A CHANGE OF SEASONS

The truly amazing aspect of this album is that so much good material was used for a promo CD, as I prefer most of the goods on the epic track to music on the albums before. Regardless, however another classic prog metal epic gets distributed from the brains of the creators and into my hands makes little difference.

In A Change of Seasons, I see a fairly drastic shift for the band. Previously, Dream Theater would certainly include plenty of instrumental passages, but with this epic, I see even more dedication to instrumentals, and not just in length, but in more variety of moods, more build-ups to satisfying climaxes, and better transitions between segments. All in all, it's amazing how well A Change of Seasons holds my attention, because melodically there's not much holding the pieces together, but there's enough variety and energy that I think it flows extremely well. LaBrie is restrained, Petrucci wails a bit more on the solos, and coupled with the ever chugging drums and grinding organ, we have a winner!

I also enjoy the covers, if only to have a new respect for the band's talents. These guys can play anything, although while their version of Funeral for a Friend was impressive, I think the most energy came out of the Zepplin medley. In some cases--such as Zepplin--if you can't see the real thing, then you are forced to appreciate the best of the rest!

Overall, a fun album, and definitely worth tracking down. Of course the title track is the main draw, but the covers for me are less "throwaway" tracks than a decent amount of their actual feature album material.