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Rating: I truly have no words to express the beauty and emotions that Dream Theater in this live CD have given me.
It's evident that the little theater, passing through the "Marquee Club" in London in '93, wanted to give us fans a nice gift by offering us 6 extraordinary gems from their discography.
Only 6 masterpieces are present on the CD, but its price is well worth it due to the mastery of each individual member in their performance.
In excellent form, the five American musicians start their concert with "Metropolis Pt. 1," the crowd at the Marquee warms up and claps in time to Moore's keyboard intro, and when Portnoy comes into play, our ears are filled with joy, hearing his precise and powerful blows like a machine gun tearing through the London evening with its bullets. La Brie's vocal performances amaze me and leave me quite incredulous; he’s really in top form and reaches rather prohibitive and difficult vocal frequencies.
Then it continues with "A Fortune in Lies" and La Brie gives a great lesson in singing to Dominici, the band's first vocalist, interpreting or rather reinterpreting this song with a hard and masculine voice, perhaps like he’s never done before in his life.
The sound never declines and Moore, engaged in a hard (and very often overlooked) background-arrangement work, provides tremendous support to the rest of the group.
In "Bombay Vindaloo," the third song on the list, Petrucci showcases great class, magically conjuring from his Ibanez sounds that even I don’t know how they were achieved (they vaguely resemble Page’s great solo when about 30 years ago he played his guitar with a violin bow), but not content, he first embarks on a solo so fast it would give NASA's shuttles chills, then to relax, he slows down with a solo so clean it could feature in a Mastro Lindo commercial.
But Dream Theater are not just technical monsters; they are people with a soul that emerges in the fabulous and melodic "Surrounded" and then in "Another Hand - The Killing Hand," where much space is given to La Brie's warm voice, which reaches really high in some parts.
In the last song performed, "Pull Me Under," Portnoy clearly shows he's no robot; sometimes he improvises, and it’s clearly audible that he touches different components from the original score, thus giving the song more charm and originality. Note La Brie, who tonight is really pissed off; in the chorus, he's almost in growl (sorry for the word, it was to give the idea!), and then he really climbs up with that voice before the stop.
In my opinion, the excellent success of this live performance is attributable to the great Moore, now ex-member, who really manages to create heartbreaking emphasis, melodies that enter the heart, and above all, this guy knows his stuff; despite being less technically gifted than master Rudess, he knows how to be really original and shows himself to be a great composer and arranger.
I truly recommend this album to lovers of this wonderful group; in particular, I would suggest listening to the album for those who say: "Dream Theater are just cold performers of virtuosity for its own sake, etc., etc."
LIVE AT MARQUEE, a display of great quality, can certainly be placed among the best live performances of the band.
It will always remain in the hearts of us fans.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
04 Another Day (04:37)
Live another day
Climb a little higher
Find another reason to stay
Ashes in your hands
Mercy in your eyes
If you're searching for a silent sky
You won't find it here
Look another way
You won't find it here
So die another day
The coldness of his words
The message in his silence
Face the candle to the wind
This distance in my voice
Isn't leaving you a choice
So if you're looking for a time to run away
You won't find it here
Look another way
You won't find it there
So die another day
They took pictures of our dreams
Ran to hide behind the stairs
And said maybe when it's right for you, they'll fall
But if they don't come down
Resist the need to pull them in
And throw them away
Better to save the mystery
Than surrender to the secret
Whoa ohhh
You won't find it here
Look another way
You won't find it here
So die another day
06 Pull Me Under (08:22)
Lost in the sky
Clouds roll by and I roll with them
Arrows fly
Seas increase and then fall again
This world is spinning around me
This world is spinning without me
Every day sends future to past
Every breath leaves me one less to my last
Watch the sparrow falling
Gives new meaning to it all
If not today nor yet tomorrow
Then some other day
I'll take seven lives for one
And then my only father's son
As sure as I did ever love him
I am not afraid
This world is spinning around me
The whole world keeps spinning around me
All life is future to past
Every breath leaves me one less to my last
Pull me under
Pull me under
Pull me under I'm not afraid
All that I feel is honor and spite
All I can do is set it right
Dust fills my eyes
Clouds roll by and I roll with them
Centuries cry
Orders fly and I fall again
This world is spinning inside me
The whole world is spinning inside me
Every day sends future to past
Every step brings me closer to my last
Pull me under
Pull me under
Pull me under I'm not afraid
Living my life too much in the sun
Only until your will is done
Pull me under
Pull me under
Pull me under I'm not afraid
All that I feel is honor and spite
All I can do is set it right
Pull me under
Pull me under
Pull me under I'm not afraid
Living my life too much in the sun
Only until your will is done
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