Dream Theater - A View from the Top of the World

[prog_powermetal99]

I'm enjoying the hell out of the new Dream Theater....I'm horrible at writing reviews, so I won't even go there, and I'll leave that up to the pros like Larry D and Claus but I just know that I'm really digging it!! I can't put my finger on it, but I find it more enjoyable and memorable than their last few albums. It's hard to believe that Jordan is 64 years old and his fingers still fly like this...... Anyway, great stuff!

[Psychotic Symphony]

Jordan is 64, and certainly doing better than I will be at that age if I even live that long. I agree this album sounds very good. I like the added heaviness/riffage on this one, and I also enjoy Jordan being a bit more subtle - using more hammonds and pads rather than the whimsy he usually does. I think I even heard some new techs from Myung!

[Nos]

It's a good record that falls into the category of 'more of the same'. It sounds really good, and they do have more of a focus on melody than the last couple records, so I can't complain about it. It all feels a bit formulaic, though, so even though I like it, I can't say I'm overly excited.

[Sir Exar Kun]

Agreed also that I am enjoying it a lot, but as Nos said it feels VERY formulaic..... It's almost TEXBOOK Dream Theater at this point. To my ears, it sounds like a mashup of "Dramatic Turn" and "Octavrium" perhaps..... What does strike me as odd is that there isn't any single song I can point to as jumping out. Every track on here is well composed and engaging, but none of them have any singular "WOW" factor that makes them stand out.

It's almost like rather than saying it's got any individual GREAT qualities, it's more that it doesn't have any NEGATIVE qualities. It's everything I expect in a DT album, but zero surprises along the way.

[LarryD]

I'm waiting for my copy to arrive ....... I'm hearing really good things about this disc, and I'm anxious to get it on the system. As I read and hear some of the comments (and this is not a dig on anyone - I value everyone's opinion), I'm wondering what do we expect from a band like Dream Theater to release after all of this time ? I may be confusing the word "formula" and "surprise" so correct me if I'm wrong .....but after all these years, do we really hope for something different ? For me, I just want to it to be as good as or better than the last one, or the one before that, or .. etc .........

Vanden Plas release a new disc - yes, same formula and vibe. How does it compare to (insert our favorite VP disc here)
Threshold releases a new disc - same thing.
Arena - yep, and their last one was awesome despite the years and formula.

At this point - at least for me - I ask these questions from these older bands releasing discs -

1) Is it better than disc a or b from the past ?
2) How does it sound ? Production wise ?
3) What style does it follow ? (Sir Exar already gave me a great vibe from Octavarium and Dramatic Turn) I'm in.

Pretty much that's it - I really don't expect any surprises or wow moments from any of these bands to be honest ...... I just want it to be quality, and maybe something close to or better than something I already love from them .......

From the sounds of you guys, the reviews, the song I heard, and people whispering in my ear about it, I'm going to love this one .........

[Sir Exar Kun]

From the sounds of you guys, the reviews, the song I heard, and people whispering in my ear about it, I'm going to love this one ........

I'd be shocked if you don't like it. If it's like me, it's not going to really "click" on first listen though, as I don't find it as instantly memorable as some of their other albums.

With DT, they seem to have a few different buckets that their albums fall into...... So compared to Threshold or VP, it actually is a bit more varied..... Key phrase: A BIT!

Cliched though it seems, I think the title track is my favorite. The music just FLOWS with this one. The whole album is (obviously) technical as hell, but it doesn't come across as overly showy or wankery, compared to some of their discs.

[Nos]

I'm wondering what do we expect from a band like Dream Theater to release after all of this time ? I may be confusing the word "formula" and "surprise" so correct me if I'm wrong

I don't expect anything from them. I'm not asking them to break all the rules and do something no one has ever heard before. They're going to sound like them, and that's fine. In general, that's actually what we want.

It's just not, for me, as exciting to listen to an album when I could correctly predict the structure of the epic song as soon as it's announced they have one, because it's following the formula of the last few they have done. When they hit all the same beats again and again, it makes it inevitable that my mind will compare them all, and they blend together rather than being something unique unto themselves.

[LarryD]

I don't expect anything from them. I'm not asking them to break all the rules and do something no one has ever heard before. They're going to sound like them, and that's fine. In general, that's actually what we want.

It's just not, for me, as exciting to listen to an album when I could correctly predict the structure of the epic song as soon as it's announced they have one, because it's following the formula of the last few they have done. When they hit all the same beats again and again, it makes it inevitable that my mind will compare them all, and they blend together rather than being something unique unto themselves.

