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| Octavarium | 
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| Artist: Dream Theater
Label: Atlantic / Wea
Category: Music
List Price: $18.98
Buy New: $6.54
You Save: $12.44 (66%)
New (54) Used (24) from $5.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  398 reviews
Sales Rank: 10606
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
MPN: 83793
UPC: 075678379321
EAN: 0075678379321
ASIN: B0009A1AS2
Publication Date: 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Tracks:
| • | Root Of All Evil | | • | Answer Lies Within | | • | These Walls | | • | I Walk Beside You | | • | Panic Attack | | • | Never Enough | | • | Sacrificed Sons | | • | Octavarium |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
Octavarium opens with a lean and enthusiastic-sounding Dream Theater, one that continues to move forward without compromising its classic sound or its classic progressive metal appeal. Bassist John Myung propels album opener "The Root Of All Evil" with a weight equal to that of Mike Portnoy's forceful but finessed drumming and guitarist John Petrucci's masterful riffing which seems once more to widen the realm of possibilities available on the instrument. Keyboardist Jordan Rudess lends subtle and deft touches throughout helping further solidify the outfit's equally strong footing in the worlds of heavy and progressive rock. But the best evidence that Dream Theater remains alive and well rests perhaps in the final 34 minutes of the album. The 10-minute 9/11 meditation "Sacrificed Sons" finds vocalist James LaBrie giving one of his most convincing performances to date. The closing, 24-minute title track serves as the sound of a progressive rock orchestra delivering one more classic epic symphony, one more that lengthens this unit's ever-long prime. Both tracks stand as testament to the quintet's virtuosity, integrity and ingenuity and will fast become favorites. Further evidence of the group's diversity also exists here in the form of the unapologetically commercial (and U2-inflected) "I Walk Beside You," a song that seems destined to connect with a crossover audience--at least one up for an unforgettable adventure. --Jedd Beaudoin
Album Description
Dream Theater has maintained a rare combination of stellar musicianship and unwavering passion for over a decade, selling millions of albums and filling concert venues worldwide. The band once again confirms its status as progressive hard rock's standard-bearers on their latest studio epic, Octavarium.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 393 more reviews...
This, my friends, was a surprise. June 7, 2005
193 out of 218 found this review helpful
Since 1994, Dream Theater has followed an uncanny pattern in album excellence. "Awake" was unbelievable - "Falling Into Infinity" was pretty good - "Scenes From a Memory" is the best album of all time - "Six Degrees ..." has its creative merits - "Train of Thought" is an unstoppable beast. So, by this logic, their next album will be good, but not a towering sonic monolith.
So, is this a self-fulfilling prophecy? It's hard to tell.
"Octavarium", Dream Theater's ninth studio album, is definitely a change in direction from "Train of Thought", which was a guitar-heavy album. Dream Theater's newest release is an atmospheric composition that focuses more on symphonic keyboard textures than it does on meaty guitar riffs. This particular ambience (along with the addition of a symphony) has taken over the spotlight, making each song more structured, accessible and consistently catchy, which was not the case with their last release. Petrucci and Rudess' virtuoso deliveries (more commonly known as "shredding") are kept down to an absolute minimum on this album. One may suppose that the band realized that the songs on "Train of Thought" were following a decipherable pattern: intro, verse, chorus, long instrumental fireworks, chorus, finish.
So what do we have, exactly? We have an album that explores various areas of the progressive world. We have "The Root of All Evil", a continuation of Portnoy's multi-album suite (beginning with "The Glass Prison" and continued by "This Dying Soul"), which starts the album on a relatively heavy note. In it's 8-minute run, it re-visits riffs, rhythms and even lyrics from its predecessors (namely "I can feel my body breaking - shaking") and a shaky, unimpressive chorus that borrows from James LaBrie's forgettable experience with Tim Donahue. "Panic Attack" is a look back to Liquid Tension Experiment's rapid fire guitar riffs and blitzkrieg drums, never slowing down in its spectacular 8-minute duration. It is the fastest Dream Theater song to date and an explosive standout track.
