PARASOMNIA

The first studio reunion of the classic DT lineup since 2008! 1. "In the Arms of Morpheus" (5:22) the spacious time-bent opening 90 seconds of this sounds and feels like a soundtrack to one of those child-slasher horror movies. It's very well done--and very effective in conveying disorientation from "real world" reality--even when the full band starts its power chord march through to the 2:45 mark. The chugging motif that follows is impressive for the technical prowess on display from each and every musician. The "mountaintop" motif that opens up at 4:05 is a bit clichéd but definitely reminds us of the "glory days" of all that was 1990s DT. And no vocals! It's totally instrumental. (9.125/10)

2. "Night Terror" (9:55) a slowly-building wall of auspicious gloom turns, after 90 seconds, into a fast-paced run through the dark forest. When the band wants to open up for James LaBrie's singing of the verses they step into a syncopated stop-and-go kind of motif--very effective--but then revert to the smooth-racing run for the choruses. Four minutes in and I find myself totally surprised at the like of pyrotechnics or fireworks: everybody seems to be completely synchronized and attuned to the whole-band wall(s) of sound they're creating. When there is space opened up for instrumental solos, the guitar and keyboard solos are, unfortunately, almost embarrassingly cliché-filled. (Those guitar overdrive harmonics were so 80s!) Still, it is really nice to hear that RUSH-like unity in the eighth minute--and this is the motif in which John Petrucci reminds us of why he was one of the kings of technical metal guitar playing. Great solo highs in the ninth minute! The chorus, which is really maxed-out in the final minutes, is a little too anchored, stylistically and melodically, in 1980s "hair band" sound. (17.875/20)

3. "A Broken Man" (8:30) a song that I enjoy for its steadfast forward motion, even when Mike decreases the number of beats per minute he deploys with his drums; this is an impressive song! While Mike Portnoy is putting on a show for the first two minutes Jordan Rudess's keyboard prowess is in full effect with his "calming"/balancing synth wash chord progressions. James La Brie steps into the fold in the third minute to divulge the story line, he's good--very theatric and committed--but it's John Myung's bass play that now has all my attention--especially when there are any spaces afforded the instrumentalists between James' vocal lines. The metal motif in the instrumental sixth minute is cool with lots of tempo and chord-progression changes as Jordan and John Petrucci take turns proffering their pristine solos (even courting totally different stylistic motifs with each solo stint). Even the bridges are really fun to hear/follow--especially with the various fills each instrumentalist might "sneak" into them. The vocal is good but not nearly as breath-taking as the work of the instrumentalists. (18.75/20)

4. "Dead Asleep" (11:06) John Petrucci really gets some great guitar sounds on this one--which may feed into his inspired-sounding lead solos. The creative interplay between John-John and Mike is so exciting that I find myself pretty much tuning out/oblivious to James' vocal performance--until, that is, the muted effect is applied (briefly) in the fifth minute. The subject matter is quite obviously inspired by both Edgar Allen Poe and Blue Öyster Cult's albums of the mid-1970s (Agents of Fortune and Spectres). Jordan has some decent time in the instrumental mid-section to solo--and he is quite impressive. (I often have trouble appreciating much less "feeling" the emotional keyboard artists are trying to convey with their instruments.) Smooth multi-voice choruses also remind me of BÖC's iconic songs (as well as those of Def Leppard). From a perspective of instrumental virtuosity, this may be the album's most impressive. The song ends with some on-the-water creaking wood noises beneath a piano playing the melody of a famous Nineteenth Century classical piece. (18.5/20)

5. "Midnight Messiah" (7:58) DEF LEPPARD-like musical motif opens this within which a recorded voice is relaying his concerns about how to "really wake up." Syncopated Tech Heavy Metal ensues with John Petrucci and John Myung chugging masterfully along, Mike and Jordan riding along beneath, each adding their own subtle rhythmic and harmonic accents. It has quite a bit of Metallica's "Enter the Sandman" feel to it--though not during the choruses, there it sounds more like Uriah Heep, Iron Maiden, Megadeth or that ilk. This song is one that feels as if the band is kind of "dialing in" a mélange of their most comfortable riffs and styles. Not my favorite style or song. (13.125/15)

