They aren’t just any tribute band, let alone any Queen tribute band. EPIC Queen, based out of Seattle, is – epic, and they will be playing at the San Juan Community Theatre June 14 at 7:30 p.m.

“This is a smaller venue that we typically play, a lot more intimate,” vocalist Lance McKay said, which means all those classic Queen songs will be up close and personal, and they will be playing as many songs as possible.

“There is no shortage of good Queen songs,” McKay said. His love for the band can be traced back to his childhood, dancing to Another One Bites the Dust. Lance had the ide for a Queen tribute band for a while, and even had an idea of friends that would make great band members. He wasn’t sure if they would like or hate the idea. When he finally asked, they loved it. It took a long time to learn the songs, and for Lance to study Freddy Mercury’s vocal range and style. Mercury had a wide vocal range, but McKay said, The challenge is deeper than that.

“He was such a master, for me, the challenge is that he would take different approaches, his tone changes from song to song,” McKay explained, to the point it is almost like different singers. “He did have range, but I am more impressed with his character change. “We are the Champions,” for example, is vastly different than “My Melancholy Blues.” Part of the vast spectrum in song style was because every member of the band was a songwriter. However, Mercury was able to adapt his voice brilliantly.

The Who’s lead singer, Roger Daltrey, once described Mercury as “the best virtuoso rock ‘n’ roll singer of all time. He could sing anything in any style. He could change his style from line to line and, God, that’s an art. And he was brilliant at it.”

To accurately capture that unique skill, McKay has studied Mercury’s isolated vocals on U Tube. “There is a lot more to his singing than range,” He said. “It’s the texture, character and tone that he puts into it.”

When asked what McKay’s favorite Queen songs were, he paused. “There is none that I wish we didn’t have play. Bohemian Rhapsody is an obvious one, and Melancholy Blues I love because I feel like it’s paying tribute to past singers.”

McKay pointed out that Mercury loved Aretha Franklin and admired the flexibility of her voice. In “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” according to McKay, Mercury brings out his inner Aretha Franklin.

One of Queen’s signature traits is their harmonizing style, and EPIC Queen captures that epically, by having seven members rather than four.

“I wanted to bring people Queen’s entire repertoire,” McKay explained. “If there are songs we didn’t play, trust me, we wanted to!”

The band is thrilled to be coming to the San Juans, in fact, some members are headed over early in order to spend some time in the islands. They are also excited to be playing in a more intimate setting, although it will be different from the city venues they are use to.

“It’s going to be a very unique Epic Queen experience,” McKay said.

Tickets are $65/Main Floor, $50/Balcony, $30/Student, $15 Student Rush at the door. For more information or to buy tickets, visit www.sjctheatre.org.