Aside from those songs, the rest of the album is considerably slower and softer than anything we have heard from Dream Theater since the collection of ballads found on 1997's "Falling into Infinity". The serene "The Answer Lies Within" begins with the sounds of crickets and a lonely piano, leading into a soothing song where Rudess' delicate melodies journey alongside a quiet troupe of strings, which have a brief "solo" where Petrucci would normally show off. The song is very (and I mean *very*) reminiscent of "The Spirit Carries On" in its folksy, feel-good song construction and melodies. But it is nowhere near as poppy or infectious as the upbeat, radio-ready "I Walk Beside You", which is the closest Dream Theater has come to sounding like Hoobastank or the Goo Goo Dolls. It's still a great song, despite the predictable and sugarcoated rock riffs.
Speaking of predictability, Dream Theater have yet another politically interested song, following in the footsteps of 2001's "The Great Debate" and 2003's "In the Name of God". In fact, this album's 10-minute "Sacrificed Sons" is, most accurately described, "In the Name of God Part 2" with the same lyrical theme (religious fanaticism) and similar threatening atmospheres as its predecessor.
Then there's the surprise. The 24-minute prog-rock title track. I didn't know what to make of "Octavarium" at first as it was a complete surprise. It is a total departure from "A Change of Seasons" (the band's other 20+ minute epic). It seems that Portnoy's prog-rock experiences with Transatlantic have leaked out into Dream Theater. The metal is gone, replaced by a softer rock that sounds a lot like IQ and Spock's Beard with synchronized guitars and keyboards, and a myriad of different sounds (like juxtaposing a solitary acoustic guitar for a few seconds and stomping on it with a catchy prog melody). After the first painfully long four minutes, the guitars kick in, paving the way for a truly memorable experience, headlined by acoustic guitars, soothing vocals, lots of piano, a curious flute (a surprise) and later a full symphony (a shock).
The symphony is difficult to digest. Dream Theater have always proved to be masters of their craft by working wonders with their instruments - and their instruments only. Now we have a symphony adding a supporting fill to their already organic songs. Fortunately, it isn't ubiquitous (à la Nightwish's "Once") or thinly spread out (à la Pain of Salvation's "BE"). Instead, it's prominent and heavy at select times like an active volcano. The strings punch out in short bursts at the majestic end of "These Walls", subtly guide the keyboards of "The Answer Lies Within" and, with the help of some horns, bring "Octavarium" to a stunning finish.
Every song on the album is unique one way or another (except "Never Enough", which doesn't take off until its instrumental delivery 2/3 of the way into the song) and form the parts of yet another great Dream Theater release. Although the album may not survive the test of time like "Images and Words" or "Scenes From a Memory" have, it is still a delightful listen and an impressive creative output.
Sure, they *are* my all-time favorite band, so my standards are extremely high. Despite the surprises and occasionally awkward moments, "Octavarium" passes my intense scrutiny.
See also: Dream Theater - "Falling into Infinity", Dream Theater - "Images and Words", Transatlantic - "SMPT:e", Spock's Beard - "V"
Mostly solid, accomplished; maybe even one of DT's finest June 11, 2005
65 out of 83 found this review helpful
It seems it's recap time for one of the most intelligent metal bands around: while they mainly continued reaching in new directions with Six Degrees and Train of Thought, this one is more of a summation of what they learned to do right on those two albums, minus (mostly) the missteps. There's some of the grand proggy bombast of 6D, but here it's not overblown and actually serves the songs, especially in the big closing title track. Likewise, the angry-metal-ish bent of ToT is present in spots but it seems appropriate rather than forced. If you haven't heard either of those yet, this still shouldn't disappoint.. if you're completely new to DT this could make a good first pick, but you still need Images & Words to make your life complete.
