IMAGES AND WORDS by Dream Theatre

idssdi · Jun 30, 2021

So, I'm typing this as I'm listening to is (I also have a bit of a hangover so I'm wondering how that's gonna affect my judgement)

Pull Me Under: This is such a great opening song. Love the drum beat and the riff and the interplay of the guitars with the synth are splendid. I remember learning the intro a while ago and it's really just a blast to play.

Another Day: This is one beautiful ballad which is pretty different form what I'm used to from Dream Theater. Love the little synth(?) solo after the first chorus and there's some really nice guitar playing in this as well.

Take The Time: This song is awesome! That intro is genius how it goes from that drum buildup to the heavy riff. also love the harmonics in that riff and the synth solo. After that in your phase bit there's also a lovely part more based around the bass. Love the hook in the chorus too ! Holy shit, I love that bridge!

Surrounded: Love the bit more chill vibe this has. Really nice song, also sounds kinda happy which I can definitely dig a lot.

Metropolis-part 1: That delay on the guitar combined with the percussion is a really nice touch. Love the beat when the vocals come in. The musicianship in this is incredible, it's just crazy good, The amount of twist and turns is outrageous.

Under The Glass moon: Love the drumbeat in this. another really cool bridge which has some nice syncopation between the drums and guitars at the beginning. Oeh, really nice guitar solo, very good example of tasty shredding!

Wait for sleep: I personally don't really associate Dream Theater with 2:31 min piano ballads but this is incredibly well done!

Learning To Live: another elaborate bridge which may be one of my favourite things in prog. It's as if you're taken on an adventure which is awesome.

Overall I would say this record is an example of musicianship done right. I'm one of those people who can describe technically complicated music as wanking on an instrument but even though this is clearly very technically complicated I wouldn't ever describe it like that. Everything has it's place and it always fits the song like a glove and it never feels as if things are put there for the sake of showing off their musicianship. It's all very technical but tasty and I can really dig that. Also, I'm a sucker for extended elaborate intros and bridges and it seems there are plenty of those on this record so I'm like a kid in a candy store.

As a bonus here's my collection of Dream theater cds

Matt Wildcat · Jun 30, 2021

Alrighty, so I've finally had a chance to sit down and listen to this album - and all I can say is holy shit. I've always heard people speaking praises of Dream Theatre, and after giving this a listen, I'm in no doubt as to why! How on earth I didn't sit down and go through their stuff earlier is beyond me. Though, I will say this - There were definitely a few times where there was so much brilliant stuff going on that I couldn't quite grasp it all, if that makes sense. The ability to even write this stuff, let alone play and record it, is also very much beyond me in the best possible way. Just brilliant stuff! For me, time sigs and tempo changes are still a bit to get used to, I may have mentioned it before but I feel I've been playing it safe with sticking to songs with more "normal" tempos/sigs for too damn long. So, some quick thoughts -

Pull Me Under - I LOVE THAT RIFF! The one thing I noted is that already I'm starting to pick up on a lot of things that I've heard in newer music from artists inspired by these guys, and holy shit how could you not be?

Another Day - Beautiful acoustic intro, that lead solo is awesome. This song is honestly so touching, there's so many instruments working so well together, from the "softer" stuff to the heavier stuff. It's one of those that I really just felt in my soul, y'know?

Take The Time - Tempo changes for the win! Took me a minute to wrap my head around it all, but they really show what you can do with a song and how important different tempos and time sigs can be! Also, those solos are fucking nuts.

Surrounded - Those chords, that piano, those synths are just beautiful. Love the guitar addition at 1:52. Reminds me of some synth-pop stuff, just heavier and more badass!

Metropolis Pt 1 - Love the rhythm of this! The way the guitar creeps in at first before all coming together. The keyboards sound sick, and the chugging guitars when the vocals come in sound so badass! 4:18 caught me off guard with the sudden rhythm change. The bass at 5:40 is insane, how do you even play that?! 5:53 sounds like something from a video game, I immediately thought of Sonic. I think it was around this point that I'd just gotten so blown away by everything, picking bits apart as favs was tough!

