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Rating: When I first listened to this album, I felt very disoriented because, honestly, from LaBrie, one would expect something different in terms of sound. But let's go in order.
This is the third solo work for the Dream Theater's singer, after the previous two under the name Mullmuzzler. The first thing you immediately notice is that in this record, LaBrie tries to explore musical territories that normally aren't part of his repertoire, and perhaps this choice somewhat penalizes the album. In fact, the stubborn search for extremely different sounds is too evident: it ranges from nu-metal to electronic music, even including scratches that frankly could have been easily avoided. This heterogeneity of sounds creates a lot of confusion for the listener; the music tends to become boring and at times seems already heard. A clear example of this can be seen in track 2, Alone, where it feels like listening to Fear Factory's album Demanufacture, or in other tracks where it seems reminiscent of Dream Theater's Train Of Thought; even the stubborn use of vocal filters (which LaBrie now uses too much, even in Dream Theater) in my opinion diminishes the great impact of the voice that any lover of this artist knows well.
Now, I want to clarify that not everything here should be dismissed, on the contrary, someone who likes a certain type of sound might even appreciate this work a lot. Some tracks are appreciable both stylistically and in terms of sound impact, but they always present the limitations I mentioned above.
What raises this album is LaBrie's great performance, confirming him as one of the greatest singers on the planet, and the extraordinary performance of Marco Sfogli on guitars, 25 years old, from Campania, one of the greatest talents currently present on the world scene, even considering his young age.
In conclusion, this album can be seen as a work that fully reaches adequacy but does not go beyond, certainly far from the successful Keep It To Yourself (LaBrie's first solo work).
Tracklist and Lyrics
12 Drained (05:10)
The air's so thick
It blurs my vision
I can't think straight
In this condition
This dim lit hall
Is stretching further
Not knowing
What I might discover
Through a door half open
A painted light bulb swings
Casting someones shadow
Reaching towards me
Something draws me here
Not sure
Feeling Drained
Still I am curious
Haunts me
Taunts me
Now I start to Gravitate
Remain composed
I hear some laughter
The darkness in me
Moving faster
A handle turned
A door is opened
Ashtrays
Cigarettes still smoking
And there again before me
The painted light bulb swings
And see I cast the shadow
The one I saw moving
Cannot catch my breath
Can't cope
His face turns toward me
Can't be
Not me
The man in the mirror
It's all too clear
As I stood there
Acknowledged him
In reflective glare
I don't quite understand
Why any of this
Is who I am
I'm damned cause I doubt
It's part of me
Trick of the mind
Schizo you see
It's like awakening
I'm in
Someone elses skin
Molds me
Holds me
Controlled
Left me Drained and empty
Transformed
Shifting
I peer inside
Like quicksand
You pulled me
Down deeper
All twisted inside of me
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Other reviews
By Matt7
You might notice it from the opener "Crucify" which seems entirely like the intro of "A Change of Seasons."
Marco Sfogli is also a rather sore point in the entire work: technically impeccable but truly useless from a creative standpoint.
By RiccardoBenzoni
I call him James 'the whiner' now.
You CAN'T AFFORD a solo album like this.
