Awake

How does a band follow up what is quite possible the most commercially successful progressive metal album of all time?; They don't. Instead, they recreate their entire sound and create something even better. Though Images and Words is (and will likely always be) the band's most commercially successful album, it certainly isn't their creative peak. Following intense touring for their 1992 classic, the band reentered the studio to craft another masterpiece. The label expected another Images and Words, but Dream Theater were determined to push their sound forward and not make the same album a second time. Images and Words encapsulates the highly produced, "poppy" side of Dream Theater, while Awake does something completely different; its creates the deepest, darkest, and most expansive atmosphere in the band's history.

Though the band had been using samples throughout their previous work, this album likely has the most prominent use of them (other than The Astonishing, but these samples were made specifically for the album, and not borrowed from a movie or show). This contributes to the atmosphere exponentially, and provides several proactive moments throughout the entirety of the album. Songs like 6:00, Voices, and Space Dye Vest have movie samples perfectly placed within their runtimes, and no song overuses these samples.

Another one of the greatest strengths of Awake is the length/pacing of the album. There are 11 tracks within the 75 minute run time of the album. Depending on how you view the album, there one, two, or three "epics" (in this case, I am considering an epic a song that is 10 minutes or longer). That may not make sense at first, but here is the explanation; when recording the album, the band wanted to continue down the path of writing longer songs. The label discouraged it. Instead of rewriting tracks, the band decided to cut the songs up and have them lead into each other. The two cases where this occurred was between The Mirror/Lie, and A Mind Beside Itself suite (Erotomania, Voices, and The Silent Man). There is even a third instance where Lifting Shadows Off A Dream blends into Scarred, but this one is less notable. Taking this into account, if offers two distinct ways to listen to the album, therefore making the album an even more engaging experience. There is so much more to talk about when it comes to this album.

Awake is, in my opinion, the Dream Theater album with the best production. I typically refer to the production as open, airy, and hollow (in a good way). The guitar cuts through the mix perfectly, but isn't overly prominent. The drums have a very similar production to A Change Of Seasons (specifically the track itself, as the rest of the EP has a different drum sound since they are live tracks), and it remains as my favorite drum sound in the entirety of Dream Theater's massive discography. Awake also contains some of the most prominent contributions within John Myung's career, as the bass features prominently on tracks like Scarred and Lifting Shadows Off A Dream. The vocal performance by James LaBrie is arguably the best of his entire (studio) career. On I&W, James already had the immense range within his pitch, but here, James also adds an amazing range of dynamics to his vocals. With the initiation of seven string guitars into the music of Dream Theater, there was a need for some more aggressive vocals during some parts of the songs. The beautiful vocal sections are still here, such as the vocals on Lifting Shadows Off A Dream, but LaBrie implements some harsher, more "metal" or "thrashy" vocals when the music calls for it, such as during 6:00 and Lie. Finally, we reach Kevin Moore. This album is his last performance as a member of Dream Theater. Not only is it his last studio performance, its his final performance as a whole, since he left right at the end of the album's completion, not even touring with DT for this album. As someone who considers all three Dream Theater keyboardists practically equal, I will say that this album contains one of the best keyboard/piano performances in the band's history. Moore's keyboard generally isn't the most prominent instrument on this album (with the exception of Space Dye Vest of course), and he has few solos, but his performance makes an even more important contribution; it practically holds the atmosphere of the album together. His instrumentation, songwriting, and chord choices on this album are why it is one of the best Dream Theater albums of all time. In short, Kevin's playing on this album is legendary, and along with LaBrie's vocal performance, it is the highlight of the album.

Though I've practically said everything that I can about the music, there is one other things that this album does exceptionally well; presentation through its album art. This is hands down the greatest Dream Theater album cover of all time, and quite possibly one of the greatest album covers in music history. It perfectly encapsulates the music and atmosphere contained within Awake, and the level of detail and care put into this piece of art is unparalleled throughout the rest of their discography. I personally theorize that this is the scene outside of the window that is shown on the cover of Images And Words. My two favorite details on the cover of Awake are the factories in the background and the scene within the mirror. The factories are shadowed in the background, and carry a level of mystery and curiosity with them. The scene inside of the mirror presents a world that you want explored on future album covers (which as far as I know, sadly never occurred). This is one of those album covers that the audience can't help but analyze every detail of, and 25 years later, it is still the bands best album art.

With all of this said, it misses out on receiving a perfect score by just three percent. This is for two minor issues related to the track list, and both are simply my personal opinion. First, I believe that Eve should have been included on this album. Its a beautiful song, and though I wouldn't trade any of the tracks out for the inclusion of Eve, it still should have been included. My second, and even more nit-picky complaint is that A Change Of Seasons wasn't included on this album either. Of course, it was intended to be a track on Images and Words, but that never came to fruition, so this was basically their last chance to record the Moore version of the song properly in the studio. In all honesty, I would have preferred for it to specifically be a bonus track, because I would have still liked the band to record the Sherinian version as well. Wishful thinking, but one can dream (no pun intended). With the inability to craft a double album during these early years of the band's career, it obviously isn't their fault. But these two minor complaints, along with the fact that some of the tracks are less impactful than others, are the reasons that this album doesn't quite receive a perfect 100% score. However, this album is still an essential listen, and when I ask myself what my favorite Dream Theater albums are (and Dream Theater is my favorite band), I typically have Awake as the second or third best. In conclusion, this album pushed the band even further creatively, putting the "progressive" in progressive metal, and proved to the world that Dream Theater were leaders and innovators in both metal music and progressive music. Awake is an essential listening experience, and even 25 years later, it still has an immense impact on those fortunate enough to give it a chance and listen to it.

The best studio album of Dream Theater can be traced down right here and as you see, that’s hardly saying much. Awake is yet another ambitious effort of these guys that turns out to be too problematic for its own good. Even the performances are becoming more inconsistent here and I can't help but think these guys weren't allowed to contribute their own craft and that instead, they told each other what to write. That’s the only logical explanation I have for this problem - Kevin Moore’s keyboards become more inefficient, James LaBrie tries to show his tough side with mixed results and John Petrucci tries out his new toy, which doesn’t all work out for the best either.