Under a Glass Moon - I fell in love with this one almost instantly. Those stabs sound ominous as hell, and the licks in between some of them, how?! The riff around 1:30 seriously rocks. That whole instrumental bit was quite a ride.

Wait For Sleep - A short one, but man does it hit. I love how this album has some pretty lengthy songs that take you on a total journey, and then there's pieces like this to break it up and it's really effective. It's such a beautiful track with the piano, and probably one of my favs alongside Pull Me Under and Surrounded.

Learning to Live - Honestly, where do I even start with this one? One thing that I really enjoyed was the acoustic at around the 6:00 mark - And that's another cool thing that can be mentioned. There's so many different instruments used in all of these songs, and they really have been blended together so well. It's a wonderful showcase of what you can do in a song, this was a great example of that..

It's probably gonna take me a few more listens to properly comprehend all of this, and I wished I could find the words to describe this all better... But the main point is - I LOVED this album! Thank you so much @Syn Gates for once again brining us such a kickass rec and properly introducing me to such an awesome band!

Simon Dean Groves · Jun 30, 2021

Syn Gates said:
:syngates:Yo Family! For June’s #AOTM we are going with one of my fav records of all time and certainly my fav prog record of all time in Images and Words by the great Dream Theatre.

This was another band introduced to me by Jimmy. He used to sneak a Walkman(look it up kids) to school and play me ridiculous shit in the bathroom. This one stood out as having the most incredible musicianship I had ever heard. I was 13 when he played this record for me and it changed the way I looked at guitar. I had no idea that what I was hearing could be accomplished on the instrument I had already spent years working on.

Dream Theatre is a progressive rock band that formed in 1985 in the halls of Berklee School of Music in Boston. There have been multiple lineups but the Images and Words cast comprise Mike Portnoy on drums, John Petrucci on guitar, James LaBrie on vocals, John Myung on bass, and Kevin Moore on keyboards.

John Petrucci has been one of my favorite guitarists rotating in my top 3 since the very day I heard this light show of a record way back in middle school. He certainly epitomizes my way of approaching the guitar more than any other player besides maybe my father - with an endless pursuit of technique and harmony only to facilitate a melody and composition first approach to solos and songwriting.

This motif and melody first approach has yielded some of my favorite solos of all time and couple that with the pyrotechnics weaving in and around these flawless melodies and motifs make for a perfect combination of music and cinema.

As a student of percussion as well, I was moved by how Mike Portnoy seamlessly and so fluidly supported all of these incredible riffs and time signatures in such a musical and cinematic way. And as smooth as this cat could play, he still managed to make the music heavy as fuck. Listen to Under a Glass Moon for one of the greatest grooves of all time. The entire record is a clinic on how a drummer can steal the show at no cost to his co stars and director.

If there was a dude that I would’ve done unspeakable things to sing like, it would be James LaBrie. The range, the soul, the technique, the texture, the everything. This dudes got it in spades. It’s such a slippery slope to not take these songs and turn them into overly dramatic novelty uber dramas. James does no such thing. Flawless victory.

John Myung is as gifted as the aforementioned. He doesn’t just support the band, he comes bearing gifts. I’ve transcribed thousands of difficult musical passages in my life and I still have no clue wtf he’s doing in Metropolis, part 1 at 5:40

And last but certainly not least, Kevin Moore on keys. Total stud and one of my favorite songwriters of all time. He wrote a lot of my favorite songs on this record. They’re all great songwriters but Kevin speaks to me on this record.

Lastly, some or many of you know that Mike helped us out when Jimmy passed in late ‘09. We were putting the final touches on Nightmare when our world was shattered. For a couple of weeks we had decided to not move forward as it wouldn’t be right without Jimmy. Two main components quickly changed our minds. The first was The Sullivan’s. Jimmy’s parents and sisters were like our parents and sisters. We grew up with them. We love them dearly. They told us we had no choice in the matter because Jimmy would’ve demanded that we continue on. The second was Mike Portnoy. I’m sure somebody spoke of it before me but I know that the choice was clear to everyone when the decision was made to move forward. We needed one of Jimmy’s favorites to lift us up and realize the dream of putting out Jimmy’s final work.