The sound is as varied as they've ever done, although perhaps somewhat more 'light' overall than usual. "The Root of All Evil" is the next part of Portnoy's recurring series (trilogy)? and so it's just as fierce and heavy as "Glass Prison" and "This Dying Soul" with some reprises of previous themes to tie them together. "I Walk Beside You" with its joyous soaring (even radio-friendly) chorus has been getting comparisons to U2 all over the place - though it's not nearly as bland/cheesy as that may suggest - and "The Answer Lies Within" is a lovely simple ballad in the tradition of "Eve" or "Anna Lee." Those who scoff at more straightforward 'poppy' stuff won't find much to like there, but I don't see a problem. "Panic Attack" should make up for it for the progheads - it's a frightening eight minutes of laser-sharp hyper riffing frenzied enough to induce claustrophobia.
It's probably inevitable that any band under the 'progressive' umbrella has to use an orchestra at some point, but that's pulled off excellently as well. "Sacrificed Sons" has a palpable air of doom and sorrow despite being fairly melodically & lyrically predictable, and the huge title track weaves the strings into a several-movement epic to rival "A Change of Seasons." It's derivative of a couple obvious 70s prog bands, but this is the album's finest moment: it's sweeping, it's powerful, it goes from restrained/subdued to all-out virtuosity to sweepingly gorgeous to crazy-scary and back without blinking an eye. I'm not sure how else to describe the thing since I haven't really even started unraveling it. It's a nice touch that it ends with "the story ends as it began," closing with the same piano hit that opens the album. Fun.
Thematic-connection lovers should eat this disc up. It's their eighth album (hence the title), there are eight tracks, and the insert pictures have 5s and 8s all over the place. The tracks & lyrics in the booklet are set under a music staff labeled 1/8, 2/8, 3/8 etc. and though there's plenty of time-sig-jumping, they tend to stick to the appropriate number ("These Walls" is primarily 3/4, "Panic Attack" has a recurring case of 5/8 and so on). Each set of lyrics also has a key signature above it, and if I knew any music theory I could probably say whether the keys evenly span a full octave over the course of the disc. But I don't, so you're on your own.
Overall: I say it's their best work at least since Metropolis 2, and if the last two left you lukewarm in spots, this should come as a welcome relief. And if they didn't, then there's no reason to hesitate here. It's one to devour.
 Dream Theater is Back in a Big Way June 7, 2005
26 out of 39 found this review helpful
I just picked up Octavarium this morning and I have listened to it twice. It was much better the second time around and I have a feeling it will get better each time I hear it. This is the first time in a long time that I have bought a CD where there isn't one song that is below average. The second song is a ballad and is probably the weakest on the album, but it is still a good tune and worth many listens. My favorite songs are Panic Attack, These Walls, The Root of All Evil, and Octavarium. The only complaint I have is that John Petrucci, the guitar god, doesn't quite get enough play here (Rudess owns this album). One of the main reasons I love Dream Theater is because I can't wait to hear what JP will come up with next, but sadly there isn't one stand out solo. Oh well, you can't have everything. This album is better than Infinity, Six Degrees, & Train of Thought (which I also liked) and it fits just below Images, Awake, and Scenes. Dream Theater is back at what they do best and I can't wait to see them on tour.
Versatile album that grows on you... June 7, 2005
15 out of 16 found this review helpful
The eighth DT album, Octavarium, is much more diverse than its predecessor, the dark "Train of Thought". At first it appears less coherent than TOT, but after half a dozen listenings I can only appreciate the variety of moods DT so elegantly offer on this CD.
The opening track, "The Root Of All Evil" is a hardrocker that could have been on TOT. In fact, there is a 15 second insert of "This Dying Soul" in the middle of the song. The second track, "The Answer Lies Within" is to me a less impressive soft breather. Not really my cup of tea, but still a fine song when you're in the right mood. "These Walls" with its spacious sounds during the verse and melodic chorus over metal guitar sounds is quite radio friendly, and after hearing the U2-like "I Walk Beside You" the progrock enthusiast may wonder where this band is heading. These songs are certainly enjoyable, but not typical of DT. Especially so with the lack of instrumental virtuoso passages typical of DT during tracks 2-4. But not to worry, the remaining four songs represent the diversified DT at their best. The hard rockin', up-tempo "Panic Attack" immeaditely became one of my all time DT favourite songs even before it got to the awesome solo sections by Rudess and Petrucci. "Never Enough" with ethereal vocals of LaBrie climaxes with a beautiful guitar passage towards the end. The epic "Sacificed Sons" deals with the 9/11 tragedy. After starting off smoothly the song builds up to typical DT characteristics. The title track is a 24 minute epic starting off with soft soundscapes featuring only keyboards and guitar. This intro sounds like Pink Floyd, later like Yes. LaBrie comes in at 5+ minutes and the song enters an instrumental pre-climax at 12+ minutes. We hear - among other things - (early)Genesis/Marillion-like keyboard passages and later, after further vocal parts, Zappa-influenced instrumental exercises. This piece of work grows on every listening and - although it after a mere 5 listenings may not appear very compact - is an all time DT's epic classic candidate.