Awake sees Dream Theater slipping into darker territory – something which on paper should work out well, but truth to be told doesn’t mean that much. The two biggest differences compared to Images and Words are the vocal lines and the seven string guitars. First of all, James LaBrie doesn’t sound super slick anymore; the clean vocals more often breathe more life into these songs than they did on the band’s previous album, but it's the distorted approach that's rather tricky. Certain vocalists sound appealing at their more aggressive performances, but LaBrie’s performance comes off rather unnatural at times. I’m not talking about vocal technique here, but it’s out of his vocal character, especially on ''Lie'' where the pseudo intimidating whispered/half distorted rapped delivery is just awful and that harmony halfway through is quite something, too, as it recalls an elderly tenor sounding all hysterical and pissed off at his neighbor. Regardless, ‘’Lie’’ is definitely the worst tune on Awake (I should mention having checked the video clip of this song where James LaBrie makes these silly moves doesn’t make things better either). Second of all a few tunes here were written on a seven string guitar, which one might expect to work out for the better but that's not always the case. ‘’The Mirror’’ happens when you give a seven string guitar to the wrong musician - I’m all for chugging but if that’s basically all you do in a track, your creativity is rather out of sight - not to mention LaBrie embraces the same errors as he did in ‘’Lie’’ and Kevin Moore is wasting his talents here with his pseudo-spooky keys that wouldn't even scare a five year old kid.

Dream Theater still appear ambitious and unpredictable here so aside from the heavier tracks, you still find some ballads which for the most part aren’t exactly better than the ones from Images and Words. ‘’The Silent Man’’ sounds so dumbed down it’s not even funny – an acoustic bore which I’d rather expect from a sixteen year old boy trying to impress his girlfriend with. ‘’Lifting Shadows of a Dream’’ is slightly better, recalling the mysterious aura that ‘’Voices’’ possessed, although it’s not exactly inspiring, while the album closer is pure crap – this thing is called ''Space-Dye Vest'' and it comes off as melodramatic due to the keys and movie samples (seriously, when did such a thing ever work?) James LaBrie’s lower register isn't all that bad for the softer tunes on this album, but he’s not capable of saving this track from mediocrity – I mean it’s a song about Moore falling in love with a model he’s seen in a magazine for crying out loud. Look, I’m all for ballads about love if 1: they’re good, and 2: they’re more relatable than falling in love with a magazine model. In this case neither of the two apply. Give me a break.

Despite sounding harsh, Awake is not without highlights, even if there are just a few of them. I find the longer tracks to demonstrate the band at their most united and focused - while slightly overlong, ‘’Voices’’ does have a mysterious aura to it and slowly unfolding itself as LaBrie takes the song forward with some actual proper lines bellowing over the choppy guitar lines. ‘’Scarred’’ does appear somewhat loose, but the half soaring/half calming vocals resonate well with the chugged grooves and Kevin Moore’s lively keys – the ending is certainly one of the more emotionally resonating moments of Dream Theater as far as I’m concerned. Tracks like ‘’Caught in a Web’’ and ‘’Innocence Faded’’ are more of the instant and catchy numbers and work well, too. The former stomps with some conviction and the aggressive vocal lines match well, while the latter is a real ear-worm of a track that lives by its repeated chorus until John Petrucci turns the track into a blistering, if appropriate shred feast around the last minute.

The highlights of Awake would resulted into a decent EP, but instead this is yet another bloated and confusing release that's just not doing it for me. One last note: does anyone else think ‘’Erotomania’ sounds more like a video game soundtrack than a metal tune? I can imagine that this was written to fill the space – because a one hour and eight minutes long Dream Theater album simply wouldn’t have been enough, right?

I've hardly made my opinion on this, the most well-known and iconic of progressive metal bands, unclear; if you've read my review of When Dream and Day Unite, I state it pretty unambiguously. Of course, some Dream Theater albums are better than others, which even die-hard fans of the band can likely agree with, and the first two albums with longtime vocalist James Labrie, Images and Words and Awake, are most often pointed out as unassailable bastions of progressive metal mastery. This being the case, I am going to do my darndest to go on and assail them anyway--in this case, my preference between the two (i.e. my favorite Labrie Dream Theater album), 1994's Awake.

We start out with "6:00," a song title which, to me, seems iffy at best for a metal song, though perhaps there could be some clever justification of such a strange title. Upon listening to the track itself...no, no there is not. A jumble of unexciting media clips opens things up, followed by a "groovy" riff which to me evokes such things as the worst of Alder-era Fates Warning and much of Queensryche's 1990s output. For fans of popular modern progressive metal, I suppose this may put the riff in good company, but to me it sounds like a superficially aggressive, ultimately pitiful attempt to channel real rage, and Labrie's laughable tough-guy/macho vocal performance only confirms my impression. Suffice it to say, I'm not a fan of the song, and their choice to make it the listener's first impression of the album is troubling at best.

"Caught in a Web" does a lot more to warm me up to the idea of, if not enjoying, at least feeling neutral towards this album, with a stronger performance from Labrie evoking Urban Breed of Tad Morose fame - in fact, the riffing has similarities to Tad Morose as well, and while I'm not a huge fan of that band, either, this compares to some of their more enjoyable songs and, while the uber-prominent keys are never going to be my thing, I can at least understand the appeal here. Moving to "Innocence Faded," we're presented with a softer, more thoughtful manifestation of the band, more overtly bringing to mind thoughts of the band's prog rock forefathers, Rush; and while I find Labrie's vocal lines--especially in the chorus--relatively underwhelming, I do appreciate the lead guitar, as, like much of Rush's output, it manages to noodle around a bit in a fun way without ever straying into "guitar wankery" territory. This is a welcome refreshment for Dream Theater, and I wish they would stick to such a paradigm more often.

The three-part sequence, "A Mind Beside Itself," continues to channel Rush for the most part, and this is most evident in the ending of Part 2, where the building, swirling leads combine with some genuinely emotive lines from Labrie to create an atmosphere full of wonder, not dissimilar to Rush's well-known epic, "2112." Unfortunately, Part 3 sees a devolution to banal, uninteresting acoustic chords with an equally bland Labrie accompanying, making my impression toward the epic overall rather mixed. However, I won't deny the band credit for the greatness of Part 2, especially in the second half, which is easily the high point of the album for me.

