DREAM THEATER

Like I do with many albums, I obsessed over Black Clouds & Silver Linings. I counted down the days until it was released from 60, and went to the store bright and early to pick it up. I raced home and immediately played it.

My first impression was "Dream Theater is back! They have created a masterpiece!" While this somewhat holds true, after many listens, I now see that Dream Theater has taken a step in the right direction, but are by no means making their best music again.

A very powerful track called A Nightmare To Remember starts the album. It is the best song on the album. While it is not nearly as progressive as their previous efforts, there are some moments that will appeal to progressive metal fans. The song is also the heaviest on the album, featuring growls and blast beats. The guitar and keyboard solos are more restrained and focused on creative ideas, but they do overdo it at some points.

The next two tracks are the appeal to the radio. While they aren't bad, the tracks are too straight forward and don't have enough progressive elements. A Rite of Passage has a guitar solo where Petrucci goes over the top with the shredding. Instead of coming up with creative ideas, all he focuses on is playing fast. Wither is also an alright song, but it never goes anywhere, like most songs on the radio.

I was excited to hear track four, The Shattered Fortress. The other four parts of the 12-Step Suite are some of my favorite Dream Theater songs. While I'm not disappointed, I think that the conclusion could have been much more powerful. Over half the song is riffs and vocal melodies extracted from the previous numbers. There is some originality, and good instrumentals, but once again, it is a bit overdone. Also, there is a lack of prog.

The Best of Times is dedicated to Mike Portnoy's father who recently passed away. It is one of the most powerful songs on the album, starting slow, and then developing into a Rush-like song. There are very little progressive elements, however the song still stands strong. This is because of the guitar solo at the end. Instead of once again proving to the world that he could play fast, Petrucci creates a solo based on the melody of the song. It is the best solo on the album, and one of the only ones that has any emotion in it.

The conclusion to the album is the longest track, The Count of Tuscany. Judging by the length, I thought it was going to be the best. Simply put: I was wrong. It is true, the music is great. The instrumental sections are full of prog elements. However, the lyrics are horrible! They were obviously meant to rhyme, and it doesn't look like any thought was put into them. Still, the prog sections and the space rock section in the middle make this track worth listening to. The end also has a nice build-up.

If you are a Dream Theater fan, chances are you already have this album. However, if you don't, and you are looking for a good addition to a prog metal collection, this isn't a bad album to buy. Just don't expect another Images and Words of Scenes From A Memory.

Dream Theater's latest album was a very positive surprise. It certainly struck me in a whole different way than their last few albums, more or less all the ones with Jordan Rudess. I wasn't expecting a good album, actually quite the opposite, since their previous effort Systematic Chaos was a total disaster in my opinion. But it turned out that they had gotten back some of the inspiration lost through the years.

The first track sounded like the heaviest, most diverse and coolest track the band had ever done at first, but now I feel it isn't any of those things. It doesn't really excite me much anymore, but still, it is a fine epic. Actually, pretty much the whole album has degraded from "incredible" to "fine" in time. I have nothing specific to mention about the shorter songs, since they leave me with an empty feeling. Mike Portnoy finishes his AA suite in a fine way. Even though it is basically a collection of recycled ideas, they form a nice flow, and some of them struck me more in this context than in their original places. The Best Of Times is the opposite: very incoherent. It has a couple of nice ideas, but they are buried in the mess. Gladly, the one last song, The Count Of Tuscany has maintained most of it's quality in the test of time. Still amazes me everytime.

It's a pity that Dream Theater didn't put their full spirit into this recording, because it could have been the best thing they've done in a long time. It certainly beats the previous album, but I'm not so sure about Octavarium or Train Of Thought which both have done me the just opposite effect from this: they've grown on me in time, and now I find them to be pretty fine albums.

