Arjen Lucassen recently announced that the new Ayreon album, The Source, will be hitting stores on April 27th via Mascot Label Group. Continue reading
Tag Archives: James LaBrie
Dream Theater At The Hanover Theater
Dream Theater 10-7-2016
Live At The Hanover Theater, Worcester, MA
All Photos By Matt Lambert/Trebmal Photography
Ayreon – The Theater Equation
If there is one thing that cannot be denied about Arjen Anthony Lucassen, it’s that he has a very bold vision when it comes to his music and it’s presentation. In Ayreon in particular, he shows intricacy and complexity like very few others when it comes to layering, narrative and bombast. Perhaps less mind-boggling than much of his career, The Human Equation (InsideOut) certainly made up with its operatic feel and storyline. So much so it finally lent itself to a live offering (albeit still without the near reclusive Lucassen), of which The Theater Equation (InsideOut) showcases.
Rather than just a usual offering of a band performing live, The Theater Equation offers the album in a way it was meant to be, as a full performance. Thus much of the original cast reprise their roles, including James Labrie as main protagonist Me; albeit with some exceptions such as Anneke Van Giersbergen replacing Mikael Akerfeldt. Thankfully such replacements are hardly downgrades and perfectly encapsulate the feel of their adoptive characters and roles with aplomb. Alongside the strength of its vocal cast, musically this strikes an impressive balance between studio album quality and consistency with the feel and energy of the live arena. Together these elements give such an immersive and emotional performance through a detailed story that delves into many elements of the human psyche and emotional range, as well as the original album does through its narrative.
With the original album’s sheer length it wasn’t for the faint hearted per se, and as follows the live version will similarly mostly suit those who are already fans of Ayreon, or at least in tune with the world of prog. With the changes in vocal personnel however and the strength of the performance and lore, The Theater Equation makes this more than just a collectible for the diehards, but a piece that many will find worth in, in what is still one of Lucassen’s more accessible works in such a rich and deep catalogue.
8.0/10
CHRIS TIPPELL
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Dream Theater: Live at Radio City Music Hall
It seemed that fans of Dream Theater were torn between the performance of their two and a half hour opus and new album, The Astonishing (Roadrunner). Fans always want to hear classic songs along side the new ones, but you can’t always get what you want. Call it a concept album or rock opera, whichever you prefer, it was a damn fine night of music.
Aided by an impressive video wall to bring the story of “The Great Northern Empire of the Americas” to life, you felt like as if you were watching a movie with a live soundtrack. Guitarist and story mastermind John Petrucci along with his ever growing beard, played the heaviest mix of acoustic an electric guitar throughout the night I’ve ever seen him do. ‘The Answer’ clearly demonstrates that statement. From ‘The Gift of Music’ to the title track, James LaBrie’s vocals just drew you into the world of Nomacs and musical rebellion. With song a like ‘A New Beginning’, it covers the spectrum of darkness and light that the album portraits. As well as some solid bass grooving from John Myung too.
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After a fifteen minute intermission, they returned to the stage for the second half of the this massive album. Drummer, Mike Mangini just makes everything look easy, we get a few flourishes for insanity on ‘Moment of Betrayal’ and on ‘Three Days’. The second half of the creative team Jordan Rudess, brought his atmospheric tones is the bridge from song to song. He carries the themes and regal-ness through ‘Brother, Can You Hear Me’ and ‘Begin Again’. Overall, the show was good if you were prepared just to hear this album. Simple in some parts complex in others, “The Astonishing Live” was the right show for a venue like Radio City Music Hall.
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WORDS AND PHOTOS BY OMAR CORDY
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Next To None – A Light In The Dark
Not many bands can say their début album has been produced by Prog icon Mike Portnoy, nor features a cameo from Neal Morse or a release deal with one of the major record labels in the modern Prog scene, InsideOut, especially when its members ages range from 16-17 years of age. Not so surprising however when one Max Portnoy resides on the drum stool, clearly bring some weight with it. Fortunately they also have a wealth of talent and songwriting prowess way beyond their years, as A Light In The Dark (InsideOut/Radiant) showcases.