"The Mirror" brings us back to the realm of aggression...which I don't think is the band's strong suit here, the opening riff being evidence of that in that it's literally one note repeated over and over, an impressively uninspired level of musical laziness usually reserved for genres like nu metal. I'm aware that a lot of modern progressive metal does make use of simplistic riffs, sometimes even to their credit when layered with other sounds, but for me this undeniably goes too far, especially against mediocre keyboard lines. Labrie's lines and performance are fairly good here, but aren't enough to hold the song together on their own, ultimately making this track another failure. "Lie" is more of the same, with semi-rapping, a new low point for Labrie--though for the chorus, he does shift back to the try-hard macho/tough guy vocals we heard in "6:00." The only redeeming element is some cool soloing near the end, but that's not enough to change the fact that this track is thoroughly unenjoyable for me, and frankly it boggles my mind that such a track exists on an album so many seem to hail as the high point of progressive metal.

Thankfully, "Lifting Shadows off a Dream" eschews the shitty vocals and lame riffs again to deliver us a legitimately heartfelt ballad, which contains LaBrie's best performance on the album and some simple yet actually interesting riffs which work well as a backdrop to the centerpiece of Labrie. The last two minutes give us some echoes of the atmosphere that was explored at the end of "A Mind Beside Itself Part 2," creating the only song on the album I really have no complaint with, and one that is legitimately worthy of praise. "Scarred" is also quite a strong number, creating a mysterious, ominous soundscape that works more often than not, though at times it does become overly repetitive. Mainly, it's that one simple metal riff that's repeated over and over again. It's not bad the first few times, but it's not strong enough to stand up to the repeated use it has here, and by the fifth or sixth time I'm just waiting for it to be over. However, that's the only complaint I have from an 11-minute song, so ultimately this holds up very well.

Finishing out the album strong, "Space-Dye Vest" is a tasteful, introspective, and melancholic piece, and the band is surprisingly capable of pulling back when it needs to pull back--at least in this case. With somber keys and trembling, moody Labrie the only elements for much of the song, it's a stark contrast from most of the other tracks, and one that is most welcome. Unfortunately, the last couple of minutes start adding drums and synthesizer effects which only detract from the poignancy of the piece, though they are peeled back again in the final thirty seconds. So, ultimately, my review of the album is at least mixed, and there are clearly some good things going on here, but when it's bad it's just full-out dog shit, as in "6:00," "The Mirror," and "Lie." It's certainly the most impressive of Labrie Dream Theater, and to my surprise I have actually given it an identical score to the band's debut, When Dream and Day Unite. However, it's certainly a far cry from being the pinnacle of progressive metal, or even modern progressive metal, and most of the accusations I have about the band (lack of real emotion, guitar and keyboard "wankery," longwindedness) are still applicable here, although in a less virulent form. So, while I'm not at all recommending the album, if you have a burning desire to listen to the band, this album wouldn't be a bad choice.

This is a rewritten review.

After first hearing Panic Attack from Rock Band 2, I became introduced to Dream Theater and later acquired their second album Images and Words and was immediately blown away by their mix of metal, progressive rock, and jam band-like instrumentation. I slowly but surely acquired every other album by the band (becoming a massive Dream Theater fan), and Awake was one of the last I obtained. While most critics and first time listeners often hold the consensus that Images and Words was the band's best effort (yours truly included) several hardcore fans consider this to be the band's magnum opus that was at first lost and underappreciated amidst the rise of grunge music upon its release. Recent reviews have been kinder to this album and almost every fan considers Awake to be at least one of the top three releases by the band. Upon listening to this album for the first time, I realized its potential to be their best but felt that it lacked top-to-bottom consistent quality. However after further listens, Awake still stacks up to be one of Dream Theater's best, even if some songs are better than others.

After the magical and dream-like Images and Words, the band was pressured to try and put out a more commercial and radio-friendly album. Therefore, Awake has in some aspects more of a straightforward hard rock/heavy metal feel, but still retains several elements of progressive time changes, instrumentation, and emotional lyrics. The album starts off very strong with the first three tracks 6:00, Caught in a Web, and Innoncence Faded, which definitely show off the album's more rock/metal tendencies. 6:00 features an excellent drumfill opening and snapping snare, which is a consistent drum technique used by Mike Portnoy throughout the rest of the album, resulting in Awake to be considered one of Portnoy's best. Caught in a Web has a heavier and more grinding guitar that is also more fast-paced and slighty more intense than 6:00, but also contains an extremely catchy chorus. Innocence Faded has a very upbeat melody and features one of James LaBrie's finest vocal performances, hitting an F5 similar to that of Learning to Live. Awake as a whole shows off LaBrie's range, often using an aggressive rasp while occasionally going softer and melodic to soaring at the top of his lungs. All in all, the first three songs succeed as being very catchy and memorable and displaying the band's move to a heavier sound. The next three songs form the Mind Beside Itself Suite and are all connected together. It is unfortunately here that the album starts to lag a tad bit. It starts off with the instrumental Erotomania. While it retains the upbeat rock sound present in the three previous songs and features excellent instrumenation (especially a particular drum fill by Portnoy) it just doesn't measure up the same way to later instrumentals the band has been known for, such as Overture: 1928, The Dance of Eternity, or Stream of Consciousness. However, Erotomania is still quite an impressive example of musicianship. The next part of the suite is Voices, which is the first nine minute-plus song on the album. Voices has intersting lyrics about mental illnesses and diseases with interesting instrumentation and a heavy feel. However, upon listening to it the first time I felt it drawn-out and not that interesting despite the instrumentation. But Voices eventually grows on you and the chorus becomes more and more catchy with every listen. It is ultimately a track that can be appreciated for being forward without too much grandeur. The next song is The Silent Man, which is a particularly unique track being an entirely accoustic power ballad. While certainly different from what the band had done before, it unfortunately fell victim to the same fate as Voices the first time around: just not that interesting. But with continued and further listens, The Silent Man grows on you and can be better appreciated for its emotion captured in such simplicity. Though A Mind Beside Itself falters in some areas and doesn't continue the strong beginning of the first three tracks, they are by no means "bad" songs and become more entertaining if given time and patience.

