Remember the days of concept albums? In order to be recognized as a true progressive band, you just had to have a concept album. While in that era, the first band that comes to mind is Rush. Rush easily became known as THE progressive band of the era due to the fact that every album they made had the concept feel to it. Pink Floyd was another band known for the concept projects. Sadly the concept projects slowly retreated, like a tide on an ocean shore, and was replaced with pop songs that just had to be less then 3:00 running time, as to better accommodate radio airplay. Music theory and talent were lost in a sea of "musical excrement" known as... "pop-rock."

Well progheads… Uncle Thingfish has a little story to tell you about a bunch of guys called Dream Theater. Remember these guys? Through all of the wishy-washy crap that's infected so-called talent rock, these guys have tirelessly continued to produce REAL progressive rock; unheralded by music critics, they continue their drive with their best project ever, Scenes From A Memory.

This release is a 100% true to form concept album. It begins with a person being hypnotized in a doctor's office, as to better recall and tell the story of an innocent young girls death. As the songs send you reeling through the subconscious mind of a saddened man, the hypnotist awakening you brings you back into the real world. Wow... what a great concept. The story is just great. And the "songs" are listed on the sleeve as scenes from a play. But, this is an audio play... so lets get to the music.

Is there such thing as a perfect "10" in today's world where the top ten list is dominated by the likes of Kid Rock, Jennifer Lopez and the Dixie Chicks? Yes Virginia... there is a Santa Claus... oops... I mean "perfect 10"! The music is fantastic. I would love to be able to tell you what my favorite song, I mean "scene" is, but they are all great. With the new addition of Jordan Rudess (Dixie Dreggs, Liquid Tension Experiment) to the lineup, Dream Theater is now a "who's who" in progressive music. Extremely talented in every facet that makes a band, these guys demonstrate it with precision on this release. Personally, I think the collaboration between John Petrucci, Rudess, and Mike Portnoy in LTE has complemented their work within Dream Theater. The "jamming" feel of LTE transcends into this release like it was recorded at the same time. The instrumental passages on tunes like "the dance of serenity" and "beyond this life" are just raw shred. The "catchy" groove and vocals on "Home" and the ballad "Through Her Eyes" are just great. I actually heard a radio station here in CT play a re-mixed (shortened) version of "Home" once. However, when I call to request it, they pretend they've never even heard of Dream Theater (way to go, pop culture). One little side note here... does John Myung ever stop assaulting the bass guitar? This guy's playing just doesn't stop. I'm convinced he is the single most unrecognized talent in rock music today.

MetalGod and I were lucky enough to score some passes to see DT on this tour recently, when they visited Connecticut and played a show at the famous "Toad's Place." The show was fantastic! They opened with the first scene from this release, the hypnotist talking... then went into the second scene... then the third... then the fourth... How long could they keep this up? Could they possible play the entire 77 minute long CD? Nah... the whole thing would just be too much for any band to handle. There would be fingers falling off, vocal chords being torn... it just couldn't be done. Well, guess what. They did it! They played the entire CD, every second, from start to finish, with NO mistakes... as their opening song! We were mesmerized. I think I even saw God... (Heh heh heh)

To sum this all up, this CD is a prog-head's dream CD. The scenes presented turn the listener's mind into a theater of burning talent and sheer shredding. I guess you could call the experience... a Dream Theater!

Your eyes are getting tired. Your eyelids are getting heavy... very heavy. Your limbs are feeling totally relaxed. You're getting sleepy... sleepy... sleepy. You are now asleep, but you will do as I say, and will immediately go out and buy this CD as soon as you awake. You will live your life a happier shred fan knowing that you did. On the count of three, you will awaken enlightened to the idea of modern concept progressive music. 1... 2... 3!

Reviewed by Thingfish

Buy Dream Theater's Scenes From A Memory at