Number 62: Just Let Me Breathe
A daily dose of eMpTyV. Will flush your mind right down the drain
Here is another song from Falling Into Infinity written by Mike Portnoy. It is a nice 5:30 song that delivers. Another song regarding the annoyance of the record company and has one of the greatest piano/guitar duets. Though Lost Not Forgotten has the edge. I've heard so much complaints about this song and I guess I don't blame you. Only Portnoy's songs were about the label, record company, and change while the rest of the band members had no songs about their frustration. The lyrics are really nice and the song itself is really groovy. Sherinian's keyboard melody also makes this song really catchy. Now, going onto the instrumental section....the duet between Petrucci and Sherinian is so wow. They both get a chance to shine and shred as the song ends in a bang and Myung is extremely prominent too.
Number 61: Vacant
Head swayed. Eyes glazed. And mine teared
This song is really something. Honestly, it caught me off guard when I first listened to Train of Thought. I thought everything would be really badass and so heavy sound, yeah! It threw me off when I heard the cello and I expected the song to explode, but it didn't. I was pleasantly surprised. This song is the only song off of Train of Thought to have not shredding whatsoever. For people who say that Dream Theater is so technical and don't have an ounce of feel, listen to this song and many other ballads. This song saves Train of Thought from becoming only balls. Here's the reasons why I love this song. It's about Labrie's daughter who fell into a coma and if you the Score version of it, Labrie is holding back tears with each note. Kudos to him. When I realized the true meaning of the song, I couldn't help, but to be brought to tears. How hard it must be to witness that. Labrie's vocals are beautiful, and the tone of the keyboard and cello are so dark, it sounds really ominous. The progression of the chords are also extremely haunting.
Number 60: Panic Attack
A stifling surge, shooting through all my veins. Extreme apprehension, suddenly I'm insane.
When I first heard this song, I thought it was written by Mike Portnoy. It is extremely aggressive from start to finish and guess what? Myung has an introduction solo! His six string sounds amazing as usual and I think one of the strongest live performances is from the Chaos in Motion tour. As you might have guessed, this song is about a panic attack. This song is the fifth song from Octavarium and is played in the C chord. The lyrics are well written and the instrumental sections blows my mind. First is Rudess with an aggressive solo with his sick synth and then Petrucci comes in shredding like crazy. Those two have a duet and then Labrie comes in once more. He sings really well here as his operatic, frantic voice just adds meaning to the song.