Dream Theater Live: Images, Words and Beyond

Extraordinary. That's how I would summarise my Dream Theater concert experience in one word. I was mesmerised as I spent the entire evening being serenaded by Dream Theater as they played their repertoire of songs, new and old from their catalogue. Each song displayed the musical prowess of each member; John Petrucci on the guitar, John Myung on the bass, Mike Mangini on the drums, Jordan Rudess on the keyboard and the powerful voice of James Labrie. At some points, I just had to close my eyes so that I could enjoy the music free of distractions.

However, the highlight was definitely after the intermission when they started playing all their songs from the Images and Words album, the focus of their tour. This album is considered to be their best work by fans and critics alike, and with good reason. The uniqueness of each song, coupled with the brilliant musicianship has helped the band to amass legions of fans worldwide. And that includes Singapore! Hearing the passionate singing by each fan really put me in awe. I couldn't help joining in as they played my favourite songs "Pull Me Under" and "Another Day".

There was no lack of fan interaction either, as vocalist James Labrie took to the microphone in between some songs to tell stories that definitely humoured the audience. Being over 25 years old, the band doesn't seem to age, putting in a spectacular performance with much energy and youth! But nothing seemed to please the fans more when James Labrie promised that they would be back to grace the ears of Singaporeans again in the near future, and probably with a new album! Once again, Dream Theater has proven why they are one of the elite of the progressive metal genre and one of the most respected metal bands of all time.

Thanks to LAMC Productions for hooking us up with tickets!

Written by: Gideon Loh

Edited by: Amanda, Jac