Dream Theater - Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence
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Free Music Notes for Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence
Free Music Review: what else could you expect from DT 5 Stars
......THE BEST...CD EVER!!!!!!! (except maybe Scenes From A Memory another great DT release) This cd spent 4 months straight in my car cd player after the week I bought it. The cd is so unbelievably good not just in the instrumental part but I think its the best lyrics that Dream Theater has written to date. Ill Break it down song by song.1) Glass Prison-The best opening song I can think of. It starts out really slow and erie and you can hear bells in the background. Then the song starts to pick up and I was bobbing my head...the first time I heard it untill the kid next to me nugged me (Kinda embarrasing). Then dont worry cuz its not long before you hear the reasons you bought the cd John Petrucci pounding away at his guitar, Ruddess playin the best keyboards of the modern era and in my opinion the best drummer and basist to ever live portnoy and myung making you want to cry at their godlikeness. The madness lasts for 13 mins and I wish it was longer because there is absolutely no part of this song that I dont like. 11/10
2) Blind Faith-A lot slower and more melow than the glass prison although the instrumental is nowhere near as good as glass prison I still like this song a lot because the lyrics are really good and it gives you time to relax after the unbelievably fast paced opener. 8/10
3) Misunderstood-A very dark song. It has very meaningful lyrics and the first time I heard it it made me cry. 9/10
4) The Great Debate-A song about stem cell research. It talks about a very important topic in 2001 and 2002. The lyrics are very thought provoking. O yea btw the keyboards on this song are unbelievably amazing. The only part I dont like about this song is the background comentary. Otherwise I'd give it a 10. 9.5/10
5) Dissapear-The worst song on the cd. Its another one of those ...songs where we get to hear Labries F49907Y opera voice. wootins. The only thing bringing this song up is the good lyrics. 6/10
6) Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence-The most epic song i have ever heard in my life. Its a 42 min song broken up into 8 parts. The song takes you on a rollercoaster ride and is very emotional. The lyrics are very powerful and I like every part of the song. Even Goodnight Kiss which is a part where we get to hear Labries opera voice. whoop whoop. Otherwise the song is amazing. My favorite part of the song is the test that stumped them all. I cant really explain the song to well but take my word for it its really good. 10/10
NEW TO DREAM THEATER OR AN OLD FAN THIS CD IS A MUST HAVE FOR ANY1 THAT EVEN CLAIMS TO APPRECIATE TRUE MUSIC. IF YOUR AN OLD PROGRESSIVE FAN LIKE RUSH OR ELP OR EVEN PINK FLOYD YOULL LOVE THIS. IF YOUR A FAN OF OLD METAL YOU WILL LOVE THIS ALSO. ANY1 WHOS EVER PICKED UP AN INSTRUMENT OR ANYONE IN GENERAL WILL FIND SOMETHING IN THIS ALBUM THAT THEY LIKE. FOR REAL DAWG.
Free Music Review: This is Jordan Rudess' REAL Dream Theater debut
Hit: 5 Stars
Although "Scenes From a Memory" was a significant album for the band as a whole, it was but a demo for keyboardist Jordan Rudess. This outfit has always been skippered by guitarist John Petrucci, with drummer Mike Portnoy as "XO". As such, any keyboardist from Kevin Moore through Derek Sherinian has been in part a sideman. Not that either man has been relegated to synth pads, but both tended to use the type of textures that best complemented shred and crunch type guitar work. For some reason, though, Rudess has been encouraged to use sounds not heard from either of his predecessors. Like a rhodes-type electric piano sound in "Blind Faith" not found much in the current generation of prog--you have to go all the way back to Gentle Giant's Kerry Minnear or Patrick Moraz. Like a cello sound in "Misunderstood" that beautifully dovetails in with an acoustic guitar not often heard from Petrucci. A conversation about embryo tissue research kind of gets in the way of the actual song in "The Great Debate", which is otherwise a standard D-T number. The first disc is rounded out by a rarity--a moody, semi-mellow ballad, of all things!When I reviewed "Scenes", I mentioned that it might not be a good idea to get too much into the concept album thing and forsake the song album format. It looks like they compromised, making it half-and-half with the 40-minute title suite. Rudess shows that he not only has some superb orchestral patches in his axes, but he knows how to arrange for the symphonic. He gave us a foretaste of grand piano in "Scenes" and it also shows up here. There are stretches that are reminiscent of Kansas at their best--but that's no surprise. They include Kansas material in the live cover material they include in the studio "A Change Of Seasons". Petrucci shows he's equal to the the challenge by a stretch of some very Holst "Planets" guitar arrangements in "War Inside My Head". Which he follows up with a Steve Hackett-style section in the pastorale "Goodnight Kiss". Not content with that, he touches on some Steve Howe timbres in "Solitary Shell", which Rudess conters with a Wakemanesque minimoog lead. I get the feeling the heaviest influence in this song is the middle part of Yes' "And You and I". I'm getting the sense here that Rudess is not only a great player, but he's a catalyst to his bandmates' excellence. The only fly in the ointment I can find in this album is Portnoy's overuse of "Tour De France" kick drum patterns in the heavy rock parts of some of the songs--which is to say he rides his double pedals like a carbon-fiber racing bike. Maybe that trick works on the road when you're supposed to shake the arena floor under the audience's feet, but it's a bit much in the studio. You will notice up above, though, that this minor thing doesn't cost this band any stars in what I consider their best album ever.