01. The Glass Prison

Hiss of an old LP, (you'll understand when you hear the end of the previous disk Metropolis) and bells, bells that announce what will come. To start John Myung is one of the greatest bass players that have stepped on stage and John Petrucci is also one of the greatest guitarists in rock, it can carry over into many different styles and with great ease. At 2 minutes, right away, one of the hallmarks of the band, fast riffs, heavy and cumbersome, broken at times. Almost metal. James LaBrie, many do not like his voice, I think every time I listen to I like most, is a good vocal and differentiated acute, and he knows how to build good melodic lines. The band follows in a disconcerting weight, but to break the ice 'soft' lines composed by Jordan Rudess on the keyboard. At 4 and 40 one more mark of DT, the melodic hooks that can easily be sung together. Rudess is a major emphasis in the band on this record. And what about our buddy Portnoy? The guy is a demigod of the drums. Tremendous bankruptcies with a vocal-response (follow the letters). At 9 and 40 one of the more amazing riffs written, and very, very fast, and to top it off, a few seconds later he is even faster. It's amazing the provision of Myung playing (those who play know what I'm talking about). Jordan runs a very interesting solo keyboard and destroys Petrucci guitar. The riff that gets the breaks is absurd creativity, and the sequence is weight. And it have an amazing lyric.

02. Blind Faith

Blind Faith in stark contrast to the previous song, after a blow to the opening of the record have a more introspective side. And it's nice to see how wonderfully Portnoy builds his stuff. Not that I leave the weight off the track, however, it is almost impossible to Dream Theater. After 5 minutes Petrucci engages a divine land, with some jazz influence in his Riif following a more rhythmic beat. Then it's time for Rudess piano and orchestrations, which adds value and very subject. The sequence leaves instrumental staff mesmerized, just an appetizer for the excellent vocal melody, and of course, the chorus, once again untouchable.

03. Misunderstood

Now, that's melody, harmony, complexity. Often the simplest things are the most beautiful. After the majestic introduction, nearly reaching the 2 minutes the band starts one-on-one to enter, but the thing comes back, giving a total psychedelic Beatles climate. The heavy chorus is sensational and James sings: 'How can I feel abandoned even when the world surrounds me?' The phrase of the character is fantastic, but most of us know perfectly well that answer. After 4 and a half minutes there is a low and heavy guitars part and it's duplicated. At the end there is a bar full of noise and feedback.

04. The Great Debate

First of all, what a fantastic bass line! The most interesting aspect of this track is that it has a different introduction, while the music evolves reporters and politicians used as vocal, his speeches are everywhere. And the music has an incredible instrumental. Only around 3rd minute is that James sings a few lines with various effects on voice. And then the chorus (great by the way, whicht is a redundancy from these guys). On 5th minute I saw an incredible influence of Metallica On vocals, angry in the way of singing. The percussive part that follows is one thing to pay attention. The song goes on a hallucinatory riff and a synthesizer solo that is even difficult to tell if it really is a synthesizer given such a smooth and fast, almost the same speed of the guitar solo that follows, sensational. And it gives you broken rhythms. And just as he began the subject ends, full of speeches, speeches and reporters.

05. Disappear

The beginning fools you! In fact a guitar and piano ballad. But do not think of syrupy ballad and romantic sense of the word. And once again I see the Beatles in the parade in the 2nd minute with those vocal effects and echoes typical of the 60s. A song with a beat calm and in a emotional tone (accompanying the lyrics if you will). But make no mistake, is not the end of disc 1, but the middle of the story (got the message? ).

Disc 2

01. Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence

I-Overture II-About To Crash III-War Inside My Head IV-The Test That Stumped Them All V-Goodnight Kiss VI-Solitary Shell VII About To Crash (Reprise) VIII Losing Time / Grand Finale