Much like Petrucci is the influence that speaks the loudest on my sleeve, Mike is arguably that for Jimmy and certainly the best contender to have executed Jimmy’s unique and brilliant vision for the record. Mike walked in, hung is ego at the door and spent countless hours copying meticulous kick patterns and fills without complaint.

Of all musical elements, style is by far the most difficult to emulate. He hung in there and didn’t stop until we were all beyond satisfied with the performance. Of course we had him do his thing across many of Jimmy’s unfinished drum demos and then fully unleashed the beast on the closer, Save Me. Mike absolutely shines on that track, to say the least.

Well I hope that you enjoy this record even a fraction of the amount that I do, it would be enough to change your life.

A runner up and probably Shadows’ favorite Dream Theatre record is Metropolis Part 2. It’s definitely very cinematic and has a touch of Elfman throughout.

Lemme know your thoughts in the comments, can’t wait to connect with you all on this beast

All my love,

SYN
:syngates:
Apple Music
Spotify
YouTube

Shepard of fire drums in there for sure

Ross Donald · Jun 30, 2021

I'm listening to it right now and I'm completely blown away. I wish I would've given this band more of a chance before now. Many of my friends listen to them, but I for some reason drug my feet until now. Thank you so much for expanding my musical tastes, Syn! God Bless!

Kim · Jun 30, 2021

Great to see Syn and a lot of people here love this album. I love it too. Was the first album I heard of the band, long time ago. Have seen them twice live. Last concert was the last one I saw before Covid lockdown, then they played whole album Metropolis Part 2( this is my fav album, and also images and words) Amazing! They are so good, i was blown away by the bassist and offcourse Petrucci.

Surrounded is some of special to me, because it was the first song Ive heard of them, friends introduced it and we listened to it a lot.

Alicia Willis · Jul 1, 2021

I’ll be honest, I had never actually listened to Dream Theather, just heard a few songs in passing via my husband. I was stoked to check it out !
There were a few tracks that just weren't my cup of tea and I couldn't really get into them. However there were a few I thoroughly enjoyed.

Loved the opening Track Pull Me Under. Not sure why but as soon as it started my mind went to “Welcome Home(sanitarium)” by Metallica.

Another Day was absolutely beautiful! The lyrics really touched me so I had to research what they were written about and damnit I nearly cried. The guitar solo was so emotional. I’m typically not a fan of the sax but that solo was beautiful. This one gave me a lot of pop vibes which I was not expecting, but it loved it.

Surrounded- This one was a rollercoaster of emotions, musically and lyrically. I'll not 100% sure what the intended meaning is behind the lyrics, but I got the sense of a battle with either addiction or ones own spirituality... or perhaps both.

Metropolis- HOLY FUCK BALLS! I see the part you referenced. That is freaking crazy ! That entire instrumental section is FUCKING AMAZING! I typically do not like instrumental sections that are so varied, but this entire section was perfection. Towards the end of it I felt like I was spiraling into madness.

Under a Glass Moon- OOOOH That riff ! BRB gotta go try that one out.

Thanks again for another awesome AOTM !

Anna.VG · Jul 1, 2021

Ok so... I don´t know how I lived almost 21 years without hearing this amazing band. This was the perfect opportunity to sit down and give this album my full attention. Honestly, it left me speechless, everything is so great here and how everything in every song mix it’s amazing, pure greatness. Now I get why Petrucci is one of your biggest inspirations, he does great things! Also what I really liked are the lyrics, they´re pretty damn brilliant.

-Pull Me Under: I think we can all agree of how this intro is awesome, perfect for an opening song.

-Another Day: What a beautiful song, I didn’t expect this at all but it’s a fascinating one. The saxophone at the end just makes this song more beautiful. The lyrics are so pretty and deep.

