Well, we come to the music of Dream Theater, because it really has, as always, in itself. In the last decade DREAM THEATER surprised again the listener, no album was like the others, but were always present all the important trademarks. This time the changes to its predecessor have failed not so serious and big surprises there are, unfortunately, not, but just exactly what is on the album bold plan DREAM THEATER. With the skill of the masters John Petrucci, Jordan Rudess, John Myung, and Mike Mangini, we know that the fan can still be satisfied. There are extensive, but not too extravagant Insturmentalparts in which each individual may let off steam, there are references to the classics, then it will again spaceig but also bleak, melancholic and sad it can go on the album.
The nearly 3-minute intro False Awakening Suite is divided in three parts and completely produced different feelings. Part 1 Sleep Paralysis sounds bold, almost Hollywood ripe, Night Terrors acts angry and threatening and Lucid Dream as the grand finale of an opera. In between flashes the classical through although I do not know if you really quoting someone, but one feels reminiscent of Edvard Grieg. It follows the chosen single The Enemy Inside which starts hectic and rather bleak. It is initially played around a bit before we herald the actual song after one minute. Beautiful melodies, crunchy riffs and a James LaBrie in top form set the tone. In chorus, it is then also quite catchy. In addition to verse and chorus, there are of course in the second half still instrumental Pasasgen, solos and some other parts. Despite a fairly simple song, when you consider with whom you are dealing with here. The Looking Glass sprayed a loose AOR-like atmosphere and with its less than five minutes one of the shorter songs.
Although it sounds paradoxical, the songs are less catchy due to its brevity of five to seven minutes, which is due to the complexity. Had the tracks longer so certain elements and text passages could be used more often and ignite so quickly, but that's not the way the DREAM THEATER hit and that's a good thing. It has been with Dream Theater so much more fun. With Enigma Machine you get six minutes Gefrickel donated. The whole remains continuously exciting thanks to an existing red thread and a musical theme. The Bigger Picture is both lyrically and musically one of the major highlights of the work. The melodies ensure goosebumps, the structure is very exciting and the bar for intensity you put very high. Behind The Veil is the hardest song on the album are played at different tempos and Stimmungen.- also this chorus is superb. Surrender To Reason for call failure would be an exaggeration, but somehow it works alongside the other numbers a bit pale in spite of good parts. The course varies with the obligatory longtrack Illumination Theory, which forms the conclusion to the beautiful Along For The Ride, which can score with acoustic guitars. In 22 minutes divided into five parts, showing the five men all their skills and perform all the trademarks of Dreah theaters that you have earned in the past few decades and strengths. Nevertheless, it lacks a little in spite of all abilities. At the originality of a Train Of Thought and variety of Octavarium or Metropolis
DREAM THEATER deliver with their new album, not the hoped-for masterpiece from and can not quite connect to the predecessor. Nevertheless, Dream Theater is a musical gem and again shows some of the best musicians of our earth. So what is missing from the twelfth album? It's not that certain something, because that has each of the songs but it's just that little bit DREAM THEATER-something that comes this time too short.