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46 of 52 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best album since Scenes, 30 May 2009
More greatness from the gods' that are Dream Theater. If the last few albums put you off, this has brought back their respect.
1. A Nightmare to Remember - Great start to a well balanced album, heavy riffs and a softer acoustic spot in the middle. Amazing solo's from the keyboards and guitar alternating. Some growling from Portnoy and very solid vocals from LaBrie.
2. A Rite of Passage - Some good vocals on this track with a catchy chorus but seems to be aimed at newcomers rather than die-hard DT fans. Some fancy soloing from the guys too.
3. Wither - A softer ballad and a well placed break from the intensity so far. A brilliant solo from Petrucci too reminiscent of Bohemian Rhapsody. Beautiful song overall.
4. The Shattered Fortress - The last part in the AA series which concludes all these songs together brilliantly by bringing in all the old riffs, with some new ones but keeping it entirely fresh.
5. The Best of Times - Very moving lyrics from Portnoy...about his father that died of cancer recently. The opening of a piano with a violin, and then an acoustic guitar, leading on to electric guitar and the whole band. You can really hear the rush influence in this song, amazing.
6. The Count of Tuscany - A new epic for Dream Theater that rivals Octavarium, A Change of Seasons and In The Presence of Enemies. Outstanding work from the guys and you'll have to listen to the song to understand. Yes/Pink Floyd with a twist! EPIC!
However it seems that Labrie has lost a lot of his range but in no way does it stop him from being an amazing singer, and the bass seem to disappear somewhere far too often.
Overall an outstanding album so far and looking forward to June 23rd.
Cover 1. Stargazer - Rainbow
Cover 2. Tenement Funster/Flick of the Wrist/Lily of the Valley - Queen
Cover 3. Odyssey - Dixie Dregs
Cover 4. Take Your Fingers From My Hair - Zebra
Cover 5. Larks' Tongues in Aspic (Part II) - King Crimson
Cover 6. To Tame A Land - Iron Maiden
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7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An album to kind of remember, 22 Jun 2009
Six songs, 4 of them over 10 minutes, with another at nearly nine and another at 6, this isnt throwaway hook laden short stabs at commerciality. Dream Theater tread their own distinctive path through songs of epic length and proportion. It starts off great with a nightmare to remember, a solid stab at furious riffing, barked rapid fire lyrics, a softer interlude and some shouted lyrics from Mike Portnoy to finish. Impressive stuff and sure to keep the fan base happy.
The pace stays at top speed for Rite of Passage, and aside from oddly scanned lyrics it soons breaks into a furious stomp, as guitar and keyboards trade riffs at a furious pace. Great stuff and sure to go down a storm in concert.
Wither sees the band take a breath with a commericalish ballad, enhanced with some strong power chords and a great chorus. Would fit well on the commericialish Falling Into Infinity album.
The final part of Mike Portnoys examination of his alcolholsim and battle with, takes up track 4, with the band revisiting melodies and lyrics of the the other pieces from this project. Powerful stuff and a worthy end to a great series of songs that MIke Portnoy wrote about so honestly. I hope they play all the pieces together at a concert one day...
Best of times has someheartfelt emotional lyrics about the death of MP's father, with James LB handles with tact and diplomacy. Despite the wonderful violin start, and strong melody the songs fails to catch light and a feeling of anticlimax prevails.
The last song, The Count Of Tuscany is DT of old, reminisncent of Images and Words, lots of time changes, guitar and keyboard patterns intertwined with hypnotic drumming. Its a long song and for the first half it could be straight off Images and Words, until a slow section builds to a climax. A real multi parter, that flatters to decieve, they have done better epics, but it's still a strong song
Its a good solid album, there are some nice high points, but I just cant see this being played over and over in the car and MP3. SFAM, Train of Thought, IAWords this isnt. I applaud the band for not making the same album over and over, and just changing the cover, but it doesn't have that 'classic' feel. DT's strengths have always been the powerhouse drumming, the killer guitar riffs and delicate but complicated melodies. This has it in parts, but it falls short of the bands best.
The cover versions are more the same curate's egg. Star Gazer, the Queen Medley and To Tame a land originally by Iron Maiden are great, the rest, not so good.
The third CD is purely instrumental, which to these ears to indulgance for indulgance sake. Nightwish did the same on their last album, and this feels the same as that, you'l spin it once to see what it sounds like, and then go back and play the original instead...
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6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Album name tells it all really, 22 Jun 2009
This album was a bit of grower for me; I wasn't overly impressed on my first listen through but by the 3rd time I was beginning to see the multiple layers to the music on this album, which ultimately was very rewarding. It has been said already I'm sure, but this album is very representative of DT's overall sound. A Nightmare to Remember and The Shattered Fortress showcase their tasteful aggression as well as their ability to convey emotion through slower-paced and complex passages. A Rite of Passage is a good example of some of their more crowd-interactive songs- very enjoyable, sort of reminiscent of songs like Sacrificed Sons, Prophets of War etc. Wither is probably the weakest on the album but is still an excellent song; another showcase of their gentler side. The Best of Times revives the playfulness and uplifting vibe of songs like TTT on I&W, despite being quite depressing lyrically. And finally The Count of Tuscany is an epic in the same sort of vein as ItPOE.... a very good album indeed!
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