OCTAVARIUM

Ah yes, Dream Theater. While many people say that this is album is a cop-out, Dream Theater is selling out, they are finally making awful music. Well, maybe people didn't notice the considerable decline in album quality ever since "Scenes From A Memory" was released. While I am not saying that this is a five star album, it contains some bad tracks, some amazing tracks, and then some that just don't really appeal to me. When the album first came out, I was amazed. It was my favorite Dream Theater at the time when it came out, and I just couldn't get over how awesome each song was. However, now that quite some time has passed, I find that almost half the album is quite dull. But all the songs that rock, really really rock.

1. The Root Of All Evil: A very strong song, it has a very good atmosphere going. This one continues along in the alcoholism saga, and it does not fail to disappoint in my opinion. While there is no outstanding riff, the song is just good as a whole, cohesive unit. And unlike some Dream Theater pieces, it does not need one standout part. My only complaint with this song (and sometimes on the whole album) is that Petrucci's guitar is somewhat low, especially on the guitar solo in this song. Rating: A-

2. The Answer Lies Within: This song has never appealed to me. Not when I bought the album, and not now. I've always found it too bland, too boring. James LaBrie does not have the great voice alone to carry on a song like this, and the rest of the band seems to just mesh together for a Norah Jones-type song. Not what I was looking for. Rating: D

3. These Walls: Now this song, whether its too commercial or not, to me it is a killer song. I really love the emotion put into the song by the whole, and James LaBrie puts a good performance into this one. This is a strong song with a very omnipresent melancholic feel, one that I think is executed perfectly, especially by John Petrucci's short, simple, but especially sweet guitar solo. Rating: A-

4. I Walk Beside You: I do not have much to say about this song except that it could very easily be a U2 song. I really tried hard to like this song, but coming from Dream Theater I just couldn't bring myself to it. While it may be a lousy song in my opinion, it could be a good song to introduce fans to Dream Theater with if they are not a prog/metal fan at all. Rating: D+

5. Panic Attack: Now this song is just straight up metal with prog. Very killer song, one that ought to please any metalheads who were introduced to DT by Train of Thought. I find it a very intense and anxious sounding song, with a killer riff and some excellent bass and drum playing. I also quite enjoy Jordan Rudess' keyboard solo in this song, for a change. Rating: B+

6. Never Enough: This is a song that I liked a lot when the album first came out, but over time, like the album, I no longer like this song quite as much. It now seems somewhat bland, like Dream Theater was forcefully trying to do something different, and not letting their hearts tell them to. This one feels very restrained and I think that it has some potential, just not enough of it came through. Rating: C

7. Sacrificed Sons: Now this is where the album begins to really shine. This song being a very serious song about the events of 9/11. James Labrie's vocals are very touching in this song, and all of the guitar parts during the verse and chorus really help to catalyze this emotion. The pre-chorus that appears only once in the song in my opinion is especially emotional.

"No clues a complete surprise Who'll be coming home tonight? "

The way LaBrie sings it meshing with Petrucci's solemn volume swells create an intense sadness that in my opinion really speaks to me in this song. Also, one of the best parts is Petrucci's second guitar solo (the reprise) which begins at 6:24, this is an incredible part, and I feel that Petrucci put quite an amount of passion into his playing especially on this part of the song. The riff afterwards is perfect, and when Mike Portnoy's beat picks up, it becomes legendary. Definitely one of the best songs on the album, if not the best. Rating: A+

8. Octavarium: What could be Dream Theater's magnum-opus, the "piece de resistance", a 24 minute epic that is a highlight of all things prog. From the Pink Floyd style intro, to a Yes-like middle section, and mentions of many prog bands throughout the lyrics. We start with the intro. A keyboard part hitting an Fm, and keeping a solid chord progression going as it fades in. Then Petrucci comes in, with an excellent and haunting lead part, a la "Shine On You Crazy Diamond". It all builds up into a very explosion-like part with a large keyboard part going over some epic-style guitar, bass, and drums. The first verse has a strong melancholic feel, and LaBrie's haunting vocals portray an excellent image. The second part beginning with a strong bass line from John Myung brings in calmness and serenity to the song, which is shortly followed by an arsenal of keyboards that show Jordan Rudess' ability to the fullest extent. As we reach the "full circle", the song turns intense again, with a very dark riff along with the tribute to many prog and rock acts of the past. We eventually reach the last two parts of the song, "Intervals", and "Razor's Edge", which in my opinion are the two best parts of the song and provide an EXCELLENT highlight to the rest of the album. Intervals recites parts of each previous song, tying them each into eight seperate stages of something. (one review above explained this part of the song in an excellent manner) This part ends with the climax of LaBrie shouting "Trapped inside this octavarium", which then segues into "Razor's Edge", the overall climax of the song and the album as a whole. It begins with an excellent and quick keyboard line from Rudess, then quickly turning into a haunting chord progression with an excellent symphonic arrary of keyboards going over it. James LaBrie's vocals help to evoke the tremendous amount of atmosphere in this song, and once the final words are said, a keyboard part signifies the start of in my opinion, John Petrucci's greatest guitar solo EVER. I cannot describe how amazing this solo is to me, so I guess you will have to buy the album for yourself to hear it. I have never heard such wonderful playing (from anyone, even Marty Friedman) that goes with the song and has a soul of its own at the same time. Petrucci builds up the solo into one large bend at the final moments of the solo, which leads into a keyboard reprise of the great explosion towards the intro. The song finally ends on the same note which it started, showing the cycle and how it never ends. Rating: A+

I honestly think that the last two songs make the album worth buying alone, as they are both absolutely amazing, and quite possibly some of the best in Dream Theater's careers. While the album may signify an upcoming change in Dream Theater, I am confident that they will still make at least decent, solid music.