There really was no place to go after The Astonishing, <\/i>the 2016 double-disc rock opera\/concept album that divided fans and critics, so Dream Theater took the smart path and decided to go lean for the 14th album, Distance Over Time<\/i>. <\/p>\n
Granted, \u201clean\u201d with these guys is still a misnomer, as their signature blend of technically proficient progressive metal is a far cry from three guys bashing out three chords in a garage. But by the 30-year DT standards fans have come to expect, this is as much a return to basics as one can expect. The Astonishing <\/i>was an effort written by two band members and styled to be an event; DOT <\/i>is five guys spending time in a farmhouse in upstate New York and collaborating, throwing ideas around, making music like the days of old.<\/p>\n
Consequently, it is as good a DT album as the band has released in a long while; fans who jumped ship after drummer Mike Portnoy left (out of loyalty, I imagine) may do well do check this one out, because at its frequent best it will remind fans of the DT of why they love this band\u2026and why they are deserved leaders of the genre. Sure, it breaks no new ground, but that\u2019s not always a requirement, is it? <\/p>\n
\u201cParalyzed\u201d is a great example of this lean approach, a gutsy, low-end hard rock song with a great John Petrucci solo that would fit well on modern rock radio, but that is by default more melodic. \u201cFall Into the Light\u201d is another one of those long-form epics DT does so well, recalling classic Metallica in the twists of the time signatures, the extended guitar solo and the militaristic drums that open the piece. <\/p>\n
The retro low-end sound of \u201cRoom 137\u201d is a bit more grungy than we\u2019re used to from these guys but they pull it off, while \u201cSTN\u201d goes bass-first and then musically ricochets around like a pinball while James Labrie alternates between a growl and a sing. Both songs are different than we\u2019re used to from Dream Theater and break up the flow of the album nicely, particularly after the DT-by-numbers \u201cBarstool Warrior\u201d and prior to the overlong \u201cAt Wit\u2019s End,\u201d which is fine but nothing that hasn\u2019t been said in the previous 13 albums.<\/p>\n
Each DT album needs some of slower reflective piece and \u201cOut Of Reach\u201d gets the nod here as the penultimate tracks, clearing the decks for the astronomical \u201cPale Blue Dot.\u201d There\u2019s a hint of Floyd\/Alan Parsons Project in the space noises and astronaut breathing, but then those hyper drums and Petrucci\u2019s ever-impressive guitar playing roar in and you get sucked into the story. After the eight-minute journey, you realize that there may be elements of Rush, ELP, and Queensryche that will always seep into this band\u2019s music, but Dream Theater is a unique band with a unique sound, and they are always worth hearing.<\/p>\n
The album ends proper with this track, but digital versions add on the Deep Purple-esque bonus track \u201cViper King,\u201d a fun four-minute rave-up that probably should have been bumped up in the runtime, perhaps as the palate cleanser to \u201cFall Into The Light.\u201d Whatever. Great song, great album, and proof that these guys are masters whether they create rock operas or hang out in a barn for four months and get back to basics.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":45,"featured_media":33753,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"artist":[5988],"rating":[5617],"class_list":["post-45574","review","type-review","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","artist-dream-theater","rating-rating-b-plus"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/45574","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/review"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/45"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45574"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/45574\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33753"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45574"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=45574"},{"taxonomy":"rating","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rating?post=45574"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}