THE MAKING OF FALLING INTO INFINITY

Short samples of recording process for collectors only. Take note that this release is not the Falling Into Infinity Demos and there are no complete songs on this disc (except one rehearsal mix of "Take Away My Pain"). Each track on this disc is made up of short edits and snippets of tracks to present the listener with a broad sampling of the recording process for what became the commercial Falling Into Infinity release. Each song on the album is represented here.

The most interesting parts of this release, for me, are the moments where the band members are talking. Talking about singing harmony in backing vocals, when John Petrucci talks during the recording of his acoustic guitar parts in Hollow Years, and working on Hell's Kitchen are examples of the most revealing and interesting segments. But not every track contains these kinds of moments.

NOTE: In case it concerns you, there is quite a bit of strong language on this disc.

Overall, there are three audiences that will find interest in this: (1) Musicians interested in the "process"; (2) Collectors who must get everything; and (3) Fans of the band who might get a kick out of hearing some of the silly moments.

Dream Theater's Official Bootlegs series has always been a nice touch for collectors, whether it's demos, live recordings, compilations, or reissues of previous fan club CD's (which is actually what this one is), they're usually pretty cool little nuggets of joy for die-hard fans of the band.

And occasionally, there's utter nonsense like this.

'The Making of Falling Into Infinity' is completely and utterly pointless. Not containing any full tracks, the entire album is nothing more than snippets of songs. Guitar riffs, the odd vocal harmony, someone working out a part or someone saying something. It might be interesting for some tech nerd who wants to look into the process of writing and recording an album, but without any commentary or narrative, this CD really is unlistenable.

I can understand with demos that at least it's interesting to listen to how songs were originally intended to sound and how they've evolved to become the finished product, but this is completely useless and doesn't even show us that. Die-hard fans who must own everything will probably resent having to purchase this, and I'd know, because I'm one of them.