Things pick up a tad with The Mirror, a sort of precursor to the Twelve-Step Suite about Mike Portnoy's alcoholism. One of the heaviest and most grinding songs on the album, it also features some interesting organ-sounding keyboards and a strong mix of high and aggressive vocals by James LaBrie. While still not quite as good as the opening songs, The Mirror definitely does keep the ball rolling and leads up to perhaps the highest point of the album: Lie. Probably the heaviest song on the album, Lie is also very catchy and has an extremely memorable chorus. LaBrie makes an intresting use of using hushed vocals during the verses and his aggressive rasp in the choruse before the song ends with an extended guitar solo which features a brief reprisal of The Mirror. Lifting Shadows Off a Dream is another truly unique track, being a sort of ambient and tranquil power ballad while also using deep bass and melodic keyboards. The penultimate song is Scarred. While, like Voices, it doesn't live up to other nine-plus minute songs the band has been known for, it is much more solid than Voices, starting off quiet and tranquil before picking up in aggression and speed in the verses, without sacrificing any of its ambience, before reverting to a melodic and tranquil chorus. It is also heralded as perhaps LaBrie's best performance on the album, as he shows off the dynamics of his range most prominently in this song. Scarred may not be the feat of musicianship that Learning to Live was, but keeping in mind that it is more straightforward and direct than Learning to Live, Scarred still succeeds in most parts as being an "epic" track. And with that, you would think the album had come to a satisfying conclusion. But there's one more surprise left.

The final song is the last work of Kevin Moore, who left just as the album was completed: Space-Dye Vest. This song is without a doubt the band's most bizarre and uncharacteristic song (the song has never been performed by the band live and was acknowledged that it would not have made the album if the band knew Kevin was leaving). It is largely a dark and melancholic piano ballad that becomes increasingly more haunting with low piano keys and hushed vocals and becomes increasingly bizarre with various sound clips of movies about love and obsession to complement the lyrical content (it's about how Moore fell in love with a magazine model wearing the famous vest) and it is quite a while before the rest of the band joins in, while the piano and keyboards remain dominant. At first, I was taken aback by the song and was upset that this was chosen to close the album rather than Scarred because it seemingly had no place on the album. But it will eventually grow on you after a few listens and is honestly a very interesting and haunting piece of music. Still, it's kind of a weird way to end the album and ulitmately leaves me with mixed feelings.

6:00, Caught in a Web, Innocence Faded, and Lie are ultimately strong enough tracks to hold up the album. However, while the rest of the album remains somewhat hit-and-miss, songs such as Erotomania, The Mirror, Lifting Shadows Off a Dream, and Scarred are also very solid. This is not necessarily the best album to listen to songs just by themselves (accept the first three and Lie), but if one listens to Awake from beginning to end without interruption, the pieces all come together well and ends up being one of Dream Theater's most solid releases. Even if I will continue to have somewhat mixed feelings about Voices, The Silent Man, and Space-Dye Vest (which are not bad, just "kinda good" and "what the hell?"), the quality of excellent combined with solid outweighs (for the most part) the songs that are somewhat lacking. Fans of Images and Words may need to give Awake a few listens before they truly appreciate its quality, but it ultimately pays off. While not their most consistently strong albums, Awake remains an essential Dream Theater release.

I don't know what is wrong with me but I don't understand or share the hype about this album. I really liked the very diversified first strike "When dream and day unite" and the magic moments on the progressive rock revival masterpiece "Images and words" but "Awake" is mostly boring, complicated and dull to me.

Just to give you an example, the epic song "Scarred" is very diversified but not catchy or addicting for a single second. It lacks the hectical genius of "Metropolis" or the touching and profound melodies of "Surrounded" or the freshness of "Only a matter of time". This track is just long and boring, it has no magic tranquility and no guts either. The often cited "Space-dye west" shows us that Kevin Moore has some skills but the intro already rather reminds me of a boring evening in a high society restaurant for rich couples and thsi track never has the same magic as the harmo´nies he created on "Surrounded" or "The killing hand". The song is very relaxed and vchilling and surely has a special atmosphere and is a good choice to close an album on a calm note but to me this song is mostly boring and overrated. "Lifting shadows off a dream" makes me even faster fall asleep. Normally, I like silent progressive tracks as I am a huge fan of King Crimson but this pop ballad is simply dumb.

Those relaxed songs do not fit with the rather modern and rocking songs like "Lie" where James LaBrie sounds like if a disco pop vocalist would try out to do some hard rock or the very rhythm orientated opener "Six o'clock" that is one of the rare songs that I really like on this album because every instrument shows its forces in this surprising and very progressive track that unites everything about the band.

But a part of the diversified and still somewhat straight "Six o'clock" and the beautiful "Innocence faded" that convinces me with a catchy chorus and beautiful guitar leads that could have been on "Images and words", there is no third song on the record which I really adore and that's why I really feel disappointed about this so well received record.

I would even go as far and say that this album is probably the weakest and most boring one in the band's very strong and stunning discography. I would rather listen to the first two albums and recommend those than this overrated boredom in aesthetic perfection.

Awake is called the dark album from Dream Theater, cause of the depressive emotion you have all along in the songs. But that's not a bad thing in fact! Even if some people believes that this release is not progressive enough but too much focus on the heavy sound, I would tell that they are wrong. How could the progressive emotion of the music doesn't mix with heavy? I think that this album reflect that it can be mixed!

After the success of Images and Words on the prog-metal scene, Dream Theater do as they want and make something really different from their previous album. This is just the reflection of a progression through the music. The progression could be bad or good for different person and that is more a subjective opinion than a fact. For myself, I don't think it is worst or better than Images and Words, it is just different and good!