Free Music Review: So good it nearly gave me a heart attack!
Hit: 5 Stars
My girlfriend gave me this CD for Valentine's Day, and I haven't been able to stop listening to it since! I mean, no matter what, whether I'm studying, on the way to work, this is always playing. There's just SO much goodness here. Just to annoy everyone, let's go through it a song at a time.1. The Glass Prison- Whoa! Heavy stuff! This is one mean mother of a song. Great chops from John Petrucci here, and a pretty wicked bass solo from John Myung. I don't like the turntables in there, but don't let that turn you off, it's like 2 seconds of a 14-minute song.
2. Blind Faith- More relaxed, with a heavy crescendo on the chorus. Nice piano interlude from Jordan. Pretty song.
3. Misunderstood- Very dark, sludgy track, with a weird solo from John. I love the lyrics ("How can I feel abandoned even when the world surrounds me?"). Godly drumwork from Mike.
4. The Great Debate- Yeah, it kinda sounds like Tool, but I say, "Tool who?". This burns Tool right to the ground! I swear, if just one Tool fan trashes this song, POW! Nice lyrics here.
5. Disappear- James LaBrie's first writing credit (I think). Yeah, it's kinda slow, but I love it. It almost hypnotizes me.
Okay, now onto the big boy, the title track. A 42-minute exploration of the human psyche. John wrote most of it, but Mike did some too. Anyway, here are the parts.
1. Overture- Nice classical-ish intro. Very pretty. There should have been more keyboard in there, but oh well.
2. About to Crash- This track gets everything going. Nice lyrics here, and very catchy.
3. War Inside My Head- Heavier, crunchier track. This is where the song starts to get angry.
4. The Test That Stumped Them All- Fast, heavy, oh so good. Mike practically destroys his drumkit on this one. Very demented lyrics, from who else? Mike.
5. Goodnight Kiss- Much softer, kind of a lullaby. This proves Mike is a very versatile writer. It's so funny where James says "I'm just a poor girl, scared of this cruel world". He sounds so emotionally sincere when he says it too. I'd bet anything that Mike put that in just to hear James say that. Crazy guy, he is!
6. Solitary Shell- Probably the most upbeat thing they've ever done. All acoustic, with very catchy lyrics. It reminds me a lot of Transatlantic. Nice classical guitar type solos at the end.
7. About to Crash (reprise)- Nice feel-good rocker. Reminds me a a lot of Rush.
8. Losing Time/Grand Finale- This is the end, where James brings it home. Kinda slow and easy, and it ties up all the loose ends. You almost feel like crying when it ends.
Wow, what an album! Over 90 minutes, and not a bad moment on it. Is it just me, or does Petrucci just get better and better? He cannot be stopped! If you love Dream Theater, buy this, it will knock you to the ground!
Free Music Review: My personal favorite DT album!!!
Hit: 5 Stars
This is the album that got me into Dream Theater in the first place. The things that I like about it is how much musical ground that they cover on this record. It goes back and forth from melodic to heaviness to prog, for the most part pulling it off very well.