6. "Are We Dreaming?" (1:29) gongs, church organ, and tubular bells set up another voice-under of whispered vocals--this time from two actors. (4.425/5)

7. "Bend the Clock" (7:25) opening with some awesome-sounding distorted guitar chords and arpeggi brings me back to times long begone (the late 1960s and early 1970s). When James enters, using a breathy-delicate voice, immersed within piano and strumming acoustic guitars, it is equally awesome/nostalgic. Then they really get going: reviving a sound palette that is so familiar, so comfortable from the AOR Classic Rock bands of the mid- to late 1970s (Styx, Alice Cooper, Journey, or even Def Leppard, Bon Jovi, or Bryan Adams). This is my favorite James LaBrie vocal of the album! And my favorite John Petrucci guitar solo (despite the fact that it is totally old-school pre-80s Metal). Great if "classic" song! Just great! (14.5/15)

8. "The Shadow Man Incident" (19:32) a long intro that definitely highlights the band's unity and discipline--two elements that I consider marks of maturity and effort--the song really kicks into forward motion at the three-minute mark and then really around the four-minute mark when they're finally ready to launch some solos (with John Petrucci's rock guitar starting things off). At 4:50 things are brought down a couple notches--especially in tempo--allowing the tender (though portentous) side of James LaBrie's voice to go on full display. There is an awesome Freddy Mercury-like control and focus that James is putting into each and every syllable/vowel that is very impressive. At 7:50 the guitar and bass suddenly take off: speeding along like a dog suddenly seeing a squirrel. Mike, Jordan, and James follow suit (without missing a beat, of course). The unity is really quite remarkable--as is James' pronunciation of each and every syllable. The melodies are fairly good--especially the "night ? endless nights" ones: catchy and memorable. The instrumental passage begun at the ten-minute mark owes a lot to the twin guitars of bands like THIN LIZZY as well as the sounds of Brian May. In the twelfth minute the band shifts into "catch me if you can" mode with many short ever-shifting motifs and time signatures--the two Johns again shining while Jordan and Mike reinforce, embellish and accent. In the fourteenth minute Jordan surprises us with some classical music themes slipping out of his piano (as the rest of the band holds fast to their hard-driving metal motif beneath!) Petrucci goes off on one of his inimitable series of Lightning Flash flurries in the 15th minute but then the band melts into a bombastic theme for James to re-emerge singing in a crescendo/dénouement during the sixteenth and seventeenth minutes. Petrucci soars and dives in the eighteenth while Mike punctuates every second of the song beneath him and then, with over a minute left remaining on the clock, its over! We're left with eerie water-in-the-underground sewers, echoing shadow man laughs that turn to dripping in the bathroom sink followed by the ringing of a mechanical alarm clock and a "wake up" voice being whispered loudly into your ear. Classic, high-quality DT with very tight formation, classic Petrucci guitar solos, and a wonderful if limited (in terms of minutes) performance from James LaBrie. It's really hard to find fault with this other than it not being my true kind of preferred music to listen to for pure enjoyment. Still, there is no doubt that this is a brilliant product! (38/40)

Total Time 71:17

Though Dream Theater music has always been impressive, it has rarely resonated with my specific musical tastes. (So far, Awake is the one exception: there is something about that album that drew me in from the first time I heard it.) A long break from collaborating with one another as well as maturity may have served James, John, Jordan, John, and Mike well because the music on Parasomnia, while still being as impressive as ever, is both interesting and enjoyable! It may not end up being one of my favorites of the year but it certainly earns high marks for skill and power. (I'm actually a bit embarrassed to see that my favorite song on the album is the one that ticks off the most "retro" marks on the nostalgia scale.) I'm also incredibly impressed how little filler there is with "over the top" bombast and show: this is a band that is showing their maturity by being content with impressing as a whole band more than as a gathering of virtuosic individuals.

A/five stars; a masterpiece of prog metal from one of America's iconic bands reunited one more time.

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