A DRAMATIC TURN OF EVENTS

Well... the new Dream Theater album is out. I don't think there had ever been more expectation for a new release by these prog veterans. At least not from me. The shocking news of Mike Portnoy's departure from his 20+-year-old baby left us fans with a myriad of questions. One of them, for me was: How strong was Portnoy's musical and compositional influence within the band? Will the eternal DT fan notice him not being a part of the creative process? Will this "dramatic turn of events" become a milestone in the band's career?

Now don´t get me wrong. When the unexpected schism took place I felt as if my "fan loyalty" (if such a thing exists) was, too, split in two. I've had the opportunity to meet the DT members and all of them are really good guys. I admire Mike for taking the tremendously difficult decision he took but at the same time I remained a big Dream Theater fan. I was eagerly expecting both DT's new album and MP's Adrenaline Mob mostly because I figured such a game changer would definitely have major impact in the outcome of both projects.

When the adrenaline Mob EP came out part of my expectation subsided; it was one of those WTF moments that rather than pissing you off makes you say "oh, well... things have definitely changed". Then DT (after shooting and releasing a reality show called "The Spirit Carries On") uploaded their first single "On the backs of angels" to YouTube followed by some snippets of the other songs. When I heard them I couldn't help to feel a somewhat bitter sip of "same old, same old" run down my throat; expectations went down again.

However, when it comes to Dream Theater (as well as with a couple of other bands) I have to admit I am a true fan. I will keep buying DT albums for as long as they keep doing them and the same happens with Mike Portnoy. This is because I feel as if I had a musical connection with these guys; a musical friendship if you will...

Having said that I will give my review after listening to the complete album for roughly 13-15 times. I also have to mention that I am NOT reviewing this album from the prog rock perspective but from the PROG METAL one. This genre has become so tremendously broad that I don't really see objectivity in listening and judging a 2011 Dream Theater album with the same aesthetic standards you would use to listen and judge a 1971 King Crimson album.

This album turned out to be a very pleasant surprise. The first time through the feeling I had was curiosity which was a good thing since that meant I was interested in listening it again. (Not at all what happened with Black Clouds and Silver Linings). After my 3rd or 4th time of listening through it I was having a lot of fun with what the album has to offer: really progressive sections in some of the songs, a couple of beautiful guitar solos, a more mature an sensible voice composition, fluid transitions and really good, musical, strong choruses. It is clearly reminiscent of several past albums but mostly in a good way.

"On the backs of angels" is track 1 and the first single. Not much innovation here. Metal riffs, sociopolitical topic in the lyrics, catchy chorus. The verses sound as if they should continue for a bit more. They probably wanted to keep it short for publicity purposes. You get a first taste of Mike Mangini's drum set and how different it sounds from Portnoy's. 3/5

Next yo have "Build me up, break me down". I think this song talks about Jesus or some kind of representation of God. It is a weaker song than the first track. It starts off with a tacky electronic beat courtesy of Jordan "TheWizard" Rudess' toys followed by a somewhat- prog guitar riff. This song reminds me a lot the sound of Falling into Infinity. James Labrie does some unfortunate octave doubling in the post chorus sections. The chorus itself is also catchy but not as good as the ones in other songs. 2/5

I like what they did in most of the songs choruses; Jordan Rudess plays some melodies with his synth strings that double or counterpoint the voice melodies. The result is very epic and musical.