***At the risk of getting into something I don't want to ...... I agree with what you're saying. I can understand what you're talking about ...... But when you say "it's just not for me" you must know after all of these years that DT is not your thing, so why would you take the time to listen to it only to say what is inevitable ? Really, I'm just curious not trying to provoke something .......

[Nos]

But when you say "it's just not for me" you must know after all of these years that DT is not your thing, so why would you take the time to listen to it only to say what is inevitable ? Really, I'm just curious not trying to provoke something .......

Because I do like Dream Theater, or some of their catalog, at least. I own two of their albums, there's at least three more I like a lot, and "A Dramatic Turn Of Events" was my Album Of The Year in 2011. So I keep listening to them because they have done great things before, and I'm hopeful they could again.

I like this new album. I liked the last album too. I'm just not 'excited' about them. Not everything that is enjoyable is going to provoke that degree of a response.

[outprogged42]

On first listen, this is a quite good but not extraordinarily album. It lacks in the ability to really surprise and wow the listener compared to their other more recent works. The songs are perfectly solid yet don't seem to fully come together as well-rounded pieces. The Alien, Transcending Time, and Sleeping Giant are among the top cuts. The production is some of their best in a while and Myung and Mangini are the stars of the disc.

[LarryD]

On first listen, this is a quite good but not extraordinarily album. It lacks in the ability to really surprise and wow the listener compared to their other more recent works. The songs are perfectly solid yet don't seem to fully come together as well-rounded pieces. The Alien, Transcending Time, and Sleeping Giant are among the top cuts. The production is some of their best in a while and Myung and Mangini are the stars of the disc.

****This is all good .........

[LarryD]

I'm in agreement with everything that everyone here said ......... I'm loving the disc and it seems like a return to an earlier form, and as said, there are no surprises or even any wow moments although the long end track does come close.

Labrie sounds great - and Petrucci seems a little laid back ......... but overall, this sound really great. Definitely a winner.

[Sir Exar Kun]

Labrie sounds great - and Petrucci seems a little laid back ......... but overall, this sound really great. Definitely a winner.

Laid back is a good descriptor for this album. It's definitely got some heavy riffing at times, but never really FEELS heavy. It feels almost like the antithesis of LTE3, which was INCREDIBLY technical, whereas this feels like it's not trying to be showy and just allows the music to flow.

Objectively, yes, it's clearly DT and clearly technical, but it doesn't feel like it has any need to showboat.

[Scott B]

Here is my review.

The new Dream Theater album sounds a lot like Dream Theater, except for those moments when it kind of sounds like a Rush album. If you liked other Dream Theater albums, you will love/hate/not care about this album.

Personally, I like it. It has a decrease of annoying keyboard sounds, and a higher shred factor.

[Tom C]

I don't expect anything from them. I'm not asking them to break all the rules and do something no one has ever heard before. They're going to sound like them, and that's fine. In general, that's actually what we want.

It's just not, for me, as exciting to listen to an album when I could correctly predict the structure of the epic song as soon as it's announced they have one, because it's following the formula of the last few they have done. When they hit all the same beats again and again, it makes it inevitable that my mind will compare them all, and they blend together rather than being something unique unto themselves.

I can't follow this line of thinking at all.

You like DT but you don't enjoy the formula for which they've become known?

You also HATE most of the bands who fall into the same subgenre because you don't really like the defining characteristics of the subgenre.

But the majority of the music for which you proclaim your love follows the exact same paint-by-numbers formula, filled to the gills with standard song structures, chord progressions, tunings, and general genre cliches.

If what you say is really true, and I take it at face value, I don't see how you could ever enjoy more than two albums by any band, after which familiarity with the bands' tendencies and go-to models would be well established.

[Tom C]

I really liked their last album, but I like my DT being unapologetically, overtly proggy. I want more "Dance of Eternity" and less "I Walk Beside You" and I got that with this album.

Of course it sounds like DT, but it's also got more of the classic DT syncopations and rhythmic manipulation that has been sorely missing on recent outings for me. I consider that a surprise as I wasn't expecting it.

[johnhead]

I am enjoying it, but I think I like DT a lot more than most of the PPUSA folks do at this point. I think Answering the Call is the best song they have put out since Count of T and Transcending Time is the best prog rock - not prog metal - song they have done since anything on Oct. Awaken the Master is killer and Myung's lyrics are stellar. and I like the Title track a lot as well.

For me, it's amazing how prolific JP has been since the shutdown of the Met2 Anniversary Tour. Solo Album, LTE3, DT15, and now talks of him doing something else right now since the tour was pushed.

[Chris R]

Dream Theater have become ,for a lack of a better term,"comfort food" of prog....

Just don't be The Astonishing and I'll be happy

This is really good for what they put out usually