OCTAVARIUM

With three consecutive almost perfectly-crafted albums already in their laps the last five years, why should there be any reason to be weak at the next destination? Or, why not the other way around? These are fair questions. Without any intention to straightly respond to them, Dream Theater doing just well with this new, controversial album to show us how both optimism and skepticism can simultaneously occurred -- and to just compensate each others.

The weak side: there are things spread across almost every track that remind us on materials and characters of other bands, both from recent days and the past; we, therefore, are also elevated to a point from which we have to ask about the band's (let's call it) pledge of allegiance to progressive rock. And why not? Because in listening we can find The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Rush, Yes, Genesis, probably also Black Sabbath. We hear U2 and Muse as well.

Thanks to the band's solidity and maturity, and the individual and collective musicianships, virtuosities, and particularly songcraftsmanships, we can happily bury the weak side. This album, for instance, still offers Petrucci's proficient, jaw-dropping guitar solos in its rather reduced but well-placed portions. And the other guys are also still there. Above all, we have to admit the band's ability to take a wide range of musical genre and influence and make it all theirs, if not fresh.

This album is not the band's perfect effort indeed. Nevertheless, we still can see it as a proof that Dream Theater is not losing its rank and reputation as one of progressive rock champions yet.