-Take the Time: Another brilliant and amazing intro, the keyboard here is fire and let´s not talk about the solo´s, damn. Everything engage so well, it’s such a powerful solo.

-Surrounded: The start of the song it’s beautiful and I like how the melody changes in matter of seconds. I thought it was going to be a full, calm ballad hahah! The end just killed me and now in in love with James ‘voice.

-Metropolis - Part I - "The Miracle and the Sleeper": A killer song! The keyboard here just add this amazing vibe (even if it’s for a few seconds). The drums and the mini bass solo were one of my favorite things in this one. Total geniuses, definitely this is my favorite song from the whole album. The thing they did with that solo just blew my mind, what a masterpiece!

-Under a Glass Moon: The guitar here just sounds so f amazing, it’s so insane. The solo is so dope, totally breathtaking, what a powerful song.

-Wait for Sleep: A short but beautiful song, the instrumental here it´s so pretty and fits perfectly with James ´voice. Fell in love with this one instantly.

-Learning to Live: Totally different from the song before haha! I like very much how the keyboard mix perfectly with the other instruments. Love how the bass sound here even if it’s for a second. The rhythm here is something amazing and I loved it. The acoustic guitar mini solo at the half of the song just adds more vibe. It is a great song to close the album!

And well, what an amazing journey I´ve had while listening to this beauty.

And on an extra note: we all know how amazing Mike, as a drummer and as a person is. It speaks so highly of him how he helped A7X in their darkest times. Also something that melted my heart not long ago was how he gave this Indonesian guy a proper drum set (the one who had a homemade drum set). This dude it’s just so awesome, now I love him more haha!

Thank you Syn for this recommendation, can´t wait for the next one!

Ron · Jul 2, 2021

If Syn says it's good, it's good end of story!

I liked watching the game with Mike when Syn threw out the first pitch

Ron · Jul 2, 2021

Watching Syn throw first pitch and then watching game with Mike and all remains a fine memory. Of course there are other good memories too.

Jamie London · Jul 2, 2021

Dream Theater has always been hit or miss for me. I actually discovered them through Dragon Ball Z back when I was a youngin. They used the track “Scene Five: Through Her Eyes” in credits for the DBZ film The History of Trunks, so that was my introduction to DT. Some tracks I really dig and some I just have never been able to get into, though I have always enjoyed Metropolis Pt 2 from front to back for the most part. I’d only heard a few tracks from Images and Words prior so sitting down and giving it a proper listen was a blast and I truly enjoyed it more then I expected to. I need to give it a few more listens to put the songs to their proper titles but Under a Glass Moon is one of the coolest songs I’ve heard in a whie, the guitar solo is so catchy and could have just been a killer instrumental track all on its own haha. And I just love everything about Another Day, so damn good.

All in all I’m stoked to have this beast in my knowledge base now, thanks for the rec my brother

P.s. The AOTM playlist has been updated to include “Images and Words”

Syn Gates · Jul 2, 2021

Ron said:
Watching Syn throw first pitch and then watching game with Mike and all remains a fine memory. Of course there are other good memories too. View attachment 1807

Lovely to have you here young man!

Syn Gates · Jul 2, 2021

Jamie London said:
Dream Theater has always been hit or miss for me. I actually discovered them through Dragon Ball Z back when I was a youngin. They used the track “Scene Five: Through Her Eyes” in credits for the DBZ film The History of Trunks, so that was my introduction to DT. Some tracks I really dig and some I just have never been able to get into, though I have always enjoyed Metropolis Pt 2 from front to back for the most part. I’d only heard a few tracks from Images and Words prior so sitting down and giving it a proper listen was a blast and I truly enjoyed it more then I expected to. I need to give it a few more listens to put the songs to their proper titles but Under a Glass Moon is one of the coolest songs I’ve heard in a whie, the guitar solo is literal catchy and could have just been a killer track all on its own haha. And I just love everything about Another Day, so damn good.

