|
Once a year
me and my pals fancy a little trip away from Newcastle. Last year
we flew down to London to see Maiden at Twickenham, and what a jolly
good time we had. So this year we agreed to do it all again and
see Dream Theater, a band we've kinda grown to love in the last year and
a half, even more since they released their excellent, latest
collection, 'Black Clouds And Silver Linings'. This would also be
the first time any of us had seen them live.
Next door to the arena the X-Factor 'talent' show was being filmed, and
around the streets of Wembley before the gig rockers and pop fans
mingled. I think we made the right choice of gig in that respect
.....
Unfortunately due to a bit of a mix up (ticket said that the bands were
starting at 7.30......but it must have been 6.30) we were still in the
pub during Bigelf and Unexpect's sets, so we eventually arrived at our
seats (after buying merch and beer) around 7.50, part way into Opeth's
set.
I was mightily impressed with Opeth. Having been one of those
bands that I'd listened to a bit and found to be OK, I had never really
listened to any of their output in depth. However since the gig
that's changed. Of the songs played tonight, most were the perfect
showcase for their unique blend of light and shade. The grunting,
death metal vocals of singer Mikel Akerfeldt were the perfect contrast
to the slow almost bleak, gentle parts of some of their tracks. A
couple of small mosh-pits broke out down on the arena floor, never
lasting very long due to the stop-start nature of some of Opeth's songs.
Akerfeldt is also a warm frontman, stopping a few times to address the
audience, sharing tales of groupies from past visits to London! A
great band and one that I hope pays a visit to the North East very soon!
So to the big daddies, the D.T., Dream Theater.
Kicking off with the amazing, sprawling 'A Nightmare to Remember', the
15 minute long opener from their new disc, Dream Theater had the crowd
mesmerised with their amazing technical ability. Drummer Mike
Portnoy, sitting behind surely the biggest drum kit ever seen in this
venue, almost ruled the stage. Vocalist James LaBrie's voice was
also as strong as ever. Opeth's Mikel Akerfeldt even made a guest
appearance during this track, returning to the stage to bark out Mike
Portnoy's heavy vocal piece, to great applause!
The band then launched straight into their medley of 'The Mirror' and
'Lie' from their 1994 album, 'Awake'. It was great to hear some of
the older tracks played, 'Lie' in particular being a Metallica type
cruncher, sounding even more fantastic in the live arena.
We were then treated to some keyboard wizardry from tinkler Jordan
Rudess, and his cartoon alter ego on the big screen, during a monster
keyboard solo, again showing off technical prog brilliance at its very
best.
After the underrated and unexpected 'Prophets of War' from the
'Systematic Chaos 'album we were treated to what I will always remember
this gig for-a mammoth drum-off featuring drummers from all 4 bands on
the night on Portnoy's kit! First joining him one by one for a
jam, and then all 4 drummers at once, this was truly a spectacular
moment. Bet they weren't seeing THAT at the X-Factor!
After an electrifying performance of 'Wither', a fairly straightforward run
through of the instrumental 'Dance of Eternity' and set-closer 'Take The
Time', the band left the stage to a great ovation. Back came the
band for 'The Count of Tuscany', the last track off the latest album and
also, quite possibly one of the greatest heavy metal tracks ever, in my
opinion. Beginning with a beautiful guitar piece from
John Petrucci, the track built up to its sing-along chorus, before
retreating back into its shell for the mid section, a glorious,
swirling, almost euphoric Pink Floyd-esque trip, well over 5
minutes long. A perfect song to finish on, how many bands can do
one song as an encore that lasts 20 minutes?
A phenomenal gig that will live long in the memory. Can't wait to see
them again.
Review
by Dan Armstrong.
|