METROPOLIS PART 2 - SCENES FROM A MEMORY

I have been a DT fan since their Majesty days, and I can safely say that this is their best effort period. Indeed, it would be near impossible to top this record. Subsequently, DT has released SDOIT and ToT, which are both ridiculously good, but if it were me, I would have put this album in the vault and saved it to be released before retirement. Truly, it is a masterpiece, not just for Dream Theater and their fans, but also for progressive rock as a genre. DT (as if were not already certain) establish themselves as the undisputed monarchs of prog rock. As a guitarist, the solos on Home and Fatal Tragedy are impressive, but unlike most, Petrucci knows when to let the melody do the talking, as seen in tracks like Through Her Eyes. Portnoy, as expected, is off-the-charts astounding. Labrie (a fellow Canuck!) is inspiring and an ideal frontman for a concept such as this. Perhaps most significantly, Rudess makes his debut on this album, and certainly does not disappoint. This record is musical perfection and many a DT fans could breathe a sign of relief following the disastrous Falling Into Infinity album. While Dream Theater continues to exhibit supremacy over all that they survey, this album will stand as their greatest achievement and contribution to music.