Epic? Totally! The Dream Theater has invested heavily in this giant theme. His introduction with an orchestral theme and some passages that remind me quite ANGRA, they have built a theme with some Arabic influence as well. A perfect communion between band and orchestra. The second theme 'About To Crash' has a melody almost dance. Impossible not to shake your head together. At 9 minutes it's time to the Portnoy drums and 'War Inside My Head'. At 12 and a half the band goes into a tailspin in some dense, tense and heavy theme. Following the great vocals of James, split with John and a riot in a brilliant syncopation highly complex and break the base of a paranoid guitar that repeats itself for a while. In "The Test That Stumped Them All the 'question and answer' vocals are very nice, meanwhile the weight prevails, almost a trash-prog. It's amazing the power of the band when it comes to create complex riffs. The fifth part 'Goodnight Kiss' is beautiful, with the lines of a child and his mother, LaBrie sings a beautiful melody. And as it should be Petrucci's solo is very melodic and well executed. In 'Solitary Shell' 'kick' is scoring, a guitar solo, and at the bottom many everyday sounds that end in a beautiful theme in the acoustic guitar. It's amazing how this melody is catchy. And the chorus then? Furthermore. And in the changes of the themes I felt echoes of ANGRA again, especially in keyboards. That's great. Shortly after the 33 minutes Part 7 comes in like a reprise of the second part, in this case although the issue is the same voice, the band continues to innovate and looking more and more. Just over 36 minutes, 'Losing Time' is the 8th and last part part of this epic. 'Grand Finale' is emotional. Simply one of the best records of our times.

(ProgShine'S note: After this album run and listen to Train Of Thought).

It's amazing, and I repeat, amazing what you can earn in one hour and forty minutes.

"A Change Of Seasons" has to be one of the most accomplished prog EPs from the 90s, and also an important trial for Dream Theater to pass in order to prove to themselves (and while at it, to the rest of the world) that they were still capable of championing the prog- metal genre without the musical depth that exiting keyboardist Kevin Moore used to provide to the band's core sound in their first 3 studio efforts. The link with the immediate past was there since the namesake suite was already a full-written piece originally intended as part of the "Images And Words" repertoire. Now, in this 1995 EP, the suite has a few reshaped instrumental portions and somewhat significant modification on the Portnoy-penned lyrics. Also, this is the first studio input by Derek Sherinian, who finds some room for his stamina and exciting tone although he can still be perceived as the "new kid in the band". The EP's musical value is rooted in the namesake suite, which can be described as influenced by 77-80 Rush, classic Kansas and vintage Yes, with the usual doses of early Metallica and 86-89 Fates Warning influences that DT never cared to hide as major references for their original framework. I personally don't see how one can dispute the fact that 'A Change Of Seasons' is one of the best prog-metal suites ever, and of course, one of the many finer hours that fill DT's résumé. The ceremonious acoustic guitar/piano intro bears a twilight feeling graciously augmented by soft synth layers and glockenspiel. Once the full ensemble settles in, the band's muscular drive shows its real face. The 'Innocence' and 'Carpe Diem' sections bear a captivating amount of melodic richness, and so, the time is right for the display of architectural stamina provided by 'The Darkest Of Winters'. 'Another World' brings a moment of calm without letting og of the rocking power ? Petrucci's solo portion is one of the magnificent developments he has ever written for his instrument. I feel the transition from this section to 'The Inevitable Summer' a bit forced, but the nuclear idea works perfectly as a pathway toward the bombastic coda: in fact, the passionate intensity of 'The Crimson Sunset' bears a magical combination of cerebral electricity and emotional exaltation. The acoustic guitar/piano outro brings a proper closure to this majestic opus. Next is the live section taken from a live performance at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club (in London, UK): the renditions of Elton John's 'Funeral For A Friend'/'Love Lies Bleeding' is lovely, but not as much as Deep Purple's 'Perfect Strangers' (DT always covers it proficiently) and the Led Zeppelin medley. Petrucci is the undisputed star in these tasks. 'The Big Medley', on the other hand, is not as consistent as it could have been, but the Kansas, Queen and Dixie Dregs portions are so well delivered that the whole thing happens to be appealing at the end of the day. So, all in all, the 'a Change Of Seasons' suite makes the best of this EP: not the only good thing in it, but definitely the one defining moment from the DT point of view strictly.

Demos again? Yes... For fans Only? Yes, again...

This is one of the many official Bootlegs that mr Mike Portnoy has put on sale through their own label YTSEjam Records. This one in particular is the compilation of all the songs that makes it to the final version, almost in the order that were composed.

