Like many progressive-rock groups from King Crimson, Pink Floyd, and Yes to Genesis, Rush, and Queensryche, Dream Theater has followed its own musical and artistic agenda, trends and hipness be damned. That single-mindedness is borne out on Metropolis 2000: Scenes from New York, a full-length concert video shot at Roseland Ballroom in New York City in August 2000; it was the final show on the group's tour supporting its release Scenes from a Memory. With its intricate rhythms and complex song structures, Dream Theater's music is serious and somber to a fault; when gospel singer Theresa Thomason and a backing chorus are brought on for a few numbers, the effect is strangely soothing, as if a layer of humanity smothers the impeccable craftsmanship. The video is decked out in visuals of a mostly silly sort, often literally spelling out the album's narrative (or what passes for it), including reenactments and a portentous narrator. It's all cleverly put together (drummer Mike Portnoy gets director credit), and Kevin Shirley's audio mixing presents the music with clarity and undeniable power. Fans of Dream Theater won't need to be told to snap this up; those unconvinced, however, are not likely to become converts. --Kevin Filipski
Product Description
"Metropolis 2000: Scenes from New York" continues Dream Theater's history of transporting fans to worlds only progressive rock's premier standard bearers could create. Directed by drummer Mike Portnoy, "Metropolis 2000" features Dream Theater's performance of 1999's acclaimed "Scenes from a Memory" plus over one hour of bonus live material, at New York's Roseland Ballroom in August 2000, capturing the band's theatricality and raw, unbridled live prowess. Songs: Opening Scene, Regression, Overture 1928, Strange Deja Vu, Through My Words, Fatal Tragedy, Beyond This Life, John and Theresa Solo Spot, Through Her Eyes, Home, The Dance of Eternity, One Last Time, The Spirit Carries On, Finally Free, Closing Scene, A Mind Beside Itself Parts 1, 2, 3, Learning to Live, A Change of Seasons.