All in all I’m stoked to have this beast in my knowledge base now, thanks for the rec my brother

P.s. The AOTM playlist has been updated to include “Images and Words”

Nicely done my brother!

redlipsofdeceit · Jul 3, 2021

Ron said:
If Syn says it's good, it's good end of story!

I liked watching the game with Mike when Syn threw out the first pitch

Ron, I missed you on the DWJ YouTube comment section! Glad to have you here!

Daniboi · Jul 10, 2021

Syn Gates said:
:syngates:Yo Family! For June’s #AOTM we are going with one of my fav records of all time and certainly my fav prog record of all time in Images and Words by the great Dream Theatre.

This was another band introduced to me by Jimmy. He used to sneak a Walkman(look it up kids) to school and play me ridiculous shit in the bathroom. This one stood out as having the most incredible musicianship I had ever heard. I was 13 when he played this record for me and it changed the way I looked at guitar. I had no idea that what I was hearing could be accomplished on the instrument I had already spent years working on.

Dream Theatre is a progressive rock band that formed in 1985 in the halls of Berklee School of Music in Boston. There have been multiple lineups but the Images and Words cast comprise Mike Portnoy on drums, John Petrucci on guitar, James LaBrie on vocals, John Myung on bass, and Kevin Moore on keyboards.

John Petrucci has been one of my favorite guitarists rotating in my top 3 since the very day I heard this light show of a record way back in middle school. He certainly epitomizes my way of approaching the guitar more than any other player besides maybe my father - with an endless pursuit of technique and harmony only to facilitate a melody and composition first approach to solos and songwriting.

This motif and melody first approach has yielded some of my favorite solos of all time and couple that with the pyrotechnics weaving in and around these flawless melodies and motifs make for a perfect combination of music and cinema.

As a student of percussion as well, I was moved by how Mike Portnoy seamlessly and so fluidly supported all of these incredible riffs and time signatures in such a musical and cinematic way. And as smooth as this cat could play, he still managed to make the music heavy as fuck. Listen to Under a Glass Moon for one of the greatest grooves of all time. The entire record is a clinic on how a drummer can steal the show at no cost to his co stars and director.

If there was a dude that I would’ve done unspeakable things to sing like, it would be James LaBrie. The range, the soul, the technique, the texture, the everything. This dudes got it in spades. It’s such a slippery slope to not take these songs and turn them into overly dramatic novelty uber dramas. James does no such thing. Flawless victory.

John Myung is as gifted as the aforementioned. He doesn’t just support the band, he comes bearing gifts. I’ve transcribed thousands of difficult musical passages in my life and I still have no clue wtf he’s doing in Metropolis, part 1 at 5:40

And last but certainly not least, Kevin Moore on keys. Total stud and one of my favorite songwriters of all time. He wrote a lot of my favorite songs on this record. They’re all great songwriters but Kevin speaks to me on this record.

Lastly, some or many of you know that Mike helped us out when Jimmy passed in late ‘09. We were putting the final touches on Nightmare when our world was shattered. For a couple of weeks we had decided to not move forward as it wouldn’t be right without Jimmy. Two main components quickly changed our minds. The first was The Sullivan’s. Jimmy’s parents and sisters were like our parents and sisters. We grew up with them. We love them dearly. They told us we had no choice in the matter because Jimmy would’ve demanded that we continue on. The second was Mike Portnoy. I’m sure somebody spoke of it before me but I know that the choice was clear to everyone when the decision was made to move forward. We needed one of Jimmy’s favorites to lift us up and realize the dream of putting out Jimmy’s final work.

Much like Petrucci is the influence that speaks the loudest on my sleeve, Mike is arguably that for Jimmy and certainly the best contender to have executed Jimmy’s unique and brilliant vision for the record. Mike walked in, hung is ego at the door and spent countless hours copying meticulous kick patterns and fills without complaint.

Of all musical elements, style is by far the most difficult to emulate. He hung in there and didn’t stop until we were all beyond satisfied with the performance. Of course we had him do his thing across many of Jimmy’s unfinished drum demos and then fully unleashed the beast on the closer, Save Me. Mike absolutely shines on that track, to say the least.