There are song that are heavier and other that are more soft, just like on an usual DT release. Songs like 6:00, Caught In A Web, The Mirror, Lie represent more the heavy section of the release. These last songs are really great with a good play of guitar work and an awesome deal of bass and drums along with an atmospheric keyboard that sometime do a solo or two. Labrie sing with energy but sometime he push maybe a little bit too much like on Caught In A Web, that is not my favorite around. 6:00 is just a magnific song to begin the Cd with a very good intense drumming that get you into the Cd. The Mirror is an usual Mike Portnoy signature for the lyrics and the sound. A more crushing sound with agressive lyrics that is what he writes! Lie really follows hand in hand The Mirror with another agressive sound that tells: "Don't tell me, you taugh of me!". The riff of this song has crush and the solos are fast, but maybe lack some emotion.

Other song are more on the soft side like Innoncence Faded, The Silent Man (that is part of the A Mind Behind Itself), Lifting Shadows off a Dream and Scarred. These tracks are all great show a lot of emotion in the lyrics and in the music. Lifting Shadows off a Dream is a composition of Myung and the lyrics are very poetic. It is indeed one of the best writter of DT and it is sad that he doesn't write anymore. Scarred really get you straigh in the heart with a melodic sound and some more heavy part.

But this release I think that this release is the place of two main tracks: "A Mind Behind Itself" and "Space Dye-Vest". The first is three song that are linked together showing the world into the mind of a little boy. Erotomania is the first part of the serie and it is a instrumental episode with a lot of solos of all the kind. It is a good song, but not one of the best around they have made. Sometime you feel like it is going nowhere and then it falls into the crushing Voices. This song is a equilibrum between heavy and soft reflecting how the world have two different point of views and that the main character of the song is trapped in. The Silent Man is an accoustic song with a great Petrucci work and a Labrie that we don't find often with a really soft voice. Weirdly this Silent Man sound like if it is Myung...

Space Dye-Vest is the most depressive song of all DT carrier and I don't think it will be beaten by any other song. It is a song written by Kevin Moore and the majesty of his music-wise is shown through the whole song. It is one of the finest work I have never listen to. The keyboard are just impressive and the ambiance of the song is incredible. Even Labrie doesn't sound like he is the same.

Awake is one of the dark episode of Dream Theater, but remain a wonderful album with complex song writting, beautiful solos and a perfect ambiance in the whole Cd from the beginning until the last note of keyboard! Nearly the perfection...99%. A must for everyone into metal!

Awake is the critical record from, what was at the time, an amazing band. In a career full of blindingly bright moments, Awake is the shining crown jewel that rises above them all. Images & Words is more influential, Train of Thought is heavier, Scenes From a Memory is the current cosmopolitan pick for their best, but none of that matters. Simply put, Awake is where Dream Theater moved away from the sometimes sophomoric excess of their first two records into a realm of maturity and glorious yet restrained performances, a realm that is heartbreakingly perfect, a realm that they seldom fully enter anymore, preferring an amalgam of the lyrical darkness of Awake with the absurdly amazing playing on Images & Words. Thus, much as I enjoy parts of the catalogue, they are virtually incapable of ascending to the absolute pinnacle of excellence that they achieved a decade ago, this year.

I tremble as I try to express how much this record has meant to me, how these songs are burned into my mind. This is prog-metal gone dark, stripped of it's silly window dressing and it's trademark excess. Awake is song writing over performance, real emotion and ideas over flights of fantasy and overblown "messages". Every performance is sharp, every note planned out and pressed into the service of the song. If you consider the maniac soloing of "Metropolis Part 1" or "This Dying Soul" distracting or overwhelming, take the time to immerse yourself in a work of grand, groundbreaking vision.

The album works on a variety of levels, from the high ground intellectualism of the lyrically challenging "Scarred" and "Voices" to the down and dirty rock'n'roll power at the heart of "6:00" and "Lie". In addition, the use of the famous recurring riff phenomena gives this album a cohesiveness and unity like no other album I can think of, save for overt concept albums like Scenes From a Memory and Tommy. It's subtle, requiring many listens to discern, but soon you might find yourself theorizing about the significance of say, the keyboard melody from "Space Dye-Vest" appearing in "The Mirror". Is this symbolic of "The Mirror"'s alcoholic protagonist sliding into the delusional despairing isolation of "Space-Dye Vest", is it simply Kevin Moore sneakily adding another touch of complexity to a frightfully intelligent composition, or is it just your imagination, did you really hear what you thought you did? The recurring riff phenomena gives Awake an amazingly dream-like quality, as if these songs are just being fished out of some sort of collective unconscious, pure emotion manifested as spell-binding music.

This album marks a paradigm shift for the neo-prog movement. I am firm in the belief that without Awake many of the more cerebral modern prog acts wouldn't be around as they are today, many of them probably going in a more Symphony X -type direction. Awake addresses real concerns without being comically topical like Rush, Queensryche, and even later Dream Theater can be (see "The Great Debate"). Every song relates to a feeling or an internal conflict, as if we are being given a chance to sift through the subconscious of the members of the band, who were at a tremendous crossroads in real life too.

Thus, from Kevin Moore we get the desperate cry for freedom of "6:00", a catalytic opener with perhaps Mike Portnoy's most charmingly and jaw-droppingly self-indulgent performance, a perfect counterpoint to Moore's frenetic keyboard squawk. This (along with "Erotomania") is the link to the prog-mania of the "Ytse Jam" and "Learning to Live", a real performance piece that can truly be called energetic like almost nothing else. Despite the very real sense of a creative mind confined to mediocrity in the lyrical narrative, Kevin Moore is writing fun, hummable, almost rapped lyrics that highlight James LaBrie's new found sense of power and aggression. LaBrie chews scenery here, snapping off syllables and giving a biting edge to his high notes that seems to owe more to Sebastian Bach than any classically-inclined operatic style as employed on the previous album. Indeed, this song is the adrenaline on a measured and gloomy record, a track that incites bopping and headbanging from the opening samples, impeccably arranged until they have their own bizarre rhythm and pentameter.