As with any DT album, the musicianship amazes. The musical style and songs on some DT records may not have made justice to James LaBrie's abilities, but on this record his versatility has to be appreciated in a big way. Despite my one ore two worries during the first playback of this CD I feel now that this is an essential piece of work by DT. If you are new to Dream Theater, the musical diversity makes this CD a good introduction of the band alongside with "Images and Words", which may require less listenings for full appreciation.
 Dream Theater Now Exists Purely For Our Money - Here's Why June 10, 2005
13 out of 23 found this review helpful
First. The Review. After that, the scam revealed.
I have given Octavarium 4 full listens. It's hard to explain this album. It's not awful, it's not great, it's not "Six Degrees of Inner Slop." It just `is'. I can't put my finger on it. It's like a mix between Images and Words and Falling into Infinity but without the magic of the former and the `umph' of the latter. There is not a single jaw-dropping moment on the album - though I'm not sure that's a bad thing in general. In other words, not once did I get goosebumps from a part that just made me go "holy crap!!" Yet it's a fairly pleasant listen. There are some decent, catchy tunes on it. It's kind of like Floyd. Nothing in Floyd's catalog is jaw dropping and yet their albums are stellar (not that this album is stellar! Not even close.). But because there are none of these jaw dropping moments on Octavarium, which DT needs in order to remain interesting, I'm afraid this album will probably become a boring listen rather quickly and not revisit the CD player after a few more listens. The mix on the album is ok. It's good to not hear that Kevin Shirley garbage that has plagued them for the last 5 albums. But the drums are buried and the mix overall is a little muddy for my tastes. The guitars are WAY understated, though there is a great Journey sounding solo on one of the earlier tunes, and the keys have finally been brought forward again after being non-existent for 4 albums. Labrie sounds good as usual but again, nothing extraordinary. And Portnoy may finally NOT win the Modern Drummer reader's poll after winning 9 straight years because he doesn't flex a whole lot. Yes, there are certainly those `Portnoy moments', but generally he just plays for the song. Normally, that's great! But with DT, we've come to expect a certain level of virtuosity that is just not on this album. With Train of Thought and other DT albums, I knew those albums would grow on me because there was so much to digest. And they did grow on me as I really love those prior albums (except for SDOIT). But after one listen of Octavarium, I didn't find myself saying, "Wow, so much to digest." It was easily swallowed, digested, and passed through my bowels.
...Now onto the scam...
I am of the mind that DT is truly spreading themselves too thin with all the side projects and too many of their good ideas are being filtered through 15 different bands. If they would just stick with DT and put ALL their effort there, I think each new album would be a masterpiece. But why is that not happening? It's simple. Dream Theater purely exists now so the band can make money on the DT name (thanks to 'fans' like us who keep buying their records) and earn a living, while playing and writing the music they TRULY want to play and write with other musicians in other projects. It's really that simple. A DT album comes out, it sells a million copies worldwide, they make a decent chunk of change on sales, merchandise, tours, and clinics, and then they go and play with other guys because that's where their hearts lie now.
Like it or not, this could very well be the last DT album (or maybe we'll see one more) because I think fans are starting to catch on to this shameless scam.
Shame on you Dream Theater for bilking your fans. Shame on us for falling for it album after album.
Feel free to email me :)
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