BLACK CLOUDS & SILVER LININGS

Dream Theater's latest release certainly had many promises. One of which was that it would harken back to Images and Words. Don't hold your breath on that one. This isn't to say it doesn't have some old DT Progressive moments however but those moments are more closely related to SFAM and Octavarium. There are plenty of metal moments similar to ToT and SC. I was hoping that this release would mean a rebirth of the band that oozes talent. Well, we again are reminded, that the talent is in playing, not so much in the song writing department. All is not lost with this release because some songs do highlight segments of Progressive greatness expected of DT.

"A Nightmare to Remember" is exactly right. Welcome back Systematic Chaos. This track is so contrived it's almost unlistenable, especially lyrically. But I tried to focus on what is new musically. The midsection brings a nice ballad and Petrucci offers a nice lick at about the 6 minute mark. But words like "beautiful agony" almost leave me laughing. The lead sections are basically copy and paste DT. Probably the most difficult to swallow part of the entire album comes at ~11 minute mark with what may be called growl style lyrics. It doesn't work and is simply embarrassing.

"A Right of Passage" gives us something to sink our Prog teeth into. At least you think so when you hear the sweet intro. Is that Myung playing? What? I can actually hear him. The tasty intro is quickly forgotten with the smashing of Portnoy's drums and Petrucci's overdriven guitar. Too bad. I had hopes. Oh well, I'll keep listening and see what happens. Hmmm...decent chorus. As the song moves along, it abruptly changes. Something DT isn't known for is segues. Another cut and paste lead ensues from Petrucci/Rudess until Rudess pulls out a new solo idea! I like it even if it is short lived halted by another abrupt change to the chorus.

"Wither"...nothing but filler. If this is an attempt at the Space Dye Vest styling, it misses the mark completely. Sorry guys. You need Kevin Moore to write something that dark. None of you are disturbed enough.

The next song continues the growl mockery. "The Shattered Fortress" is pretty much a waste of time with more cut and paste DT. Please see Systematic Chaos for the origins. The spoken section sounds like something a la Rush's "The Necromancer" and spoken in the style of The Prayer of St. Francis. In my opinion, this is just plain wrong and frankly unoriginal. But all is not lost! A very nice adaptation/elaboration of "The Glass Prison" which is revisited and is thoroughly enjoyable through the end of the song.

Will "The Best of Times" offer more salvation to this release? A nice piano intro and listen to that! Violin! This is very welcome. Petrucci enters with some nicely placed acoustic guitar. Refreshing! The next section which fades in is really good. A nice 7/4 with a happy melody. LaBrie begins to sing and it is very fitting. I like this one a lot. It's a little poppy in sound but it works although it could be a little shorter. The soloing at the end offers little.

On to the song everyone has been hopeful about, "The Count of Tuscany". Listen to that at ~2 minutes. It harkens of Rabin-esque Yes and it works but transcends to little more new- to-DT stylings and we are right back to cut and paste DT. However there is a proper segue at the 11 minute mark. This is a great section of music which is nothing more than a keyboard hum overlaid with a very tasty Petrucci solo. Savor this. It is rare but very welcome. Petrucci is touching his soul with this one. The rest of the song doesn't disappoint especially LaBrie's singing. This is the type of material that fits him best.

Overall, the mix is decent but we again are left with little obvious presence of Myung. This is very frustrating for someone who likes to listen to bass. The mix for Rudess is decent and his presence is scaled back a bit, but he definitely made some solid contributions with new ideas and sounds. I was happy to hear his DT style of playing has changed. I can't say as much for Petrucci and Portnoy. While Portnoy offered nothing, except the obvious fact that he'd rather be a metal drummer and singer these days, Petrucci did give us that nice solo in TCoT. And Portnoy should learn that less is more. BC&SL would be a good CD to get someone who has never heard of Dream Theater because it basically captures their sound and styles from SFAM forward; however it might ruin their take on the much more Prog-like early DT years.

3.5 of 5 stars.

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