A CHANGE OF SEASONS

According to the credits, A Change of Seasons (ACOS) was released to make the fans wait until the band's next LP. The wait will last two years but the fans had indeed been given some substance for long winter nights since, though labeled as an "EP", ACOS is nearly 60 minutes long !

Of course, it is fair to make clear that only one song here -the title track- is original Dream Theater material but this is a hell of a song that will take you on board for a 23 minutes trip where you won't get bored for a single second. Many fans of the band consider it as their best epic and, for once, I fully agree. Forget all your prejudices or preconceptions about prog metal in general and DT in particular -or vice versa- and you could be rewarded with a very good surprise.

If "ACOS" fails to convince you -which could happen if you don't let the song a second or third chance since it won't necessarily hook you at first listen- at least you might comfort yourself with more than 30 minutes of great live covers or medleys.

First of them is "Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding", a classic from Elton John. Dream Theater delivers here a VERY moving version of this song. Really impressive, IMHO.

Then comes Deep Purple's "Perfect Strangers" followed by a Led Zeppelin medley including excerpts from "The Rover", Achilles Last Stand" and "The Song Remains the Same". I have never been very found of those two bands, who are too hard/blues/rock oriented for my taste, but again I find the covers very convincing and enjoyable.

The album . sorry I mean, the EP, closes with another patchwork medley trivially entitled "The Big Medley". Once passed the surprise of some unexpected choices - Journey and Genesis at its most commercial period- I had fun with this one too.

Eventually, Dream Theater provides once again a very strong release, well supported by a nice art cover and some interesting liner notes on the genesis of "ACOS". A few months ago, I took this EP along various other albums as a musical accompaniment for a three hours car drive : "ACOS" never quit the CD's player ... To all the Dream Theater fans who hesitate to invest in an EP that includes only one original song, it is time to hit the store because this is really a must-have in your collection.

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