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Dream Theater is (on this album):
Vocals: James Labrie
Guitar: John Petrucci
Bass: John Myung
Keyboards: Derek Sherinian
Drums: Mike Portnoy
more like Falling Into CRAPfinity.
1. New Millenium - Starts off with a spacy keyboard intro, classic prog. Then it cuts off and is replaced by a really cool bassline. The other instruments come in, and what I like about this part is how all the other instruments are just complementing that bassline. Eventually, the guitar settles into a groove, and continues along this way for awhile. Then it suddenly gets a lot darker, and vocals come in. I really love the vocal part in this song (not necessarily the lyrics, just how the vocals sound). Oh wait?.what?s this?the song really goes downhill from here. It gets repetitive, and lyrics get quite lame. All in all, this song should have been a lot shorter, and the lyrics are bad. Decent start to the album though.
2/5
2. You Not Me ? Starts with Petrucci playing a repetitive guitar part, and then guitar drops out while Labrie sings unacceptably lame lyrics. The overral tone of this song is very poppy, very radio-friendly. Not creative at all.
1/5
3. Peruvian Skies ? Now this is a good song. This song is about child abuse, and the lyrics are actually pretty lame (although I do like the fact that he uses the little girl?s name, makes it feel more personal). This song has a Metallica-ish power-ballad feel. About halfway through, it gets a lot heavier, and Petrucci plays a cool solo. All in all, a good song. Not great, but good.
3/5
4. Hollow Years ? Wait, did I say You Not Me was uncreative and contrived? My bad, this is a horrible song. Waaaay too poppy for my tastes. It sounds like the kind of pop ballad that sparkle-faced teenage girls would find sad and emotional. Lyrics are about a guy who leaves his family (I guess, I?m not going through the time to figure out every line and analyze it). Has a Latin feel to it (not the vocals so much as the instruments)
1/5
5. Burning My Soul ? Starts off with a bell ringing, and then a groovy bassline comes in for awhile. The intro takes too long, but then vocals come. Labrie?s vocal delivery is a lot more aggressive here; this is more of a metal song. However, it has nothing of interest to me. The lyrics are terrible, it?s the kind of song where the singer thinks he needs to repeat the name of the song several times at the end of the chorus. ?I said it was green, then you said it was red?. That might give you an idea of the third-grade poetry we?re facing here.
1/5
6. Hell?s Kitchen ? This song is instrumental, overall it sounds pretty mellow, and has a bit of an ambient feel to it at the beginning. Guitar plays a repeating line to form the background of the song, and has a solo going on. This song sounds pretty sad, and is a nice chillaxing instrumental. Not too much technicality, no horrible lyrics, this is the oasis in the middle of the desert of mediocrity that is Falling Into Infinity.
4/5
7. Lines in the Sand ? To be honest, I have never sat through this whole song. I just can?t force myself to. It?s infinitely more boring than silence. DT brought in a guest singer for this one, Doug Pinnick of King?s X. The intro lasts so long it?s unacceptable. Keyboard leads into this one with a bit of a solo?.I feel bad for Derek Sherinian because this is the only full-length album he did with them, so he will always be remembered as the guy that made DT suck. This song continues for 12 minutes. Now, I expect 12 minute DT songs to have many many changes in pace and feeling, like the classics (Metropolis, Learning To Live, Voices, etc.). This one pretty much sticks with the sameness most of the way through, although there is a decent calm section with a mellow, bluesy solo. That part saves it from being a 1/5.
2/5
8. Take Away My Pain ? GIVE ME A BREAK. Jeez, this is not the DT we all know and love. I?d expect this from a different artist, and by different I mean gay. The lyrics are unacceptably horrible, even by this album?s standards. It sounds like the kind of song pop-loving teens would laugh at for being too cheesy. He?s singing about how his Dad died I guess (someone close to him anyway), and that?s a topic that has potential for deep, introspective lyrics, right? ?Look at poor Gene Kelly, guess he won?t be singin? in the rain? is a sample of what to expect here. Simple verse-choruse verse structure. I said before that Hell?s Kitchen was the oasis in this desert of mediocrity, Take Away My Pain is the pit of scorpions that everyone avoids.
0/5
9. Just Let Me Breathe ? Mega guitar feedback starts this song, and some tribal drumming beats. Very bass-heavy, sticks with the poppy formula from the rest of the album (which is ironic, considering the anti-commercialism lyrics). There?s a line in this where I swear the tune was directly stolen from Bohemian Rhapsody. DT is a bunch of plagiarizing bastards now, wtf?
1/5
10. Anna Lee ? Soothing piano?.aaaahh?..This song is a pretty straightforward ballad, it starts off with just Labrie?s voice and the piano. This is so poppy, and the lyrics (while better than most of this album) are still pretty lame, and the tune in the chorus was directly stolen from Pink Floyd?s Comfortably Numb, but for some reason I like it.
