Dream Theater Astound The Paramount Huntington, NY 3-30-14

Dream Theater is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential progressive metal bands of all time.  Seven of their twelve full-length albums have debuted on Billboard’s Top 50 and the rest made the Top 100, with the only exception being their very first record, When Dream and Day Unite (1989).  Currently on the second leg of the ‘Along for the Ride Tour’ this could be one of their best yet, featuring a diverse set-list including their three most recent records as well as select songs from Awake (1994), Falling Into Infinity (1997), and Metropolis Part 2: Scenes From A Memory (1999).  After an unforgettable evening in New York City Friday March 28th, they came to The Paramount in Huntington, New York on Sunday March 30, 2014 where fans of all ages gathered to witness an extraordinary performance by a group of virtuoso musicians.

The show began with “False Awakening Suite” playing in the background, while the projector screens displayed animated renditions of all of Dream Theater’s album covers, in chronological order; a nice touch paying homage to the history of the band which followed by the screen dropping revealing the entire band with exception of vocalist James LaBrie.  Like a tidal wave of force, the band created a presence right from the start.  Drummer Mike Mangini sat center stage behind his massive drum set while guitarist John Petrucci and bassist John Myung stood each on side of the stage. Keyboardist Jordan Rudess had two swiveling keyboard stands surrounding him, with a camera above one of them and an iPad attached to each.  Rudess also had a futuristic-looking keytar by his side, which he used twice during the show at center stage.

The band was greeted with a deafening roar of cheering, clapping, and screaming fans as they started to play opener “The Enemy Inside”.  LaBrie appeared from behind the stage just in time to start singing.  After the heart-pumping kick-start, LaBrie expressed enthusiasm to the audience that the evening’s set would be amazingly just under three hours, which meant Dream Theater would be covering a lot of territory.   With that the band quickly went into “The Shattered Fortress” and “On the Backs of Angels”.  Adding visual entertainment to the vastly dynamic and technical music Dream Theater plays was a variety of animations and still images dressing an over-sized screen behind Mangini’s drum kit and to each side of the stage.   This stimulating experience for the eyes of the crowd also included live camera feeds of Petrucci, Myung, and Rudess showcasing their skills on featured parts and incredible solos.

Moving right along “Trial of Tears” led into an intricate and expressive solo by Petrucci.  Petrucci’s playing is without a doubt distinct and extraordinary to witness.  You feel excitement of Petrucci and his fellow Long Islanders observing the performance from the floor as this was a hometown show for him having grown up and lived in the surrounding areas of The Paramount most of his life.

That led into newer fan favorite “Enigma Machine” which was met with loud cheers.  Continuing the visual portion of the show, animations playing on the screen behind the band were in perfect sync with the song as cartoon sprites representing the band members played a slot machine, laid bombs, shot lasers, and slayed dragons during their featured parts.  In the midst of the song, Mangini caught the audience by surprise blasting off into a short solo interlude.

After the next two tracks, “Along for the Ride” and “Breaking All Illusions”, the band took a 15-minute intermission.  The intermission kept the crowds interest showing YouTube videos of fans playing Dream Theater songs and some amusing parody commercials of action figures of the band members.  This was the perfect segue into the final stretch of the evening with the set winding down celebrating the 20th anniversary of Awake (1994).  Revising the material, the band picked the last five songs off the album, which was a treat since they had not played the song “Space Dye Vest” since keyboardist Kevin Moore left the band in 1994.  Enthralled, this audience’s eyes were completely locked in on each event on stage as it unfolded.  Following the masterful retrospective of Awake the band unleashed their newest twenty two minute epic song “Illumination Theory”.

With the evening coming to an end, LaBrie said goodnight and wished everyone well as he departed from the stage.  The lights dimmed and the crowd’s cheers rocked The Paramount, begging for more until the five musicians returned.  Gracing the stage for one last time for the night the encore was a substantial four song offering.  Starting out with “Overture 1928”, just over a minute in Rudess looked into a camera directly while flawlessly performing his keyboard solo.  Keeping the energy flowing in the encore next was “Strange Deja Vu” which provided to be another crowd pleaser, as there was nary a soul in the audience not singing along.  This led directly into the instrumental track “The Dance of Eternity”;  known for having nearly 130 time signature changes in just over six minutes.  The show’s climax came during the grand finale of “Finally Free” where Mangini saved his most creative and precise improvisation for last.  With the unbelievable extensive show concluding, the crowded continued to cheer as these worldly musicians took their bow and Petrucci treated some lucky fans to a few guitar picks tossed in the air.

Few bands have a fan-base that is as diverse as Dream Theater’s, but their audience has at least one thing in common with the band; a deep appreciation for music.  Seeing them live is a breath of fresh air for those that care more about the performance and music than about mosh pits or crowd surfing.  This makes a Dream Theater performance unlike any heavy metal concert because you are able to focus solely on the music without concern of an over exuberant concert goer accidentally hitting you while jumping around.  Dream Theater’s immensely talented ensemble of musicians and invigorating stage show make it impossible to walk away from this live experience not feeling thoroughly impressed.