Like Moore, Petrucci gives us a harrowing glimpse into his own mind, fearlessly pounding us with his self-doubt, with his religious conflicts, with the primal screams that we all sometimes would like to get out. "Caught in a Web" provides an interesting counterpoint to Moore's wanderings and desire to escape, almost as if the album mirrors the falling out between Dream Theater and Kevin Moore. On "6:00", Moore tells us that he feels hemmed in. On "Caught in a Web", Petrucci tells us that he cannot escape, as if Dream Theater has become the spiders web and Moore it's helpless prey. Appropriately then, the song is a sledgehammer, with Portnoy and Myung driving the song forward with a single-minded trudge while Petrucci and Moore, if anything, lighten the affair with a hopelessly gloomy yet still anthemic flick of the wrist.

LaBrie and Petrucci continue on in this little analogy I'm playing out in my overly analytical mind with "Innocence Faded", a very Images & Words style song about, obviously, the loss of innocence. Throughout this review you may notice I don't give much in the way of criticism towards the music (because I think most of it is just perfect), but I will say that "Innocence Faded" has a pretty poor chorus. The verses are amazing, great examples of the dark side of I&W, as the keys and guitars sparkle without being uplifting; the chorus however, is simply incongruous with the rest of the song. It's like they grafted the chorus from another song onto an unfinished one. Regardless, the ride-out harmony is amazing, and it's blessed with some truly stand-out performances.

After a frenzied instrumental work-out called "Erotomania", which is incidentally one of the strongest uses of the recurring riff idea as it shares riffs with at least three other songs, Petrucci gives us a superbly poetic lament about how difficult it is to have faith sometimes. "Voices" features some truly amazing lyrics, both effecting and ambiguous while possessing a great flow and cadence (no Anthrax-style line cramming here) that give LaBrie a perfect platform to truly shine on. This is one of the prime examples of where Awake improves on I & W. On the Petrucci-penned "Under a Glass Moon" for example, the poetry is cheesy and depends to heavily on florid description. Here, Petrucci raises important questions that stick with you. "Is there fantasy in refuge/God in politicians/Should I turn on my religion/These voices in my head tell me to..." Musically, the performances are solid as ever, with special mention to Kevin Moore. Appropriate to the theme, Moore turns in a gothic, cathedral like tone that is unique in the DT canon (perhaps the ride out in "Finally Free"). Rather than lose the focus of the story Petrucci is trying to tell with showboating and key'n'strings duels, he adds texture and flavour throughout, adding to the chilly atmosphere permeating the track. "Voices" is an epic that remains committed to song writing, the crazed and eventful break occurring at a logical point in the song and following an amazingly well-chosen cameo by a rap artist who adds an extra degree of credibility as Petrucci gradually ramps up the intensity underneath. Other than "Scarred", I feel "Voices" is James LaBrie�s finest hour, as he displays an incredibly amount of shade in his tonality and impeccably well-chosen phrasing. In fact, the only improvement that could possibly be made to the performance occurs on Once in a LIVEtime, where James actually manages to inject more feeling and emotion into the final charge that leads into "The Silent Man".

Speaking of that very song, "The Silent Man" is a perfect example of how versatile Dream Theater has become. It's inspiring and up-lifting acoustic song-writing, and that nifty little solo towards the end of the song would fit on a far more mainstream record than this. I love this song for it's simplicity, just James and John on the guitar without any accompaniment (there may be a hint of keys towards the end to give that escalating sensation), and the Live Scenes From New York version actually angers me because in adding electricity and making it a full band piece, the subtlety and magic is gone. However, on the album there is nothing but pure perfection, even down to the excellent backing vocals contributed by one of the producers. Lyrically, this song is also about faith and familial relationships, like the calm denouement of an older man looking back at the passion of his confused youth ("Voices"). However, it is only a brief respite.

Mike Portnoy's contribution to Awake is pure sledge, a love letter to Pantera that is earthshakingly heavy. This isn't heavy for prog, this is undeniably heavy. The guitars are a distorted, face-melting, force of nature like virtually nothing else. The pounding rhythm and crushingly heavy guitar give added support to Portnoy's anguished tale of despair and self-loathing, an autobiographical account of an alcoholic trying to drag himself out of the hole that he finds himself in. This song is mean, sullen, uncommunicative and absolutely spine-crushing. I'll never forget watching this song explode live, heavy beyond heavy on a night when the band played the entire Train of Thought album, possibly the heaviest prog album ever made. "The Mirror" stomped all over it. Special mention to the high (but not sweetening) keyboard work that gives what you think is a slight respite from the stomp before you realize that it is subtly warped and disturbing, more of the cathedral-style dramatics that bolden and only add to the seriousness and class of the record. And then, just as the song seems to be grinding to a halt..."LIE"!

I remember listening to this album for the first time and practically jumping at the abrupt change of gears into this loping crunch-fest. This is Moore's second contribution to the album, and it is similar to "6:00" in that it employs a deceptively swinging vocal melody that sheds more light on his disenfranchisement and growing paranoia (at least, as far Awake being a narrative in my own mind). "Lie" just plains rocks, with a hip-shakin' and headbangin' beat that leads to a real crowd pleasing chorus. Plus, "Lie" features by far and away the most badass rendition of a nursery rhyme ever (sorry "Enter Sandman"), James having fun being bad with the effortlessly memorable lyrics. Recurring riff phenom strikes once again, as we suddenly plunge back into a complex and daring reprise of "The Mirror" which allows the band to flex it's considerable musical chops.

After that two song assault on the senses, another breather is needed, which comes in the form of John Myung's spacey and elegant "Lifting Shadows Off a Dream". The bass in this one is terrific, very melodic and mercurial as with other Myung comps like "Trial of Tears" and "Learning to Live", Portnoy doing some nice almost Simon Phillips-like light touch stuff, Petrucci and Moore adding colour, shimmer, and vibrancy wherever their enchanted music works it's way in. This song is very much about transformation and love, perhaps offering a chance at a metamorphosis for Moore (which, leaving and forming ChromaKey, he took). Regardless, LaBrie is heartfelt and moving, and the harmonizing and gradual uplift on this song is sublime. This is the sound of true art, of a genius that few bands truly possess; something that Dream Theater seems content to toss off as if it's no big thing.