3/5
11: Trial of Tears ? 13 minutes long, this song opens up into an airy, jazzy part. It gradually leads into the song, which has a relaxing feel to it (even though it?s not particularly slow or minimalistic). It?s separated into three parts, It?s Raining; Deep In Heaven; and The Wasteland. I see how people could like it, and I know a lot of DT fans think it?s a great song, but it doesn?t strike with me at all. Give this one a chance for yourself.
2/5
Overrall, this record is an abomination to music. DT must have gotten together on April Fool?s day and said ?Hey guys, let?s suck on our next album, that?ll really fool em!? It?s a well-known fact on MX that I love Dream Theater and think they are one of (if not the) greatest band in the world; However, even I have to recognize that only a deaf person would like this. However, it does have a few good songs on it, and for that it doesn?t get a 1.
2/5
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I guess MX didn't like your apostrophes...or any other symbol you wrote.
I guess I won't waste my money on this crap. Looks like ACoS will be my next DT buy :thumb:
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[QUOTE=The JoZ]I guess MX didn't like your apostrophes...or any other symbol you wrote.
I guess I won't waste my money on this crap. Looks like ACoS will be my next DT buy :thumb:[/QUOTE]
Yeah, Sherinian only played keyboards for them on this album and ACOS. This sucks, while ACOS is amazing; so I guess it evens out.
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Are there any other Dream Theater CDs I should avoid?
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Images and Words :p
Well, just don't go into it thinking it's the best. I think it's horribly overrated, but a few songs are pretty good.
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Wow, you absolutely trashed this album. Hell's Kitchen is a good instrumental. I admit Hollow Years is a bit too "pop", but it's a great song, mainly because of how well it's performed live. Take away the over production, add in a great intro and classic solo, and it's a great song. Trial of Tears is a accepted by a lot of fans, and I personally think it's a wonderful song. Again, another one that takes on a whole new depth live. Just Let Me Breathe is a good song too, IMO. Sure it's catchy, but I find it to have a pretty good amount of energy. If anything, I think this is one of the better albums to introduce a pop fan to the band. The album overall is mediocre though. Sure, there's a number of boring songs, but there's a few good ones, and Trial of Tears, in my opinion, is very good. I'd give it about a 3/5.
The review... it's a bit opinionated, eh? :p Instead of just trashing it, I'd put a bit of a background first to explain why the album came out this way.
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[QUOTE=el doctor]
The review... it's a bit opinionated, eh? :p Instead of just trashing it, I'd put a bit of a background first to explain why the album came out this way.[/QUOTE]
werent they being almost forced to make a more radio-friendly album by their record label?
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[QUOTE=GhoulScout]werent they being almost forced to make a more radio-friendly album by their record label?[/QUOTE]Yup. I recommend going here: http://www.mikeportnoy.com/about/mpfaq/default.asp?fldAuto=1&menu=about
and reading the Falling Into Infinity section of the FAQ. Pretty interesting, and Mike Portnoy has always seemed to be a pretty trustworthy source.
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[QUOTE=The JoZ]Images and Words :p
Well, just don't go into it thinking it's the best. I think it's horribly overrated, but a few songs are pretty good.[/QUOTE]
Images And Words pwns my virginity.
Kyle, don't listen to this kid. Images and Words is an amazing album.
You, Nazi Bassist, go back to your house :angry:
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Images and Words is an 80's CD. The ballads suck, and sound like something that should've been done by a hair metal band.
Pull Me Under, Metropolis, Under a Glass Moon, Learning to Live are great. The rest, are not really, except for parts of Take the Time.
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[QUOTE=The JoZ]Images and Words is an 80's CD. The ballads suck, and sound like something that should've been done by a hair metal band.
Pull Me Under, Metropolis, Under a Glass Moon, Learning to Live are great. The rest, are not really, except for parts of Take the Time.[/QUOTE]
Obviously, Images and Words is pwnage. Take The Time is a great, uplifting song, as is Surrounded. Another Day is the only one I'm not too crazy about, mainly because of that saxophone. If they took that thing out, it'd be great too.
And are you saying that Wait For Sleep is a bad song? :eek: Blasphemy!
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well, you've convinced me to stay away from this cd.
I own Awake, A Change of Seasons and Train of Thought. (and the Metropolis 2000 DVD)
next on my To Get list is: Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence
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All DT fans check out this real ultimat PoWeR page http://www.neilomac.ndo.co.uk/rudt/
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I disagree. This band is amazingly technical, really powerful, and their singer screams great the whole time. I think Dillinger Escape Plan's Calculating Infinity is much better than you say.
Oh sorry, wrong Kaden review.