To be fair, there's nothing fantastic about this album. All the post-production and high quality of sound, mixing and mastering is not there, just the songs as were played before the magic. And about that, Dream Theater shows that they don't need to be overdubbed to sound great. Just besides of James Labrie's voice, the rest of the band sound great and the performing is tip top. While James tends to sound a little exaggerated and sometimes without guidance during some particular parts, this album shows the potential of the songs previous to the make-up.

There very few differences between the songs, that any Awake fan could detect, so, if you are really in love of this album, try it, you will be glad to hear it. If you are not a fan from Dream Theater, please skip this. Good album and production for been a bootleg, 2 stars is what it deserves.

It's always nice to find good old stuff from the band that changes prog-rock in the early 90's.

This is a Fans Club promo album, so it's very hard to find but it's really a treasure 'cause it captures sections from three different concerts during the Music in Progress World Tour 92- 93. It features former member Kevin Moore and the interpretation of James Labrie of a couple of early material which was singed on their debut album by Charlie Dominci.

The sound is taken from the original live mix, so it's good but not awesome. The tracks recorded in Osaka are the best in this album, the band play fresh and tight and it feels like in their best time, really enjoying all the way while they were playing. Only songs from their first two albums, it deserves a special mention for the excellent versions of "Afterlife" and "Only A Matter of Time", impressive music, great and fresh versions.

The weak point of the album is the instrumental jam "Moon Bubbles", which is boring and long though it has a very good bass line but that never evolves into something more. For fans only, an early version of A Change of Season, strange, not that great but it's interesting as how the song evolves through the years until finally get realized formally.

A good album, in the route of Live at The Marquee. This is a special album for fans only, of for those who already like the live albums from this band. 2 stars.

Demos? Yes... only for fans? Maybe the opposite...

We have here a collection of "B" sides, songs that didn't made it to find a place in the Images and Words, Awake and Falling into Infinity albums. Something special about it? Yes, many things, so lets see:

The first four songs have the great sound appealing of Kevin Moore, and the lyrics of "Don't Look Past Me" are from him and are quite good and touching, he was a great songwriter. The soft paced "Eve" is an instrumental track filled with a lot of emotion and sadness. The rest of the album is made of songs in which Derek Sherinian was involved. Most of them are some kind of prog-pop songs. Many of them have less busy melodies and the instruments are a lot more relaxed than what they use to show in the regular songs they compose.

It's evident that DT was passing for a time in which they really wanted to sound more radio friendly but all of the songs ended up feeling a little messy, too complex for a pop success, but too simple to be progressive, at least in the regular stuff DT made. This are demos so, of course the songs are not finally made, so, if those get to pass the test to be in an album, probably those should be reworked a little to be more consistent, but it's very interesting how DT guys can really make radio friendly songs without loosing the touch.

Highlights: Don't Look Past Me, Eve and The Way It used to Be. The rest are just good but average songs. I think this material is better to non-DT fans but regular alternative rock fans. Good stuff, not too complex but entertaining enough, and there's a lot of emotion on the songs. The sound quality is very good for been demos and shows very well the progress of the composition of DT. Three stars is quite accurate.

The album for those who don't like Dream Theater!!!

I wasn't very excited about the outtakes of the worst live album from Dream Theater. It's a special issue for fans only, but what is funny is that this album is more appealing for non DT fans. It has all what you don't expect from them: a lot of ballads, a lot of soul in the songs, very few solos, none show off at all and James Labrie giving a very decent singing, no screaming and no high pitch. So, what else do you want?

Lets see, most of the songs are really ballads played in some kind of "acoustic" set but they uses keyboards and electric guitars, so it's more like an "easy-relax" live album. It starts with a beautiful instrumental song "Eve", a B side of the Awake sessions, very Kevin Moore oriented if you want an inside. Then a couple of B sides from the Falling into Infinity: "Cover my Eyes", "To Live Forever" and "Speak To Me". Other ballads from their regular repertory: "Silent Man", "Lifting Shadows off a Dream" and "Anna Lee".

