/And I was your friend… Ooh we had it that sweet innocence/In a sense…” This is not Q5, at least not the one anyone who heard the debut would recognize. The track after is called Never Gonna Love Again and you don’t need Metallian to tell you that it sounds like Aldo Nova’s unreleased demos unearthed and shipped as Q5! Let me get this straight. The band features a guy in it who invented a guitar’s tremolo system? It makes full sense that Rose jumped ship right after this recording although word has it that Floyd was pushing the commercial sound. The record was also taped at his studio. Yet, to be fair, Stand By Me and the title track do sound as if they could have come off Judas Priest’s Turbo. So there is that (in other words, it is that bad). Surely, the song Let Go shows off singer Jonathan Scott K.’s commercial potential, but he is in the wrong band, scene and on the wrong label for it to happen.
Side B does not fare any better. Runaway, In The Rain or I Can’t Wait are as bad as Side A’s material. Rarely has a band sold out this blatantly. No mirror is going to crack because of these songs’ power or impact. They may shatter from embarrassment though. In fact, it is unclear how Eddie Murphy missed Q5 when he was compiling songs for his endless Beverly Hills Cops sequels. Heck, he could have asked them to contribute music to his own during the 'Party All The Time' era.
Love Loverboy, Survivor and Alphaville, but have purchased every single thing they’ve ever released and are longing for more? Call me and, for a modest fee, I’ve got a hot tip for you! - Ali “The Metallian”
Q5 - NEW WORLD ORDER - FRONTIERS 
This is a return to hard rock and heavy metal for Q5. The album sounds like a cross between AC/DC, Krokus and Saxon. This is an obvious improvement over the second album, the most recent effort produced by the Washington, USA act albeit from way back in 1986, which saw the quintet go the way of radio friendly pop rock in a failed attempt at making it big.
New World Order, also the first album without guitar virtuoso Rose Floyd, is good and with One Night In Hellas delivers a punchy hard rock tune that is infectious. However, it still is not in the same league as the incredible Steel The Light from 1984. The Van Halen principle lives on. Debut albums are the best. New World Order is not as political as the title suggests and songs like The Right Way, We Came To Rock or Just One Kiss are rocking and rolling party anthems. Nothing wrong with that, and nothing wrong with AC/DC, Krokus or Saxon, except that fans of those bands can simply go listen to them. Frankly, it is unreasonable to think a band would remain the same and be consistent with its music from 30 years prior. On the other hand, a track like A Warrior’s Song is plain boring even if it contains the “When you come to steel the light” line. The instrumental Mach Opus 206 has a segment reminiscent of Kingdom Come’s Highway 6. The title track, in the meantime, could have been a Gary Moore song.
The band is skilled at its craft, this is a bona fide hard rock album and the members come across as nice guys too, but Steel The Light steals the light for me. - Ali “The Metallian”
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