Well I hope that you enjoy this record even a fraction of the amount that I do, it would be enough to change your life.

A runner up and probably Shadows’ favorite Dream Theatre record is Metropolis Part 2. It’s definitely very cinematic and has a touch of Elfman throughout.

Lemme know your thoughts in the comments, can’t wait to connect with you all on this beast

All my love,

SYN
:syngates:
Apple Music
Spotify
YouTube

I've recently started listening to dream theater with awake and falling to infinity, and holy crap, i was missing a world of music. I can totally hear the John Petrucci influence in your playing Syn. Now I'm practicing with rock discipline from JP and boy oh boy that's so hard and definitely I'm getting better at it!
Beautiful story, thanks Syn!

Danthe1 · Jul 20, 2021

Syn Gates said:
:syngates:Yo Family! For June’s #AOTM we are going with one of my fav records of all time and certainly my fav prog record of all time in Images and Words by the great Dream Theatre.

This was another band introduced to me by Jimmy. He used to sneak a Walkman(look it up kids) to school and play me ridiculous shit in the bathroom. This one stood out as having the most incredible musicianship I had ever heard. I was 13 when he played this record for me and it changed the way I looked at guitar. I had no idea that what I was hearing could be accomplished on the instrument I had already spent years working on.

Dream Theatre is a progressive rock band that formed in 1985 in the halls of Berklee School of Music in Boston. There have been multiple lineups but the Images and Words cast comprise Mike Portnoy on drums, John Petrucci on guitar, James LaBrie on vocals, John Myung on bass, and Kevin Moore on keyboards.

John Petrucci has been one of my favorite guitarists rotating in my top 3 since the very day I heard this light show of a record way back in middle school. He certainly epitomizes my way of approaching the guitar more than any other player besides maybe my father - with an endless pursuit of technique and harmony only to facilitate a melody and composition first approach to solos and songwriting.

This motif and melody first approach has yielded some of my favorite solos of all time and couple that with the pyrotechnics weaving in and around these flawless melodies and motifs make for a perfect combination of music and cinema.

As a student of percussion as well, I was moved by how Mike Portnoy seamlessly and so fluidly supported all of these incredible riffs and time signatures in such a musical and cinematic way. And as smooth as this cat could play, he still managed to make the music heavy as fuck. Listen to Under a Glass Moon for one of the greatest grooves of all time. The entire record is a clinic on how a drummer can steal the show at no cost to his co stars and director.

If there was a dude that I would’ve done unspeakable things to sing like, it would be James LaBrie. The range, the soul, the technique, the texture, the everything. This dudes got it in spades. It’s such a slippery slope to not take these songs and turn them into overly dramatic novelty uber dramas. James does no such thing. Flawless victory.

John Myung is as gifted as the aforementioned. He doesn’t just support the band, he comes bearing gifts. I’ve transcribed thousands of difficult musical passages in my life and I still have no clue wtf he’s doing in Metropolis, part 1 at 5:40

And last but certainly not least, Kevin Moore on keys. Total stud and one of my favorite songwriters of all time. He wrote a lot of my favorite songs on this record. They’re all great songwriters but Kevin speaks to me on this record.

Lastly, some or many of you know that Mike helped us out when Jimmy passed in late ‘09. We were putting the final touches on Nightmare when our world was shattered. For a couple of weeks we had decided to not move forward as it wouldn’t be right without Jimmy. Two main components quickly changed our minds. The first was The Sullivan’s. Jimmy’s parents and sisters were like our parents and sisters. We grew up with them. We love them dearly. They told us we had no choice in the matter because Jimmy would’ve demanded that we continue on. The second was Mike Portnoy. I’m sure somebody spoke of it before me but I know that the choice was clear to everyone when the decision was made to move forward. We needed one of Jimmy’s favorites to lift us up and realize the dream of putting out Jimmy’s final work.

