Dream Theater -
Metropolis 2000
(Scenes From New York)
Performance
Production
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Dream Theater -
Metropolis 2000
Performance
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In 1999, Dream Theater released their sixth and possibly best studio album, Metropolis - Scenes From A Memory, a full-blown concept album in the likes of The Wall from Pink Floyd, and Operation Mindcrime from Queensryche. This DVD is a recording of their final show from their Metropolis 2000 tour at New York's Roseland Ballroom, and is almost identical to the concert I attended at the 9:30 Club, in Washington, DC, just a few nights prior. I left that show completely mesmerized by the jaw dropping progressive-rock spectacle I had just witnessed, and immediately declared it to be the best "club" concert I had ever seen - and I have seen hundreds. That is why I am so disappointed that this DVD doesn't do that unforgettable performance adequate justice. The first set of the Metropolis 2000 show consisted of the entire Metropolis - Scenes From A Memory album played from start to finish. The songs on the album were built around a compelling storyline involving passion, betrayal, and murder, which took place over a century ago. Many of the songs contain character dialog and sound effects to enhance the narrative. For this DVD recording, Dream Theater enlisted some of the actual performers who played key roles on the CD, such as the psychotherapist who begins the story, and the woman who sings the haunting intro to "Through Her Eyes". They utilized a giant video screen at the center of the stage, and smaller screens on each side, which at key moments showed video reenactments of the album's storyline. The problem with the DVD is that the director went completely overboard with the use of video clips and amateurish special affects. Continually throughout the concert, there are scenes from the storyline, and other images, that take up the entire picture for up to twenty seconds at a time. This would have been more acceptable if done between songs, as it does explain some of the album's storyline, but it was annoying to have the bands performance so frequently interrupted. One of the worst visuals was when they flashed key dialog/lyrics, on the screens, such as "THIS FEELING INSIDE ME", or "WITHOUT LOVE, WITHOUT TRUTH", during those moments in the song when they are performed. This was using big, plain, block lettering, that looked terrible and totally ruined the flow of the song. Yeah, that was really worth panning away from a Petrucci guitar lick, or a Portnoy drum fill - good thinking! Another ridiculous idea was to use simulated letterbox-style borders, with a hideous, patterned design around the picture during certain segments. They also used several split screen images, which were hit-and-miss in their effectiveness. One of the better uses was to show Jordan Rudess playing an impossibly fast keyboard solo that was miraculously in unison with John Petrucci's blazing guitar solo. Aside from the distracting visuals, this was a compelling concert to watch, as Dreams Theater's performance was staggering. They certainly left no doubt as to why they are often considered to be reigning champions of the progressive-rock/metal world. The Scenes From A Memory material is unique and compelling, and varies in style between speed-metal, classical, gospel, and good old fashioned rock and roll. The band performs these complex songs, not only with the precision we expect from Dream Theater, but with the passion and enthusiasm of a band at their peak. On this particular tour they seemed to radiate an extra sense of pride and satisfaction, as if they knew they had created something special with this album. There were too many highlights during this show to name them all, but the ones that were unique to this specific performance were when Theresa Thomson (who sang on the album) came out to sing the intros to "Through Her Eyes" and "The Spirit Carries On", as well as the use of a an 11-member, black, gospel choir during the outro section of "The Spirit Carries On". If the entire performance of the Metropolis - Scenes From A Memory album wasn't impressive enough, Dreams Theater's second set included the first ever, entire live performance of their epic "A Change Of Seasons", which goes on for over 25 minutes. This second set is part of the "Bonus Material" section of the DVD, and is as remarkable as the first set was. It was actually a welcome relief from the video overdub onslaught of the first set, because it contains no video production tricks, just the straight concert performance, filmed flawlessly. The absolute highlight of this set for me was the brilliant performance of "Learning To Live", which is possibly my favorite Dream Theater song. This song, which ends their classic Images and Words album, showcases everything that is great about this band. Unfortunately this outstanding concert performance will always be marred by its poor production quality. The main offender is not just the lack of a 5.1 surround audio mix, but the poor quality of the Dolby 2.0 mix, which is the only audio option available. When listening to this low output, Dolby 2.0 mix using Dolby Pro Logic II processing, everything seemed crammed into the center channel, which presented a very muddy sound, with virtually no instrument separation, and minimal use of the rear surrounds. This may be the worst Dolby 2.0 mix I have ever heard for a post-1998 concert DVD. In my desperation to try to improve the audio quality, I listened using the straight stereo option, and this actually sounded a little better. At least you could hear some instrument separation, and a little more punch from the guitar and drums. I would recommend this option over using Dolby Pro Logic processing. If there was ever a DVD concert that cries out for digital remastering, Metropolis 2000 is top on the list. The video quality was only average, although the camera work was good. The picture was relatively clear and sharp during the close-up shots, but appeared very soft during any distant shots. The camera work was excellent overall, and made it seem as if you were standing in the first row. Dream Theater owes their fans a DVD that takes full advantage of the latest digital recording technology to produce a video that matches the integrity of their musicianship. This could have been, and should have been, one of the best rock concert DVD's ever. Reviewed by Paul M. Roy - January 2004 |
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Technical Details |
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Audio Transfer |
Video Transfer |
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Set List |
Performers Theresa Thomason - Guest Vocals |
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Running Time: 150 Minutes (w/ bonus songs) |
DVD Release Date - April 2001 |