On disc: Dream Theater

 
 Metropolis Pt. II
 
- Amir Djawadi -
 
 


 
 Black Clouds & Silver Linings
 
- Thomas Gröblinghoff -
 
 

Black Clouds & Silver Linings

(Roadrunner Records - 2009)



 
 

 

The new masterpiece from Mr. Petrucci and Mr. Portnoy is about 78 minutes long and offers 6 tracks, but the songs are partly too long - at least for me. It's a quite good album, but Black Clouds & Silver Linings can't keep up with the brilliant predecessor Systematic Chaos. It's partly a bit boring, coz the songs are too long and they can't keep the listeners attention. It's a very personal album, so did John talk about an accident he had as a kid, Mike talks about his alcoholism as well as dedicated a song to his father. This personal edge makes the songs stronger, but especially the bonus CD is interesting with 6 cover versions. Dream Theater covered songs from e.g. Queen and Iron Maiden.

Resume: A good album, but the songs are too long and the technical passages are too prominent. Anyway, not bad at all!
 
 










Thomas Gröblinghoff
(translation: Claudia Ehrhardt)


  
up 













Metropolis Pt. II

(Elektra - 1999)



 
 

 

It's an act of grace of the Gods that now the time of brutal politics of secrecy are over! The glorious album is now available. They kept us hanging for a long time and nobody knew what to expect from the progsters.

The progressive geniuses from New York present their first conceptual album. They push it to the extreme point and keep their fans from starving with a 78 minutes long opus.

I'm so excited, I don't know where to start.... Like I said before it's a concept album. And so it has not different tracks, it's more like a stage-play which tells the story of Nicholas and Victoria lives. The spoken word parts support this concept.

For the very first time keyboarder Jordan Rudess had the chance to crown a Dream Theater album with his virtuous play and continues the succession of grandmasters on the keyboards in Dream Theater.

No other line-up changes, but don't worry that doesn't mean that it's getting boring! Dream Theater recorded an impressive album which give a lot of new, surprising stuff and at the same time there are parts which are reminiscences to their past. For the female vocal parts they could hire Theresa Thomason and so the whole story gets more visual.

On the disc you'll find timeless music which tells the story in 2 acts and at all 9 sequences. Produced by non other than masters Petrucci and Portnoy! Again Dream Theater create a masterpiece which fits into their series of incredible compositions.

Buy and experience it on your own!
 
 










Amir Djawadi
(translation: Claudia Ehrhardt)

  
up 





 
 • E-Mail: contact@ice-vajal.com