Much like Petrucci is the influence that speaks the loudest on my sleeve, Mike is arguably that for Jimmy and certainly the best contender to have executed Jimmy’s unique and brilliant vision for the record. Mike walked in, hung is ego at the door and spent countless hours copying meticulous kick patterns and fills without complaint.

Of all musical elements, style is by far the most difficult to emulate. He hung in there and didn’t stop until we were all beyond satisfied with the performance. Of course we had him do his thing across many of Jimmy’s unfinished drum demos and then fully unleashed the beast on the closer, Save Me. Mike absolutely shines on that track, to say the least.

Well I hope that you enjoy this record even a fraction of the amount that I do, it would be enough to change your life.

A runner up and probably Shadows’ favorite Dream Theatre record is Metropolis Part 2. It’s definitely very cinematic and has a touch of Elfman throughout.

Lemme know your thoughts in the comments, can’t wait to connect with you all on this beast

All my love,

SYN
:syngates:
Apple Music
Spotify
YouTube

My dad got me into Dream Theater. Funny thing, I showed him Bat Country and said that the drumming is crazy, so he said go listen to Dream Theater and come back. I listened to Another day and Pull me under literally blown away. My favorite band became Dream Theater and his favorite band is Avenged Sevenfold.

Aquamandy · Jul 24, 2021

Ok, I'm super late on this but it's still July, right?

I couldn't miss reviewing Images and Words because that's a phenomenal album! As I said earlier, I knew drums would catch my attention, but I want to say that in the end EVERYTHING caught my attention

Starting with James LaBrie, the way he pass his emotions through his voice, and his interpretation totally shapes the music tone, also, his high notes are powerful and consistent, he really has the range

I really loved piano too, specially on Wait For Sleep intro. Kevin Moore did an outstanding job and his playing is so soft that gives me a nice wave of peace when I hear it.

Can't help but notice how bass is so present here too. To be fair, I'm not much of a technical person when talking about bass, but what I know is that it's such an underrated instrument, and John Myung made his bass totally noticeable on this record too. My favorite bass line it's on Metropolis - Part I: "The Miracle and the Sleeper" midsection, so memorable!

John Petrucci is also a legend. His riffs are heavy, powered, his acoustic parts are complex and perfectly composed for each song. He does so much with his guitar and that's why there are so many memorable guitar parts in this album, and each one is so different and unique. If I had to choose the best ones, tho, it would be: Pull Me Under Intro, Under The Glass Moon Intro, and Learning to Live, middle part, but when the music it's almost reaching the finale. They're very catchy

And finally, the drums. Mike Portnoy used a bunch of different rhythms and tempos, and his grooves are very well composed and performed. I loved a lot of his tom choices in the fills too. Drums on Under The Glass Moon are just WOW WOW WOW I'll never be able to do it in my life He's a beast and now hearing more of his work makes me admire him more than ever.

Speaking of rhythms and tempos, I can't NOT acknowledge the fact that the band nails it completely. All the songs have a bunch of time variations that in my opinion are so hard to execute. Every single band member needs to build a strong sense of internal time and need to be in sync otherwise that would be a total chaos. I already struggle if a song is completely in other tempo than 4/4 so I can only imagine how confusing it is to change tempos in the middle of the song.

So, after all of this, my top 3 are:

Learning to Live
Wait For Sleep
Metropolis - Part I: "The Miracle and the Sleeper"

Images and Words by Dream Theater is an awesome album with awesome lyrics, by an awesome band, and I like the fact that even though they made some longer tracks, they're not repetitive, it's totally the opposite, they always surprise us in the middle of the song with unexpected elements, that's why I actually chose the 2 longer songs for my top 3, cause they really impressed me in every minute

Thanks Syn for another rec. After this one I'll totally hear Metropolis, Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory when I have time too

William B. · Jul 25, 2021

It was my first time listening to Dream Theater, I've been putting them on Spotify along with Boston and Bee Gees these past few weeks. Enjoying them a lot, I saw Metropolis []Dt.2 Encore (from Breaking The Fourth Wall) on YouTube, !

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