Conrad
Hello
Anyone who is into prog. I would like to hear how you experience Dream Theater's new album Black Clouds & Silver Linings.
This is my experience:
Compositions: Probably one of their most creative albums yet. Listening to count of Tuscany (for instance) there is this slow (for Petrucci anyway) melodic guitar solo with beautiful harmonies. Prominent property of this piece is aesthetics until the vocal bit when the instrumentation changes and the prominent property becomes power. I don't know, I love it.
Guitar: I can't believe it but I think John Petrucci is still improving. Ultra accurate, super fast (but only when the composition calls for it), heavenly crafted solos.
Bass Guitar: John Myung is holding back man. What is happening? I suppose it might not have been appropriate to have him lash out on every composition but this is an old characteristic of DT that I miss.
Drums: Portnoy is superb. So much understanding for this genre.
Keyboards: Rudess eludes me a little. Probably coz keys are a little outside my frame of reference. All I can say is that he seems very creative & experimental. I still liked Sherinan (just current subjective opinion).
Sweep tight
C
Lethe
I agree. Killer album!!!
BMU
Yay the new DT album topic, I've been waiting to vent for a while now. ?
I have a love/hate relationship with Dream Theater. I seem to hate every 2nd album they put out. Hated Octavarium, loved most of Systematic Chaos so of course this new one is terrible again. LaBrie croons, yes croons. Rudess fills up too much sonic space with his honky-tonk piano and that stupid continuum or whatever it's called. The songs are even interminably longer than usual and 80% deathly boring repeats of previous albums.
Obviously their musicianship is untouchable, but everything has sounded the same since Rudess joined. My simple yet undoubtedly effective three-step plan for DT to regain creative relevance goes thusly: 1. Fire the fkkng irritating vocalist. 2. Fire the over-playing over-dominating piano player. 3. Play kick-ass rock/metal.
Conrad
But then they would be a rock metal act. They are prog. Although I agree I think they can do better than LaBrie.
BMU
No it would be prog, that's implied. I mean this would still be Petrucci & Portnoy we're talking about.