All the songs listed above are very controlled and soft. No metal references at all. That's cool, they really show here they can be smooth and gentle. But the real shining stuff is in the covers they made to this acoustic presentation: "Hey You" from Pink Floyd, I'm not too much into them, I just enjoy this version and it seems the audience as well. As a joke they played Mean Street of Van Halen followed by a wonderful Elton John's song "Good bye Yellow Brick Road" which is maybe the best song of the whole album. Just what you don't expect from the band and the cover is quite well performed. The last song is "Bad" form U2, the most "bad" band in the history so I won't say nothing about it.

So, for all who dislikes DT, this a very strange and obscure album that you should not miss. There are some jokes all around and the vibe is quite great for an intimate show like this one. Don't let the Once in a Livetime confuse you, this is a wonderful, soft-relax album. Try to find it, it's hard, but you will really enjoy it. I miss that days, really. Good addition, really.

For the first several listens of this 2009 Dream Theater album, I thought it was a decent effort but a decidedly lackluster one. Now I have discovered a newness in it. It does not compete with the masterworks that involve dead girls becoming living men or a suite of psychological disorders, but it has the wanted ingredients. There are several typical but memorable Dream Theater melodies with right plenty going on behind the scenes (from a memory? No, but still good). There are six (degrees from inner turbulence? No, but still good) tracks on this album, and all of them are rather excellent.

"A Nightmare to Remember" Opening with an eerie rumbling of thunder and a dark piano, a cataclysmically grim heaviness overtakes the atmosphere. James LaBrie snarls over chugging guitar and double-bass drumming. In contrast, his typical powerful tenor washes through in an amazing melody with a gorgeous flow of instrumentation behind him. John Petrucci refrains from guitar soloing until almost nine minutes in, and when he cuts loose, it is clear that he must have been suffering from the itch to play, because the shredding takes off in his usual soullessly yet somehow creative manner. Jordan Rudess follows with further technical expertise. The growling vocals seem rather immature, but I do not mind them. Even though the piece continues full speed ahead for several more minutes after all of this, I find it has run out of gasoline.

"A Rite of Passage" Beginning with an Alice in Chains- like riff, the song becomes suitably yet predictably heavier. The refrain is the best part of the song, while the soloing in the middle pretty much blows over like the overblown mess it is. Overall, this is a remarkable effort, as it merely suffers from overindulgence in the electric guitar department.

"Wither" Perhaps my favorite track on this album, the one softer piece shines through as a brilliant metaphor regarding writer's block. This song is absolutely cliché in terms of both style and technique, but I do not care- the aural flavor, the vocal melody, and the lyrics are more than enough to mark this as my second favorite soft song under the stunning "Hollow Years."

"The Shattered Fortress" During my first listen from this album (on Internet radio), I felt Black Stars & Silver Linings was going to be a promising addition to the Dream Theater discography. Rising quickly from silence, the band carries this jarring riff into fruition with a shared vocal between Mike Portnoy's growls and the harsher side of the usual lead vocalist's tenor. Occasionally in rock music, the backing riffs overshadow the solos in the front- this is a good example of that very phenomenon. In the spirit of the Twelve-Step Suite that spans multiple albums, the lyrics are commanding, and there's even a reprise of the masterpiece, "The Glass Prison"

"The Best of Times" Gentle piano and a breathtaking violin begin this penultimate piece, with acoustic guitar taking over the melody the second time. At almost three minutes, a lightning-fast guitar passage emerges from the shadows, bringing in the full band in 7/4 time. It is a pleasing song with an bright feel.

"The Count of Tuscany" In keeping with the bright feel, this begins with a light electric and acoustic guitar duo, soon joined by a nice guitar lead. The following riff, keeping the same sound but utilizing harmonics and soon the fullness of the band, introduces yet another passage, which is quite a symphonic affair. Jordan Rudess's synthesizers are technical and yet subtle, creating a desirable texture. While the lyrics can reasonably be construed as cheesy, the story is present nonetheless, and, as a consolation, the refrain is a refreshing aspect of this extended piece. The middle passage is seemingly unrelated to the rest of the piece- as beautiful as it is, with swelling electric guitar and bright synthesizers, it acts as filler, especially since it is followed by an unrelated acoustic guitar. Speculation has it that Petrucci met the brother of Pietro Pacciani, the "Murderer of Florence," who was the "cannibal curator" that inspired the character of Hannibal Lecter in the Thomas Harris series. So perhaps the man's fears were reasonable. At any rate, he does not play his guitar as though he is afraid, and while I can see some scoffing at this one, I rather like, so there.

