We have a review guys, it's from the Argentine section of the DT fanclub, and it's a very positive one. I'll post some parts here. (and I'll skip The Alien and Invisible Monster for obvious reasons)
"Dream Theater presents their new album "A View From The Top Of The World". A heavier album than their latest releases, believe me, at the end of the first few listens, you will feel as if you have just run a marathon; You can tell that there was a contain force that needed to be released.
I must highlight the work of Andy Sneap (Mastering and Mixing) and James Meslin (Sound Engineering), as this album sounds INCREDIBLY clear and crisp. Each instrument can be appreciated to perfection despite the complexity of the music.
Next, I leave you a brief review track by track so that you can get an idea of what you are going to find.
"Answering The Call:
The song starts and ends with an intro that reminded me of the beginning of Rush's “Tom Sawyer”. It is a song with brutal riffs, double bass drums and a great accompaniment by JR, who plays in the spaces left by the melody. In several places in the song there is a beautiful multi-layered voice from JLB. Curious fact, in the song the phrase “the writing on the wall” is reused, also used in “The Gift of Music”. Reaching ¾ of the track, you can hear a classic sequence of JP's solo, followed by a JR solo while a Metallica-style riff plays in the background, followed by a perfectly played unison."
"Sleeping Giant:
This is my favorite song on the album. It begins with a raw riff and a melody that makes you want to move. The track begins by talking about what motivates a society: conflict, compassion, aggressiveness, need, and highlights its obsession with suffering and death. Shortly after the middle of the song the band begins about 2 minutes of madness that only DT can perform, endless scales, pianola, solo exchanges between JP and JR. It ends with a beautiful vocal melody and virtuous scale as MM plays at the speed of light."
"Transcending Time:
This song is the closest thing to a ballad that fans of DT's quieter side are going to get. It has a Rush vibe to it and the chorus reminds me of something Bon Jovi-esque. That said, a little after the middle of the song, it has a heavy section with scales and a very fast guitar solo. JR uses an arsenal of effects to give the track a distinctly 90’ vibe. If I have to bet my money, I would say that the lyrics were wrote by JM, because it is impossible to determine what it is about, it is certainly an abstract poem!"
"Awaken The Master:
The 8 string song, whoever waits for JP doing djent will have to keep waiting because the 8 strings are used with scales and riffs. After the intro, JR delights us with a beautiful piano followed by a melodic guitar solo. At three quarters of the track there is a long instrumental section and at the end JLB returns to close it. The song seems to be about a person who climbs a mountain, but with a religious tinge at the same time, speaking of light, darkness and guiding angels. Perhaps a metaphor about the path we make in our life. A great phrase says " you made it to the top, just to find out, you're only halfway there, all along missing the point of the journey " ... wonderful, amazing, beautiful."
"A View From The Top Of The World:
It is the turn of the epic. It begins with an introduction worthy of a soundtrack of an epic battle. The song talks about the challenge of reaching the top, overcoming the natural instincts that beg you to stop, the physical and mental state, but none of that matters to face the adventure, that addiction to glory and pain. As you can imagine, the song has multiple instrumental sections in which they stands out a guitar/piano/cello part, a baroque style part and another with one of the best riffs on the album. At the near end there is, without a doubt, the best vocal melody of the album. The song closes with a repeating riff while MM does his thing, resembling Finally Free.
Undoubtedly DT heard many of his fans crying out loud for a heavier album, even "Transcending Time", the song that could be considered the ballad, has his high in decibels section, so that there are no doubts about the tone of the album. But also, on the other hand, they managed to contrast this with multiple styles such as music from the 90's, Arabic, pianola and even baroque, something very remarkable that requires incredible musical ability. I can't wait to see how these songs will sound like live.
Without a doubt, another great album as we are always accustomed to by this great band.
JMP, DT Argentina."
(had to edit the post quite a bit for everything to fit into here, sorry)
Topic: DT15: A View From The Top Of The World (Timeline for DT15) (Read 354006 times)