Dream Theater - Chicago Theater, Chicago 8/23/09

Progressive Nation 2009 made its stop in Chicago on what is kind of Dream Theater’s Black Clouds & Silver Linings tour. Mike Portnoy has decided to tour again as a prog festival of sorts with Dream Theater as the headliners. It gives the fans a chance to see a number of other acts that they might not be exposed to otherwise. The concept is good but let’s face it, as much as we might enjoy the opening acts, the crowd is there for Dream Theater. I preferred it when they toured as a single act show where they played two sets but no matter what they are a part of; it is joy to witness masters of their craft.

Like I mentioned earlier, since this tour comes on the heels of their new release Black Clouds & Silver Linings, it is no surprise that a good portion of the set is dedicated to that CD. The show opened with the first two tracks off the new CD; A Nightmare to Remember and A Rite of Passage. In true prog fashion, these two tracks take up roughly the first 25 minutes of the show. They slowed things down a bit with Sacrificed Sons from Octavarium. They showed heart-breaking footage of the 9/11 attack on the giant screen behind them. Even after 8 years it is still very disturbing to see the footage, and recall the horror of that day.

The band was firing on all cylinders but one person who really stood out that night was Jordan Rudess. He adds so much to the music and there were many times where I felt he was the focal point of the tune. He really shined on the 2 tracks from Scenes From a Memory; The Dance of Eternity and One Last Time. On record, those tunes have a lot of keyboard passages but live, they seem to be pushed forward and take center stage. That is not to say that the rest of the band are playing second fiddle to him. Everyone and I do mean everyone in the band performed flawlessly. On earlier tours, James LaBrie may have suffered a bit but in recent years, his voice seems to be getting better (almost richer) and his performances have become joys to witness. He is more interactive with the crowd and he really looks like he is having fun. They ended the set with Solitary Shell and In the Name of God. The latter was a great addition to the set as I feel that Train of Thought does not get the accolades it deserves. It’s a great album so it’s a real treat to have any of the tracks performed.

Of course, there was going to be an encore. They came back to the new record and played the 19 minute The Count of Tuscany. For many bands, the encore is something short and sweet but not for Dream Theater. They performed a commanding version of the song (as you would expect) and really showed their true prog colors. Just because a song is long does not mean it has to be drawn out and boring. The song had enough twist and changes to make that time fly by and before I knew it, the show was over. I still stand by my statement of liking “An Evening with Dream Theater” shows better but I can not fault the performance or song selection. It was a great show by a band that I feel still has their better days in front of them, not behind.

Greg Olma