Dream Theater
Scenes From A Memory

THE REVIEW

Prefacing that the author of this review is the most avid Dream fan, I will try to have a fairly critical eye (or at least I'll try) on this CD.

When you listen to "Scenes From A Memory" for the first time, you can already understand that you are in front of one of the most beautiful works, not only in progressive metal, but in the entire modern musical scene. The CD consists of 12 tracks and tells a tragic love story: two twins (The Miracle and The Sleeper) are in love with a woman named Victoria. The two have completely different lives, in fact, The Miracle has succeeded in his work, while The Sleeper has ruined himself with drugs. Victoria is initially in love with the richer brother, but over time, she realizes she loves The Sleeper and for this reason, both are killed by The Miracle, who then manages to cover everything. However, this story is told through a fourth person, Nicholas, who is the reincarnation of Victoria. Nicholas is tormented by nightmares and goes to a hypnotherapist to understand their origin. From here the narrative of the story begins, which will gradually unfold track by track.

The CD opens with the words of the "doctor" who hypnotizes Nicholas and slowly you begin to hear the notes of the first track where the protagonist describes the sensations he feels as he falls asleep. A very light melody, accompanied by La Brink's splendid voice, concludes "Regression". It is followed by "Overture 1928", which is the first instrumental piece on the CD, where some musical passages are presented that appear in the other tracks (notably: the beginning of "Overture" is taken from "Metropolis" contained on their album "Images And Words" (1992), which had presented the story of The Miracle and The Sleeper, which makes us understand that the work continues the track offered in the past). "Strange Deja Vu" is the third song (one of the most beautiful in my opinion) and has a very easy-to-remember melody that will also be echoed later. The 4 instruments intertwine perfectly with each other to create a very engaging and good-tempo music. Next is "Through My Words", which is very calm and short (a strange thing for a Dream song...) featuring La Brink with Rudess in the background on the keyboard, and can be defined as a "bridge" song between "Strange Deja Vu" and the following track, "Fatal Tragedy", which starts very slowly and then gains rhythm leading to a really beautiful and compelling all-instrumental finale.
In these last three songs, Nicholas realizes he is the reincarnation of Victoria and the tragedy begins to unfold. "Beyond This Life" has lyrics that are perhaps somewhat different from the others; in fact, they report the words of the front page of a 1928 newspaper, which talks about the murder of Victoria and The Sleeper: here The Miracle claims to be the only witness to the tragedy and tells of seeing his brother kill the girl and then take his own life. The music in this track is very lively but the chorus has an absolutely unique beauty, especially the last 30 seconds are really beautiful, a pity for the central instrumental part, where Rudess throws in a terribly bad solo: absolutely to be avoided! From here the CD changes face: the songs (apart from some) become more melodic and the rhythm slows down, but in the finale, Dream Theater gives us two truly applause-worthy songs!
"Through Her Eyes" is absolutely the only sour note in the entire CD: too slow, too melodic, too tear-jerking, the refreshing part is hearing the novelty of a female voice... the lyrics speak of Nicholas who finds himself in front of Victoria's tombstone and reflects on all the tragedy that the girl lived. It is followed by "Home", which has a beginning that can be defined as ""Vintage"" and is a typical example of a Dream song: a calm start where the rhythm keeps growing, sung part with fast rhythm, instrumental part, final chorus. Nothing new but a listenable track, with a very good performance by La Brink. "Dance For Eternity" is the second and last instrumental piece, beautiful and with a very "dark" beginning, then there are too many technical parts (maybe they overdo it, but it's typical of their CDs) but even the end is enjoyable. "One Last Time" has a nice chorus (which we'll hear again in "Finally Free") and especially the reprise of the "Strange Deja Vu" melody fits perfectly with the initial part. Here Nicholas begins, or at least tries, to understand the entire Victoria affair.
Now starts the absolute best part of the CD. "The Spirit Carries On" is a song of incredible depth with an extraordinary voice of La Brink who once again proves to be the soul of this group. One of the most touching songs ever written by Dream Theater, it can be deeply appreciated even by reading the lyrics, which talk about how our soul continues to "live" after death. And now the grand finale... turn the volume up because you're about to listen to one of the masterpieces of modern music. "Finally Free" is the last track: beautiful, a melody that gives you chills, a song that stays with you... a real masterpiece, especially in the finale. 12 minutes that fly by in a surreal atmosphere where Victoria's tragedy is revealed.

Surely the most successful album by Dream Theater, where you can notice their more progressive soul (which I appreciate much more compared to their metal side...). Melodies that remain with you and a fascinating story. What more could you ask for???? From this CD, you can understand the difference between commercial "music" and Dream Theater. If only everyone in this world could hear this masterpiece at least once, they would understand that the music they hear every day from TV or radio lacks soul, but unfortunately, many prefer being manipulated instead of having their musical taste...