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Dream Theater - Images and Words CD (album) cover

IMAGES AND WORDS

Dream Theater

 

Progressive Metal

4.31 | 3169 ratings

From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website

nathan058
5 stars Essential

This was my very first prog album and therefore this is my very first review on prog archives. I will try to disguise the fact that Dream Theater are my all time favourite band and continue this review without bias. I would just like to say that many people have accused this album and other albums by Dream Theater to be un-prog. To my ears there is more prog in Dream Theater than any other band on this site and all others in the progressive metal genre have adapted Dream Theater elements in their music. To claim that they are not prog seems quite an artificial statement

This album hits all the perfect notes from the incredibly good sounding opening in Pull Me Under to the dramamtic harmonics and vocal harmonies in the ending of Learning to Live. Whilst Dream Theater were on their giant manhunt for a vocalist they wrote all this material without a voice there. Hence the detail to the music and the complex orchestrations.

Along with Scenes from a Memory, Awake and probably Six Degrees, this is a defining album in the incredible journey of Dream Theater. I've decided to adpot the track by track review style that many utilise on this site.

"Pull Me Under" The biggest Dream Theater song and the only one to get a fair share of mainstream airplay, obviously in its ridiculous radio edit version. The song seems to come togeather beautifully with power and emotion and is always an enjoyable listen.

"Another Day" A ballard piece with a short signiture Dream Theater riffage 3/4 of the way through. Very beautiful saxophone playing by the guy that owned the studio this album was recorded in and a wonderful guitar solo, one of my favourite JP solos.

"Take the Time" More progressive than the previous two with some funk/rap influence with the music and vocals. Great instrumental sections and fantastic keyboard solo by Kevin Moore.

" Surrounded" Starts with some soothing piano/vocal lines and turns into an upbeat rhythm with some nice work with the delay pedal. Great intricate riffs.

"Metropolis Pt 1. The Miracle and the Sleeper" Ah, here we go with the big one. One of the all time Dream Theater classics. There is some great guitar riffs and lyrics but the highlight is the instrumental section. Some of the most complex prog music I've come across lies in this section and the song is as enjoyable on the first listen as it is on the 5,000.

"Under a Glass Moon" Another great song. There is not a weak song on this album, it just keeps flowing perfectly throughout. One of JP's top guitar solos and the best one on the album. Just as enjoyable on this 1992 album as it was watching SCORE in 2006.

"Wait for Sleep" This, along with Space Dye Vest are Kevin Moore songs and they are both sensational. So emotional. The keyboard parts are breathtaking and this ballard successfully brakes up the fast riffs, and complex orchestrations to let us breath for a few minutes until we get to the best song on the album.

"Learning to Live" John Myung is very quiet as we all know and rarely writes lyrics, but when he does they are so deep and top class. We hear an interesting keyboard riff before the band kicks in and the song carries from there. It breaks into a slow section, with acoustic guitars and nylon string soloing and drum fills and percussion about 3/4 of the way through to add to the superiority they are claming in the genre with this piece. The guitar solos and so emotial and at the end of the song we come to the magnum opus of the album. " Through nature's inflexible grace, I'm learning to live." All instruments cut off suddenly and we hear the bass on John Myung. Then the band comes back in and amazing harmonics by John Petrucci placed perfectly in the context of the music give an unstoppable epic force. Then the harmony of the vocals. The album fades out and you rewind it and play from Pull me Under again.

Pure genious is the line up of Dream Theater and pure genious is this album 5 stars is the only rating.

nathan058 | 5/5 |

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