This is one of my least favourite Dream Theater albums, and was rather dissappointed in them. Dream Theater is my favourite band and thought they could do better than this. It was a little poppy at some parts and I didn't care for a few song. However, it still gets 3 stars for the fact that there is a few songs i just love on here. Lets get onto the songs now...

The Root Of All Evil: I love the riffs and the lyrics in this song. The intro is just amazing and it seems as if it was made to begin a concert. I don't really care for LaBries vocals in this song as much as most songs, though. 9/10

The Answer Lies Within: A ballad. Rather simple, but its a nice song. 8/10

These Walls: This song is kinda mainstream-ish yes, but I simply love this one. I don't know what it is about this one that compells me so much. The chorus is great, the keyboard is great, and this song is overall amazing. 10/10

I Walk Beside You: Uggghhh... a little U2-ish for my tastes, but they managed to make a listenable track out of it still. Not near their potential though. 7.5/10

Panic Attack: I remember when I used to love this song. Now, I see it as one of DT's worst. This track just doesn't work for me anymore. The instruments sound good, but they just wear on for too long. I just don't care for this much at all. 4.5/10

Never Enough: I like Muse, but this sounds so much like Stockholm Syndrome that it's uncanny. I still like this quite a bit though. 8.5/10

Sacrificed Sons: I like this one a lot. My favourite part is the instrumental section, which I think is just amazing. The lyrics however...less than average. 9/10

Octavarium: When this song came along I thought to myself "now I have to listen to 24 minutes of poppy-ish Dream Theater?". But I could tell straight from the continuum intro that this was different. It reminded me of Shine On You Crazy Diamond. Now let me just say that this redeems the entire album and brings it from 2 to 3 star for me. This song is nothing short of brilliant. It's just amazing, simply put. It battles A Change of Seasons (also by Dream Theater) and The Whirlwind (Transatlantic) for my favourite song EVER. I can't explain it in one paragraph, so I'll do the sections 1 by 1 and give them individual grades.

I. Someone Like Him: I love the continuum intro. So relaxing and ambient, I feel like drifting away. Now I'll fast forward to the guitar and vocal part. James is sounding great here. The acoustic is nice too. I love this section. But this is only the beginning of this masterpiece! 9.5/10

II. Medicate: We start off with some nice bass work from Myung. A nice acoustic riff later comes in. And James comes in, once again sounding great. After the first verse, the chorus comes in. It is to this day, in my opinion, one of the best choruses ever. It just sounds so nice! When I first heard it is when I instantly knew this song would be a masterpiece. This chorus is the only part of any song in the world I feel the need to sing along to. It's just that good. 10/10

III. Full Circle: The lyrics to this section make no sense unless you put it together. All the lyrics are linked together to make things that Portnoy likes. Mostly prog songs, but there are people references too. Overall, I find this is the weakest section. But that is not saying much, because it is still great. 9/10

IV. Intervals: A short section, but boy is it sweet. This is the climax of the song. We get James speaking lyrics, each stanza being related to a song on the album, all in order. And then at the end, Labrie screams is face off. I thought it was a nice touch. This is one amazing climax. 10/10

V. Razors Edge: Here we start with some vocals from Labrie, ending with the famed Dream Theater line, "The story ends where it began.". After that line is sang, an amazing guitar solo starts. And I do mean, amazing! It is the perfect outro to the album. It is a simply flawless solo. This song could not have ended in a better way. The french horn after the solo is also amazing. And as the line says, the story ends where it began. We're back at the intro of Root of All Evil. 10/10

Well, overall the album should have 2 stars. But the title track was enough to bump it up to 3.4. My main problems with this album was, of course, the poppyness, and the limited Petrucci solos. But overall I do not regret buying, mostly due to the title track and also to These Walls.

3.4/5