After the departure of Mike Portnoy, even the most obsequious Dream Theater fans had doubts concerning the band’s future. Although I couldn’t have cared less after snoozefest records like Systematic Chaos and Black Clouds and Silver Linings, many thought they simply couldn’t go on without their fellated drummer. Personally, however, I thought any change might aid this ailing group treading on way past their prime. With the reveal of the new album’s cheap, thoughtless cover and its ridiculously immature title, Dream Theater came back with new material faster than many expected. Unfortunately, while people were concerned with new drummer Mike Mangini, they should have been worried about the value of the songs themselves.
A Dramatic Turn of Events doesn’t divert from the typical Dream Theater formula in the slightest. They still have stupidly overlong songs, reaching the 10-12 minute range often (yet with no contents ingenious enough to justify any tracks over six). They still have their down-tuned, mysteriously familiar “progressive” riffing. James Labrie still holds his nasally, overtly powerless voice, which many imitators have far surpassed years ago. The direction here is like a hybrid of Dream Theater’s early 90’s records and Octavarium, though the results live up to neither camps. Besides the abominable Falling into Infinity and the aforementioned (and sadly underrated) Octavarium, A Dramatic Turn… is their lightest and most commercial recording yet. Even in their daunting length, the tracks carry a rather conventional verse-chorus structure for the most part, with big, radio-friendly choruses everywhere you look. John Petrucci manages some competent solos, but my eyes were glazing over all the while.
At the end of the day, A Dramatic Turn of Events falls safely into the inoffensive median of all Dream Theater albums. There are a few things to like; the organic production and the classic sound of Rodess’s keys are pretty nice, and tracks like opener “On the Backs of Angels” and short ballad “Far from Heaven” recall the band’s finer moments, but they aren’t quite enough to save the album from DT’s typical penchant for boredom-inducing longevity. In conclusion, while Dream Theater’s latest may please some longtime fans willing to hear the same-old song and dance again, it simply won’t reconvert those of us who just don’t care anymore.
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