So I haven't been very active on the forums in a while, but I'd figure I'd come out of hiding temporarily to give my thoughts on this album and then disappear once again.
Overall, this is a very strong album. Is it one of my favorites? So far, I'd say no. After listening to it almost 10 times I can't say that I like it more than A Dramatic Turn of Events or Six Degrees or Octavarium, and definitely not more than SfaM or The Astonishing. I like it more than Distance Over Time for sure, and I think I like it more than Images & Words. I'm not quite sure if I like it more than Train of Thought, but they're about at the same place in my heart already. We'll have to see how well this album ages first though.
From my first ten impressions, this feels like a very refined Dream Theater. It doesn't try to reinvent the wheel, but instead takes the existing wheel and makes small improvements here and there to make a stronger performing wheel. There's more variation in the accompaniments to vocal and solo sections, the fast and loose approach to song structure that the last two albums took have been adapted into more traditional Dream Theater song formats, and the anthemic and sweet melodies of The Astonishing are used to add contrast within the songs. In fact, one of this album's strongest points is how good the vocal melodies are (especially the choruses). There are several that just worm their way inside your head and stick there. They make the vocal sections a nice breath of fresh air from the instrumental craziness and bring the two on almost equal footing.
Almost. Because while the vocal sections brought their A-game, so did the instrumental sections. In this album, it feels as if two shifts have largely taken place: first, that the "weight" of the instrumental sections has shifted more towards the introductions; and second, that the band has adapted more towards shorter, but more frequent solos. There are many more solos, but those solos in actuality take up just as much time as they did in previous albums. Outside of The Alien, the norm seems to be rapid-fire trade offs of four bar solos rather than extended eight to sixteen bar solos over a repeating riff. This seemingly minor shift creates a lot more variety in the accompaniment for the solos, to the point where the accompaniment becomes just as interesting as the solos at times (if not more so). The instrumental sections, probably as a consequence, seem to place a slightly larger emphasis on musical development during the solo trade offs. Which, in turn, gives a strong and cohesive feeling to sections of instrumental madness that are otherwise changing every three or four bars. Rudess in particular is doing a lot more shifts in tone color and phrasing to add even greater intrigue to every song. This album feels very contrapuntally focused from beginning to end. There's more variety in texture and greater uses of polyphony (where multiple distinct melodies are playing at the same time) and heterophony (where multiple parts are playing variations of the same melody). And of course, I would be remiss if I didn't point out the phenomenal production on this album. This is probably the best sounding Dream Theater album in the discography, right up there with The Astonishing.
The Alien is a very solid album opener and probably the best since On the Backs of Angels. It at times feels the most like "classic" Dream Theater while incorporating elements of this album's unique style, easing us into this new experience. While it strongly impressed me as a single, it works even better within the context of the album. This song has been picked apart enough for me to avoid going into too much detail. Overall Grade: A- ; Ranking: 4th
Answering the Call is a hardcore rocker that is reminiscent of a mixture of These Walls and On the Backs of Angels while adding its own flavor. The song as a whole has a energetic and playful quality while still being anthemic and "bust-your-balls-open-over-a-pan-like-its-about-to-make-the-world's-worst-omelet" heavy. The choruses and pre-choruses are insanely catchy, as are the 2nd verse and vocal bridge. The overall vibe of this song is just fun. It grooves a long at a good pace from beginning to end, never stopping for a second. There are also a lot of really interesting little touches here and there (like that upward scale fill during the orchestral section) and some great sound design choices in the intro/outro, which are weirdly reminiscent of psytrance, of all things. It's a fun song that feels like it's only 3 or 4 minutes long and I'm not sure why it was not a single. The only criticism I can offer it is that there's no "wow" moment to really make it stand out. It just is what it is. Overall Grade: A ; Ranking: 3rd
Invisible Monster was, at first listen, whelming. It has since grown on me, especially after hearing it in context. It's a nice breather in the album between the first two tracks and Sleeping Giant. It's catchy, moody, and does a lot with a little. It has what is one of the strongest highlights of the album in my view, which is the baroque section of the guitar solo. Sure it's not the flashiest song on the album, but it's just solid overall. Overall Grade: B+ ; Ranking: 7th
Sleeping Giant, on the other hand, was love at first sight. This song is incredible. If it's not a Top 10 Dream Theater song, it's Top 15. This song feels like it's 4 minutes long. It grasps your attention immediately and never lets go. The vocal sections are all insanely well-done and super catchy and anthemic. This is the kind of song where I'll pump my fist in the air along with it as soon as I make sure no one is watching. I'll be honest, when I first heard the snippets on Inside Out a while back, this was the song I was the least excited for. Now it's my favorite song on the album. This song slaps. Overall Grade: A+ ; Ranking: 1st
