Dream Theater – Touring Into Infinity

“We’ve been sitting on our butts for too long, it’s time to get out there and do it,” keyboardist Derek Sherinian said of Dream Theater’s tour in support of new release Falling Into Infinity, which kicked off Oct. 25 at Toad’s Place, in New Haven, CT. Do it they did, with James LaBrie’s vocals coming across crisp and voluminous, providing a captivating voice for the backbone of Mike Portnoy’s drums, John Myung’s bottom end, and John Petrucci’s guitar work. The final piece of the puzzle is Sherinian, who takes command of the keyboards with a colorful flair that lays to rest any lingering memories of Kevin Moore, who left the band after the recording of Awake. Fans at Chicago’s House of Blues were on the receiving end of an added Halloween surprise, when Dream Theater performed the American debut of ‘Nightmare Cinema,’ a jam that had previously only been performed in Germany and featured Sherinian on guitar, Portnoy on bass, Petrucci on drums, and Myung at the keyboards performing Deep Purple’s “Perfect Strangers.”

For nothing more than sheer musicianship and raw instrumental talent, there’s not a tour on the road that can compare to Dream Theater’s current cross country trek with opener Big Wreck. Add to the mix each band’s distinctive style and unmistakable songwriting, and you’ve got a breathtaking experience from start to finish.

Dream Theater crafts five musical forces into a vivid soundscape that defines progressive rock at its finest, with Big Wreck replacing Dream Theater’s complex orchestrations with a more streamlined approach to their work, both bands offering varied textbook displays of the talents Boston’s Berklee School of Music develops.

—Paul Gargano