The hardworking, kitchen-sink epic of Awake is "Scarred". It is of comparable length and placement (second last rather than last) to the hardworking, kitchen-sink epic on Images & Words, that being of course "Learning to Live". The difference is that on that record there were no less than five hardworking, kitchen-sink epics ("Pull Me Under", "Take the Time", "Metropolis", "Under a Glass Moon", and "Learning to Live"), and just like "Learning to Live" represents Images & Words, with it's over the top chopperiffic craziness, so "Scarred" is an avatar of the Awake record as a whole, a song of considerable heft and density possessed with a steely-eyed drive and an amazing amount of intelligence.

I consider "Scarred" to be John Petrucci's greatest song-writing accomplishment, the lyrics perfectly emoting the mental scars we all carry through our lies, a grating cry for help that goes unanswered. James LaBrie is amazing in his best performance ever and John Petrucci goes beyond the call with several unbelievable solos, the first being a bit of jazzy genre-bending cool, the second being a high-pitched noodler, and then and out and out note-dense shredder over a mid-paced beat. The song is more active and communicative than the unapproachable and majestic "Voices", especially on it's technically astounding break that gives us the only taste of the duelling that dominates Images and SFAM. The chorus is the only commercial part in the song (it's not quite "You Not Me" though), but it fits in perfectly with the rest, as if the verses are his psychotic ramblings and only on the chorus does he manage to clear his head.

Finally, Moore closes the album with a sombre, introspective piano-only piece. It's an intriguing melody, and there's something hypnotic and tragic about the way Moore mingles the two main piano "riffs" throughout the song. It's a song about growing increasingly alienated from the world, a man who has become obsessed with the models in fashion catalogues to the exclusion of having real, meaningful relationships. On another level, it is Moore's greatest expression of creative freedom on Awake, and yet it is strangely burnt out and smothered, as if it is the aural equivalent of his deadened nerves as he grows catatonic. It is dreamy and only half-awake, best enjoyed when in a dark mood or about to head into sleep. Because it is so stark and centered on one instrument, every move counts, the way he pauses before hitting a certain key, or the way he adds in little transitory fills to move into a new vocal melody becomes a captivating experience. James is both worn and fresh in his vocal delivery, and when the whole band comes in to help drive the song to it's inevitable doom it is every bit as fine and grand an ending as any other in the DT catalogue, more so even because it is so antithetical to the huge anthemic closes of "Learning to Live", "A Change of Seasons", "Grand Finale", and "Trial of Tears".

Kevin Moore left Dream Theater because he was bored and frustrated with the way the band was putting performances ahead of song writing. It is odd then that he left after the record that fits that statement the least of any in their discography, the one most obviously bearing the imprint of his unique style. If he had not gone on to create even better music, I'm not sure I'd be able to get over the tragedy.

Do yourself a favour. Buy Awake, and study it hard. It is both the most accessible and the most challenging record Dream Theater has released yet. It is also one the greatest prog-metal albums, prog-rock albums even, ever made.

Stand-Outs: "Space-Dye Vest", "6:00", "Scarred"

Ok, Dream Theater's 1994 successor to Images & Words actually exceeds it in quality, IMO. Whereas I & W has much more of an 'adult contemporary' feel(seriously, listen to Surrounded and tell me it wouldn't sound good on the radio), Awake is unabashedly metal. My dad said that it sounds like Journey and is not as emotional as other Dream Theater releases, but he has probably confused Dream Theater with Vanden Plas, Pain of Salvation, and others on numerous occasions, so I'm not taking him seriously. I'm not familiar with Journey, but this record IS certainly emotional. It's just overflowing with emotion, and not of the cheesy kind a la Scenes From a Memory.(You thought only power metal bands could be cheesy, didn't you?)

The lyrics on this album are Dream Theater's best if you ask me. They have a sort of tangible realism that is unmatched. "The Silent Man", especially, has some especially great lyrics..."A question well-served. Is silence like a fever? A voice never heard or a message with no receiver?" Ha, I love figurative language and riddles.

The music itself, though not the norm for Dream Theater, is their best. Every song is precise and concise for the most part and overall, this has some of the bands' best performances. John Petrucci is especially noteworthy because his guitar tone is absolutely lethal here. You don't have to be a death metal guitarist to have a lethal guitar sound.

Every song on here is classic material, whether it be the poppy Innocence Faded or the neoclassical instrumental Erotomania(which I find to be their best, though I haven't heard the instrumental Eve from the Silent Man single, which someone on the Pain of Salvation message board claimed to be their best instrumental). Though I suppose it can drag just a little, Awake is Dream Theater's most solid release yet. Even nu-metal aficionados and prog haters should love this.

What an amazing piece of progressive metal! Some people say that Images & Words is their best album, but I think this is their best. This is their best because the album is full of variety, and features some great instrumental genius. Just imagine if you were given sheet music from guitarist John Petrucci as a novice guitarist yourself, you would never be able to figure out all the different song structures. Plus the drumming and bass playing is also top-notch. Overall, this is just a top notch album.

"6:00" greets us first, and the drumwork in the beginning of the song is just amazing. And vocalist James LaBrie, while not necessarily possessing great range, hits every note on this song crystal clear. The tempo is upbeat, and it's a great upbeat feeling that continues into the next songs, "Caught In A Web" and "Innocence Faded". These two songs are very melodic and have really good solo work from John Petrucci, plus some nice fill work from drummer Mike Portnoy. "Erotonamia" is an instrumental that features many time changes and many interesting parts, and is one of the few metal songs I can say where I love the keyboard work. "Voices" is of the slower variety and clocks in at over 9 minutes, but it is a very nice listen, because it features some of James Labrie's most emotional singing - a definte strong point.

Next is "The Silent Man", an acoustic-based ballad where you feel like you are in the studio with the band. James LaBrie's vocals shine again, as do the backing vocal harmonizing on this. "The Mirror" and "Lie", I didn't care for at first, because I thought that John Petrucci was trying to steal from Dimebag Darrell's riffset, but both songs have grown on me, because they are both headbanging, thrashy, and pretty good in the prog and songwriting category as well. "Lifting Shadows Off A Dream" is another great mellow song from DT, with more emotional-style vocals from LaBrie, and very well-written lyrics. "Scarred" is the only weak track on this song in my opinion, because little seems to change during the song, it just seems like DT meanders on and on for the 11 or so minutes of its length, beating the same parts to death. But that is a small complaint, because the album ends with the excellent "Space Dye Vest", which begins with a piano interlude and works into a very futuristic setting for almost the rest of the song, and it shows the tremendous variety and diversity that this band has.