Here is my song by song breakdown:
The Glass Prison - DT shows off their prog chops here. It is a 3part song about alcoholism. If you look in the liner notes to this song, you will see a message at the bottom of the page that says "Dedicated to Bill W. and all his friends." Bill W. is the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, and this Mike Portnoy penned song is about the 12 steps to recovery. This song is just about steps 1 thru 3. (This Dying Soul on ToT is about steps 4-5, The Root Of All Evil on Octavarium is about steps 6-8)
Blind Faith - Great sounding song, awesome lyrics that will make you think. Also some great guitar playing from John Petrucci.
Misunderstood - I love the beginning to this song. It starts with a very beautiful acoustic guitar piece, and it builds up to a powerful chorus. More great lyrics here, they are about how vulnerable even the most apparently "Made of Steel" person can be.
The Great Debate - This song deals with a controversial subject - stem cell research. It's not championing a certain point of view, however, the lyrics present the facts and let you decide for yourself. This song also shows that John Petrucci is not only a master of the guitar, but a master of the pen, too.
Disappear - Quite possibly the most un-Dream Theater song the band has written, but it also doesn't surprise me that they would write something like this. It has a Radiohead-U2 vibe to it. This song sounds bery beautiful. If you are in the right mood, this song will bring a tear to your eyes, as it deals with suddenly losing someone very close to your heart.
Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence - Obviously the centerpiece of this record. It is actually a 42 minute song, but it is broken down into 8 smaller segments. There are six main songs, all dealing with mental instability.
About to Crash and the Reprise-Deception of Fame
War Inside My Head-Vengeance of War
The Test That Stumped Them All-Feeling The Walls Closing In
Goodnight Kiss-Lives Torn Apart
Solitary Shell-Losing Oneself
Losing Time-Spiraling Down
The one thing that keeps me coming back to this album, as with any great album, is that it will grow on you with each listen. You have to be in the right mindset to listen to something lke this, but, then again, that is true with anything that requires some degree of thought.
If you have never heard anything like this before, you will definitely think differently after hearing this.
Free Music Review: This is the most well-rounded DT CD out there
Hit: 5 Stars
These two CDs are easily the most immediately appealing of the Dream Theater studio albums. The first disc contains 5 songs, each of about 10 minutes length. "The Glass Prison" and "The Great Debate" are the heavier of the tracks, bringing to mind Tool and early Metallica, particularly TGP. "Blind Faith" wins the award for spanning the widest variety of music there is - from the easy and calm intro, to the punk-esque transition and then Jordan Rudess's classical piano solo into one of the coolest jazz/fusiony solo's I've heard in while back to the original theme - and it just plain rocks. "Misunderstood" starts off with a nice acoustic guitar riff and after a few minutes of increased building and tension, it explodes into a very grungy, super-distortion chorus before fading back down into a somewhat odd but cool end. Finally, "Disappear" is definitely the hardest song to get into on the album - it is somewhat uncharacteristic of most of Dream Theater's other work, but intriguing, nonetheless; it features a lot of weird flangy guitar effects and drums are really minimal. The song is more or less a spotlight on James LaBrie, who deserves a lot of credit for holding his own on the rest of the disc.Disc two is really the gem of the CD set. Lasting a good 45 minutes or so, the piece covers a lot of ground in terms of musical styles, starting with an orchestral rendition of the whole song in 6 minutes in "Overture", moving to a slightly poppy 7/4 feel in "About to Crash" (if 7/4 can be poppy) and then hammering away with the hard rock/speed metal feel of "War Inside My Head" and "The Test that Stumped Them All". Then the piece settles down into a slow ballad highlighting James LaBrie's falsetto and a lot of flangy guitar effects in "Goodnight Kiss". The transition from "Goodnight Kiss" into "Solitary Shell", a really cool acoustic tune that makes you really appreciated DT's musical versatility, is really masterful. Finally DT closes the album with a really rocking-out make you happy rendition of "About to Crash" taking the form "About to Crash (reprise)" and a slow building, climactic ending with "Losing Time/Grand Finale". The minute-long ringing of the gong at the end really lets you slowly and safely ease out of the music.
This Dream Theater album covers the widest variety of ground of all their CD's covering jazz/fusion to prog. metal. It's an absolute must for a prog. fan of any degree, and it can really open the mind of any soon-to-be prog. fan to the world ruled by Dream Theater, that of progressive rock. It easily takes a place in my top five CD's of all time. It was the first DT album I purchased and I can say that I've made an excellent use of one-hundred some-odd dollars on their CD's since then. If you're not already on the way out the door to buy it, get going.