AWAKE

Dream Theater at their best but sadly Kevin Moore's last album with the band and a sense of ambience is sort of missed in DT after this, his work on here and I&W left a far bigger impression on me than Sherinian and Rudess (both still brilliant) work later on. Melodies would sometimes suffer from too much technical prowess on later stuff, but that is not the case here. I normally have trouble with James LaBrie's voice later in DT's career but on this album he is consistently excellent in his performance, his dynamic peak in my opinion and goes along the music incredibly well here. Shows how good of a singer JLB really is. The compositions are tight and some of their best ever, songs like "Scarred" or "Mind Beside Itself" still remains in my top 10 and they are supported with superb musicianship all the way. The overall sound is darker and heavier too. Moore made a final contribution to the band with "Space Dye-West" on a dark and highly atmospheric note and it seems to have gained cult status among fans, it's an incredible ballad. Overall the best and most complete Dream Theater release in my ears with great variation in the songs.