Lost not forgotten is track 3. For me, this is where things start to get better in the album. I really like the harmonic progression for the intro. This is a very prog song. Right before the first verse there is a super fast, harmonically crazy guitar-synth unison section the likes of what they gave us in Liquid Tension Experiment. In the first and second choruses they add some obligatos that at first were kind of annoying for me but after listening the song for a few times they sound ok. The second verse sounds so much like "Images and words"! I loved that section! It is almost like a self-tribute. There is an excellent guitar solo in this song. It reminds me a lot to the one in "Under a glass moon". Not too shreddy but virtuosistic and musical; kind of like jazz-fusionesque at the end. Mangini's drumming is spot-on! Good arrangements. Good energy. Good prog! 4/5

Track 4 is This is the life. Man! Where do I begin! I LOVE this track. I think this is the best mellow track they've done since The spirit carries on. Everything in this song works. The arrangements are tasteful, it is not too long but not too short, and there are no obscure sections that apparently have nothing to do with the rest of it. The 5/4 time signature in the verse gives it a nice twist. Lyrics have a positive message which is always nice. The guitar solo is amazing! Mature, sensible, musical. Definitely the best non-prog song in the album. 5/5

Next is track 5 Bridges in the sky. Originally titled "The shaman's trance". It narrates some kind of astral travel or something like that. This song is a straight forward prog-metal-à- la-Dream-Theater epic. It features some very cool choral arrangements in the intro preceded by some tuvan throat singing. (Rudess is one hell of a musician!) The chorus is the best part of the song. Epic and extremely melodic. I can't wait to sing along to this chorus when I see them live. The instrumental section is very progressive. Very nice. Cool keyboard solo, as well. Good song. 4/5

Outcry (I swear I can hear Labrie saying "oatcry" in the first verse) is the sixth track. This track to me sums up everything Dream Theater is all about: epic, long songs, virtuosity, seamless transitions, very progressive rock. With its great obligatos, blazing unisons, superb arrangements and a kick-ass non-distorted section that serves as abridge between the instrumental part and the last chorus (which is also great) it is one of the highlights of the album. It is the song where they say "We are not done yet". Excellent. 5/5

Then we have Far from heaven. Track 7 is a beautiful, slow song. No guitars. The vocal work is very good. Strings and piano arrangements are subtle and tasteful (although the synth strings sound a little shoddy at times). I don't quite understand what the lyrics are talking about but they have an interesting, sonnet-like form. A great short, mellow song. 4/5

Breaking all illusions is track 8. This, in my opinion is the best piece of music in this album. It is also the best piece of music that I've heard from DT since Six Degrees. What they achieved in that album by means of orchestral composition they repeated in this magnificent progressive rock song. It's refreshing, bold and well-crafted. There are so many sections that intertwine. So many different moods. Definitely a statement. A statement that proves that these guys can really still make the music we love them to make. The music we expect from them. 5/5

Beneath the surface is the final track. This album should have ended with "Breaking all illusions". This final track lacks everything track 8 has. It is boring, the sound is terrible, the lyrics are SO lame, Labrie's vocals at the end are not in good taste and the arrangements fail to yield a moving effect (which I suppose was the purpose of the song) 1/5

To conclude, I have some comments on two topics. First, the production. I'm not saying it sounds bad (because it really doesn't). There's just something that I think needs some improvement. It's like some of the songs sound very different from what the whole sonic concept of the album seems. Maybe Petrucci worked better alongside Portnoy as a producer...

The other thing I wanted to address is Mangini's drumming. Mangini is a monster and I think he did a fantastic job on this album. His technical expertise is definitely comparable to the one that each of the other DT members possess. I kinda' miss Portnoy's sound, though. I can't help to feel that Mangini's drum set sounds a little "thin" in some parts. Also, the fact that everything he played was written by Petrucci (great musician but NOT a drummer) is really noticeable. I'm really looking forward to listening the second Mangini-period album and see how he participates in the compositional process.

I think this is a great album. I would call it the best modern-era DT album. I could never compare it with Awake or IaW because they definitely took a new direction with Scenes From a Memory. It hurts a bit to say this but, as an answer to the question I mentioned earlier, it seems that things had gotten a bit stale with Portnoy. He always bragged about how he "always got his way in Dream Theater" and the last albums had been displaying a gradual tendency towards a very disappointing place. I think that, for now, Dream Theater had a fresh start. This album is proof of it.