For
those of you who don’t know, Dream Theater is a behemoth in the progressive
metal world. Seen by many as the forerunner in the entire genre, Dream Theater
carries the added advantage of sporting a line-up of musicians all recognized
as geniuses of their craft. Which means you can forget about 4-chord
progressions in a major key with a catchy jingle; musically, things are gonna
get pretty intense. So one can only imagine the pressure placed (by fans) on
this group to produce an album worthy of their super status.
Before
we look ahead, let’s go back. Dream Theater last dropped an album in 2011, A Dramatic Turn of Events. It was their first album without drummer/long-standing
member Mike Portnoy, who was also a heavy hand in the arrangements and
production of their previous work. And I gotta say, his absence showed. ADTOE,
while by no means a bad album, was underwhelming. It had some fantastic
moments, but as an entire album, it just felt below par. And the production also
seemed to suffer a bit. I had become used to the energy and (for lack of better
word) loudness of the previous albums. ADTOE seemed subdued, especially the drums
(recorded by the legendary Mike Mangini after the songs had been written). It
all seemed a little less than I expected, and I was concerned that, without
Portnoy, they were incapable of writing and producing an album as strong as
their previous work.
So
with the arrival of a new, self-titled album, I was keenly interested to see
what exactly was what. Were my fears to be confirmed?
Well,
from the start the band certainly means business. The intro, False Awakening Suite, is made of the
sort of stuff you hear in movies when giant armies march into battle. That is
followed by The Enemy Inside, a powerhouse song that blasts out of your speakers,
before the band tastes some arena rock with The
Looking Glass. And to the delight of fans, the instrumental track returns
in the form of Enigma Machine, which
is essentially a vehicle for the musicians to show their chops. Believe me, I’m
not complaining. They haven’t earned their reputations for nothing, and it is
sometimes staggering what these guys can do.
Things
barely let up after that. The Bigger
Picture, the first ‘ballad’ of the album, still has plenty of power, and a
guitar solo that proves John Petrucci is not only capable of speed, but also
finesse and melody. Behind the Veil
has an early Metallica flavour to it. Surrender
to Reason and Along for the Ride are both strong in their own right.
I love how nothing on this album feels like filler, placed there simply to stretch a track listing. Each song has its own character, and its own style. My words
here really cannot do justice to the diversity within each song. You really
need to hear it to appreciate it.
And
of course, as seems customary since 2005’s Octavarium
album, Dream Theater end with an epic composition clocking in at twenty-two
minutes. Titled Illumination Theory, it
is everything Dream Theater stuffed into one enormous song. Crunching guitar,
moving orchestral score, emotive vocals, huge bass and drums…this one song has
everything. Is it their best epic song ever? Tough call. Octavarium set a very high standard. But it certainly comes close,
and perhaps even matches it.
I
also like the production. The songs are guitar-heavy, often driven by a crunching riff, and so the guitar sits high in the mix. I like the effect this gives. The album feels like the heaviest work the band has ever recorded. And few things get my head bobbing as easily as a punchy guitar riff. Drummer Mike Mangini has a thicker, more ‘old-school’ sound to his
kit, which lends a slightly 80’s flavour to the album. Thankfully no 80’s
cheese came along. The drums, definitely louder than ADTOE, sit very nicely in
the mix, driving the songs with enough energy to match the ferocity of the
guitar riffs. It all feels far more complete and full through my speakers.
There’s
so much more that can be said about this album. Jordan Rudess, the mastermind
behind the keys and orchestral score, is superb. He complements John Petrucci's guitar with subtle precision, and when he takes centre stage, as in the middle segment of Illumination Theory, it is properly epic, and enough to stir emotion even in metalheads. John Myung, the silent bassist
in the background, is nicely audible in the mix and faultless. And James
Labrie, the vocalist I often joke of as having the hardest job in rock to keep
up with his band mates, sounds better than ever. He really does.
But
as I said earlier, my words cannot do real justice to the entire album. There’s
simply too much diversity, too much change, to sum it all up on paper. I have
yet to find another band able to piece together ferocious guitar riffs,
shifting time signatures and sweeping orchestral movements so cleanly and
effectively, and make it all sound like it flows. This album is perhaps the
best example of that. As a complete package, its best thing they’ve done since Scenes from a Memory in 1999. Praise
doesn’t get much higher.
RATING: 9/10
MUST-LISTEN TRACKS:
The Enemy Inside
Enigma Machine
Illumination Theory