The big elephant in the room it has to be said is how strikingly similar their music is to Dream Theater, of course the band where Portnoy senior made his name before the infamous split. Their take on progressive rock influenced metal seems to come from the same line of inspiration as the aforementioned stalwarts, sounding symmetrical in tone and formula with use of unusual samples and keyboard leads. Even vocalist Thomas Cuce sounds eerily like a younger James LaBrie with his soaring and powerful voice – on the ballad, ‘A Lonely Walk’ particularly the resemblance is uncanny – although he does also have harsh growls in his palette, which add an obvious enough distinction.
Where there may be some degree of idol worship at hand here, there is also a resulting level of well thought out and complex song structures, and beneath the surface some clear signs of their youth and their own identity. Album opener ‘The Edge Of Sanity’ uses a range of strange samples during one breakdown for example, including an elephant trumpeting and what sounds like a segment from the original Super Mario games. Elsewhere the likes of ‘Runaway’ offer signs of contemporary prog metal, if seen through the DT lens.
It also has to be acknowledged at just how talented they are individually. Yes the focus point for many may be the presence of Max Portnoy but throughout there are performances that grab your attention, in particularly the Cuce’s sporadic keys in ‘Control’, if his vocals are found wanting at times, both in identity and in strength.
It is a sad state of affairs; the fact that their sound all too closely resembles that of one of the genre’s premier acts, making the family ties with Mike Portnoy all the more too difficult to shake off their back. A Light In The Dark is an album that clearly displays a wealth of talent and surprising maturity, but little of its own recognizable stamp.
6.0/10
CHRIS TIPPELL
Along For The Ride – An Interview With Dream Theater
Progressive metal heavyweights Dream Theater are generally seen as the flagship of the progressive rock and metal scene. With the departure of drummer Mike Portnoy many thought the band was done for, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Their latest self titled album is a clear sign there’s still chemistry around and that Petrucci and Co are in a really good place. Helena Rosendahl spoke with frontman James LaBrie about the new album and everything surrounding it on a sunny afternoon in London.Continue reading
Dream Theater – Dream Theater
Now the dust has settled on the departure of Mike Portnoy and the rest of Dream Theater proved to capable to deliver a fine record without him, the band moved on to greener pastures with newcomer Mike Mangini. This time around he’s fully integrated in the writing process, so let’s see if his contributions brings the new self titled album (Roadrunner) to the next level.Continue reading
James LaBrie – Impermanent Resonance
Dream Theatre frontman James Labrie is a busy guy. Not only are the Prog giants releasing a new self-titled record this year, but the man has also found time to release a solo album. Impermanent Resonance (InsideOut) is Labrie’s third album under is own name, and fifth if you include is MullMuzzler days. With the exception of Wichers, the band, made up of Matt Guillory on Keyboards, Marco Sfogli & Peter Wichers (ex-Soilwork) on guitars, Ray Riendeau on bass and Peter Wildoer playing drums and contributing harsh vocals, are the same line-up as on Labrie’s previous solo outing, Static Impulse. And on the whole the two albums are very similar in sound and style.Continue reading
Impermanent Resonance – An Interview With James LaBrie And Matt Guillory
James LaBrie may be best known as the vocalist for prog giants Dream Theater, but he also has a flourishing solo career on the side. His latest solo album is called Impermanent Resonance (Inside Out) and it may very well be his finest solo outing to date. On a sunny afternoon I had the chance to sit down with James and Matt Guillory, his musical partner in crime. We discussed the new album, their working relationship and any tour opportunities with a new Dream Theater album coming up.Continue reading
Culture Clash – An Interview With The Aristocrats
Guitarist extraordinaire Guthrie Govan may not be the most prolific musician around, but he’s one of the most respected and in demand players around. He recently toured with Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree) in support of The Raven Who Refused To Sing album and he is also about to release a new album with The Aristocrats, his other musical project with fellow musical mavericks Bryan Beller (Dethklok, James LaBrie) and Marco Minnemann (Adrian Belew Power Trio, Kreator). Ghost Cult caught up with Guthrie as he returns from a clinic tour in Brazil..Continue reading