Overall, there are highlights nearly nonstop for this disc. This album is a can't miss for fans of power and progressive metal, and for metal fans in general. If you're a fan of intricate musicianship and songwriting - don't delay - pick up this album today!

After firmly establishing their niche in the progressive metal genre with 1992’s “Images & Words”, Dream Theater released this somewhat ambitious follow-up. Fortunately, they succeed more often than not. The overall length of the album may turn off some interested listeners, but fear not; on no occasion did I find myself overly bored with any section of “Awake”.

The opening few tracks, "Caught in a Web" in particular, don’t tread very much new ground, reminding everyone of the consistency that DT has retained over their career. Around fifteen minutes into the album, however, the excellent “Erotomania” kicks the album into high gear. Great work all around, especially on the part of John Petrucci. Instrumentals are always a safe bet with Dream Theater. The remainder of the “A Mind Beside Itself” trilogy (Voices and The Silent Man) demonstrate a solid song writing ability, something that is occasionally overlooked when one listens to DT.

Next up, “The Mirror” is a great example of how the band gets criticism for recycling riffs too much. An excellent set of riffs, mind you, but a bit repetitive. “Lie” busts out with some unexpected attitude from James (I know that sounds a bit cheesy) on vocals, and of course, a great Petrucci solo. Also, one can’t leave out mention of the best lyric of all time, “Never been much of a Doubting Thomas”. “Lifting Shadows off a Dream”, besides having an annoyingly long title, is one of the more forgettable tracks on the album. “Scarred” reveals that John Myung is as capable a bass player on the slow songs as he is on the fatser ones. Finally, the keyboard dominant “Space-Dye Vest” wraps thing up. If I’m correct, the band refers to this as “Kevin’s song”, so they don’t play it live anymore. That may be a good thing because the samples ruin a lot of the promise of this song.

In closing, it takes a while to fully appreciate this album, but the rewards are by no means far and few between. Seek out “Images & Words”, “A Change of Seasons”, or maybe even "When Dream & Day Unite" first if you’re a new listener, then proceed to uncover the band’s best attributes without too much filler on this diverse work.

When you think of Dream Theater's music most think of there much revered (perhaps overly so) break out success "Images & Words," or their concept album opus "Scence From a Memory," or the single 42 minute long musical composition "Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence." Few mention "Awake" right off. No one will say this isn't a solid album, but usually it is overshadowed by DT's more ambitious projects. "Awake" is, in my opinion, their best album. It is definitely there most underrated and perhaps their most complete. It has everything from the epitome of progressive metal "6:00," to one of their heaviest songs "The Mirror" and "Lie," to an example of the marathon "wankathons" they are known for (and their critics loathe them for) in "A Mind Beside Itself."

Perhaps one of the reasons I like this album is because of the way it flows from one song to another without there being a blatant segue. The tempos of the songs rise and fall over the course of the album while the "reuseable riff phenonmenon" ties it all together. "6:00," "Caught in a Web," and "Innocence Faded" are all pretty similar in tempo. "A Mind Beside Itself" encapsulates another tempo wave, building through "Erotomania" and "Voices" and then settles down into a nice acoustic number "The Silent Man." "The Mirror" and "Lie" take things to a new level of heaviness. "Lifting Shadows off a Dream," "Scarred," and "Space-Dye Vest" gradually bring the tempo down to a close.

I. "6:00" / "Caught in a Web" / "Innocence Faded"
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"6:00" to me is the epitome of what prog rock/metal is. Extremely melodic and technically demanding. These are all three great songs. They can either be very deep and difficult or easy to listen to depending on one's mood. I think James gives some of his best vocal performances right here.

II. "A Mind Beside Itself"
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Perhaps the best DT instrumental and the best, most introspective lyrics all rolled into one. "Erotomania" might seem like an over glorified scale, but it works. The solo near the end definitely showcases John Petrucci's talent. "Voices" has some of my favorite lyrics ever. They are so very introspective and really put the writer's heart and mind right out in front of everyone. Perhaps why I like them most is because they don't have an answer to the problems the writer faces. Many musicians think they have an answer to everything, but this shows that they are just as human and just as confused about life as everyone else. The fact that I generally skip "The Silent Man" when listening to this song in no way makes it a bad song. I think maybe it is just something of a let down after the greatness of "Erotomania" and "Voices."

III. "The Mirror" / "Lie"
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Two great heavy songs. Musically they seem to be one longer composition, lyrically divided in two. I particularly like the bass riff at the end of "The Mirror."

IV. "Lifting Shadows off a Dream" / "Scarred" / "Space-Dye Vest"
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"Lifting Shadows off a Dream," while it isn't bad, it isn't anything spectacular either. I think "Scarred" is DT's most underrated song (appropriately coming from their most underrated album). At first it was just "another" 10 minute DT song, but it gradually grew on me until it has become one of my favorites. I especially like the outro. "Space-Dye Vest" is simply beautiful. What else is there to say about it?

From the very beginning of Awake, the listener can tell that they're in for a different experience. Though the prog elements are mostly retained from Images & Words, this does not sound as much like a traditional neo-prog album. There is a definite metal atmosphere in this one.

The previously mentioned opener, "6:00" is an excellent way to start off, though it's a bit of a jarring experience. To some, it is a perfect example of how Dream Theater forsakes structure and melody for instrumental wanking. For me, it's a great SONG. The solos and time changes never get in the way of a clear melody and hook. Both "Innocence Faded" and "Caught in a Web" are solid, catchy tunes with well-defined hooks. Something even an anti-progger could get into.

Both of the epics on this album are great, though "Scarred" is a little too long for it's own good. The heavier songs are awesome and the instrumental, "Erotomania" is both technical AND entertaining. Kick-ass! And the album closer is just achingly-beautiful. LaBrie's overbearing, operatic vocals actually fit this track, though they probably have no right to.

All in all, this is a classic album showcasing Dream Theater at their best. Well worth the money. Even the lyrics have improved.