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Hold on, cowboys, I'm seeing a bunch of people saying they were convinced to avoid this album! I hope I'm not too late. Don't let one trashy review scare you away, kids 
Well, okay. If you think you may one day qualify to be a true DT slut like me but don't have all of their albums yet, then you should stay away from this...for now. You will want it later, though, and you should still read what I have to say.
Additionally, if you're one of those people who listen to "a little of everything" (read: you're not passionate about anything) and generally stick to the mainstream - you know who you are - but have heard a DT slut rave endlessly about their godliness and are curious, you may want to pick this up first.
The fact is that the 75 minutes of this album still contain some 30-40 minutes of kick-ąssery that would own pretty much anything else in the record store. I consider it a good purchase. Kaden is right in that the record is loaded with radio fillers, for which there's a handy button labeled ">>" on your stereo.
New Millenium, despite lacking a guitar solo, is actually not that bad. The way Portnoy plays with the phrasing of 6/4 in the chorus, the work of JM, and the aggression in James' voice are all excellent. Yeah, the lyrics kinda suck, but we've tolerated that before. Can anyone honestly explain what the hell "Metropolis pt. 1" is about? Something about two minds being linked together, I think that's about as far as anyone's ever gotten on that. We still love the song though.
Lines In The Sand is the high point of the album. Kaden, I love you, which is why I must ask you to do yourself a favor and force yourself to sit through this entire song. The drumming kicks ąss. The bass kicks even more ąss. The singing is soulful, and the lyrics are good. The guitar solo is in my top five from DT - I'd say my 2nd favorite but I'm sure I'm forgetting a few. It isn't as loaded with the time/pace/key changes as some of their other work, but it's still definitely there - dynamics are used exceptionally well in this song, even by DT standards. Everyone likes Pull Me Under, right? That's a pretty simple song too.
Trial of Tears - I consider "Deep In Heaven" (the solo section) sort of mediocre as a jam, but when it comes crashing into "The Wasteland" - ohhhh man. STRONG musical orgasm. The chorus really grows on you after a while too. Sorry you don't feel it on this one, man, it's great.
I pretty much agree with everything else Kaden said. Out of all the DT albums I have (every one except WDADU), this is my least favorite, but I still like it. If you're willing to dig through all the manure, you'll find diamonds buried in there (sorry if that's a little too far-out - it's midnight, give me a break).
And no hard feelings, Kaden. I'm not flaming you, I'm just disagreeing :cool:
I think Images and Words is overrated too :/
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this is probably the Dream Theater album i like least. my dt album rankings go like this:
1. Awake
2. Scenes from a Memory
3. Train of Thought
4. Images and Words
5. Change of Seasons
6. Six Degrees...
7. When a dream and day unite
8. falling into inifinty
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Yeah, this is a pretty poor album, I think you were being a bit overly harsh though, kinda seems like you're jumping on the 'bash FII' bandwagon.
Anyway, there are some things to like here. I think Hollow Years is good, especially live. Hell's Kitchen is my favourite DT instrumental, Peruvian Skies is not bad, Lines In The Sand has some cool parts and Trial Of Tears can also hold it's own with DT's other stuff.
I put it on occasionally, but really it's just there to complete my Dream Theater collection.
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[QUOTE=Mr. Squeegee]Kaden, I love you, which is why I must ask you to do yourself a favor and force yourself to sit through this entire song.[/QUOTE]
I'm gonna be stuck in the car for 8 hours on Friday, I'll make myself do it then. For you.
Just to give it another chance.
[quote=Distorted Vision]I think you were being a bit overly harsh though, kinda seems like you're jumping on the 'bash FII' bandwagon.[/quote]
Actually, I find that almost all Dream Theater like this album quite a bit more than me. Meh.
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[QUOTE=Kaden]
Actually, I find that almost all Dream Theater like this album quite a bit more than me. Meh.[/QUOTE]
Did you mean Dream Theater Fans?
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Falling into Infinity is the only album you should avoid by DT. This is because they didn't have total control over what went on the album, as the record company made them remove songs that they had recorded for the album that would have been on the album (these got leaked - and they were better than the ones on the album, except maybe Trial of Tears and Hell's Kitchen). The record company tried to make this album more commercial by making DT change songs, and remove them, and they themselves say that this album is 'looked down' upon by them because it was a blatant attempt at breaking the mainstream market, and they left this record company afterwards.
The Falling Into Infinity 'demos' as they are now caled will be released as an official bootleg sometime, at www.ytsejamrecords.com, so look out for it cos it rocks.
All other DT albums rock, these guys are the kings of Prog Metal.
By sayingyou should avoid it, im not saying that its crap, cos i like it, but if any, its this one.
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I admit..Take Away My Pain was the first song I've heard from them..and liked it.:lol:
Trial Of Tears is decent though. However, Dance Of Eternity owns this album.
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