Transcending Time has gotten better on each listen, even if it sounds like Dream Theater covering a really good Rush song that also happens to be an anime opening. Usually the Rushesque songs are not my cup of tea (The Looking Glass is my least favorite song on DT12 and Barstool Warrior is my least favorite on Velocity d/t), but this is easily the best among them. What elevates this song beyond its predecessors is what Rudess does on it. The piano sections are easily the best part of the song, and his 80s outrun/synthwave synth brass songs add a lot of charm to it. The call and response between the chorus and the synth theme is another nice touch. The guitar solo is also very strong, especially the section with the descending runs and insane shreddy bits. Overall it's a good song and a nice breather that I still enjoy despite it not really being my cup of tea. (Also, every time I listen to this song I picture rolling European countrysides. What's up with that?) Overall Grade: B+ ; Ranking: 6th
Awaken the Master can be best summed up with a stank face. And another and another and another. This isn't even a song, it's just a chain of stank face inducing moments. Of particular note is those grand piano chords and guitar theme, which might be my favorite moment on the album (or second favorite). This song remind me the most of other bands outside of the title track, with little bits reminding me of Neal Morse, Diablo Swing Orchestra (yes really), LTE, and even doom metal. This song is nuts and is the strongest contender for "9 minutes on the album, but 14 minutes live" they've had in years. This song strongly impressed me on first list, but has simmered down a little bit. While it is a fantastic song in its own right, it shares a lot of material with the next song that there are definite moments where it feels like "A View from the Top of the World, Pt. 1". Even the lyrics to the song seem to be treading the same ground as the epic, albeit from a different perspective. Is it still great? Yes. But it does kind of blend in with the title track a bit. Overall Grade: A ; Ranking: 2nd
A View from the Top of the World is an odd song and one that I have mixed opinions about. Fitting its subject matter, the song hits some of the highest peaks and the lowest valleys in the album. First, as was mentioned a couple of times (by bossk I believe), this song tends to bring epics by other bands to mind more than other Dream Theater epics. Its overall role and impact on the album remind me of Song of Myself/Imaginaerum by Nightwish, the music reminds me of Symphony X's The Odyssey and Haken's Crystallised and The Architect, and the feeling overall is more comparable to Strauss's Alpine Symphony. Second, is that at times this song doesn't feel like an epic but rather a song that just happens to be 20 minutes long. It's a curious piece of music overall, but it does what it sets out to accomplish very well: cap off the album. In a sense, the song does it in the same way as the previously mentioned Nightwish track: it brings back a number of moments from the past songs (especially Awaken the Master) to give the album a sense of finality (a variation of the opening melody of Sleeping Giant is heard right at the end, for instance). It has potential to be one of Dream Theater's best songs and take its place in the pantheon of great epics, but there are a few things holding it back. The first is that the song is missing something, and something very specific: a final reprise of the absolutely phenomenal chorus right before the extended outro. This reprise would work both from a musical stand point (providing that "peak" at the end that others have been missing out on and bringing back familiar material to add a sense of release right at the end) and a lyrical one (the final chorus would reflect back on the last verse and gain additional meaning after the final section and the whole emotional journey of the song. The second is that the cello should be played by a real player. Right now it sits in an awkward uncanny valley zone where Rudess has played it on the GeoShred so phenomenally that it sounds almost exactly like a cello but the overall timbre is just slightly off. Outside of those two criticisms, this song stands very strong. There are a lot of moments among the album's best offerings (the riff and entire section from 14:10 onwards, just that entire middle section especially vocal interjection, etc.) and the chorus stands as without a doubt the strongest chorus on the album. Overall, the good definitely outweighs the bad. In effect, the song encapsulates the entire album: it's great music, but not without some flaws. Overall Grade: A- ; Ranking: 5th
Current ranking:
1. Sleeping Giant (A+)
2. Awaken the Master (A)
3. Answering the Call (A)
4. The Alien (A-)
5. A View from the Top of the World (A-)
6. Transcending Time (B+)
7. Invisible Monster (B+)
Overall Grade: 9/10, A
This is definitely the strongest contender for my album of the year. The only competition it has right now is Leprous' Aphelion which this blows out of the water (and that's saying something because Aphelion was so good it made me like the entire band). The new Diablo Swing Orchestra could give it a run for its money though.
Topic: *Official* A View from the Top of the World discussion thread (Read 145200 times)