Dream Theater--Awake (1994)
Rating--6.9
The songs are a bit easier to grasp on this release, but it's still not as heavy through and through as we know
the band is capable of. The most frustrating aspect about Dream Theater is that they will totally shred and kill on a couple of
tracks, and then the aggressiveness will all but dissapear on the next two or three.
James LaBrie, on a consistent note,
is still as crystal-voiced as ever...
"Caught in a Web" has a nice chug groove to it, and the mechanical open-handed
attack of "The Mirror" melts into "Lie" with a chunky yet fluid transition. The latter is both grinding and head-moving; good stuff.
"Scarred" has some heavy riff moments, and is full of time changes-- as is the multi-faceted instrumental "Erotomania."
The mystical album-closer "Space-Dye Vest" moves from cathedral-like musings to an almost futuristic aura. A very complex
and interesting piece!
All in all, certainly a must for DT fans, and a nice disc for prog fans in general. But once again, I wish they
would just let Petrucci run amok for ten songs straight...
TRACK LIST: 6:00/Caught in a Web/Innocence Faded/Erotomania/Voices/The Silent Man/The Mirror/Lie/Lifting Shadows
Off a Dream/Scarred/Space-Dye Vest
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