Concert Review: Dream Theater – Peoria, Illinois 11-4-17

by progrock.com | Nov 7, 2017 | Prog Report, Reviews

Dream Theater Concert Review
November 4, 2017
Peoria Civic Center Theater, Peoria, Illinois
Images and Words by Jon Fiala

1992 was a good year for prog. It was in the middle of a rebirth after the peak 1970’s Yes, Genesis and King Crimson and then once again in the ’80s. Arguably the primary reason in the US for this new interest was Dream Theater’s album Images and Words. I was lucky enough to catch them on the tour supporting that album’s release tour in February, 1993 at Mississippi Nights in St Louis, which was the premier stop of upcoming bands in that era during the 80s and 90s. Many days were spent cranking that CD in my roommate’s car with the subwoofer blasting out the double bass like machine guns.

Dream Theater is at the end of their second continuous year of touring; this time in celebration of the 25th anniversary of their breakthrough album, Images and Words, playing it in its entirety. On Saturday, November 4, the prog metal icons played in Peoria, Illinois for the first time, bringing their very tight, polished 3-hour show to the Peoria Civic Center Theater. The near capacity crowd stood loud and proud the entire night. All band members performed to their highest peak. Vocalist James LaBrie, who is often unfairly tasked with the burden of making or breaking a Dream Theater show, was definitely on. All four instrumentalists, guitarist John Petrucci, keyboardist Jordan Rudess, bassist John Myung and drummer Mike Mangini have long been known for their virtuosity, and this evening, they lived up to those very high expectations.

The first set consisted of songs from their catalog, most of which were digging deep. “Dark Eternal Night” (Systematic Chaos), “Hell’s Kitchen” (Falling Into Infinity), and “As I Am” (Train of Thought). The only two Mangini-era showings were “The Bigger Picture” (Dream Theater) and “Breaking All Illusions” (A Dramatic Turn of Events).

In celebration of Images and Words, they included two songs in the first set that were from that era which didn’t ever make it on any official release. Instead, they were both on an official fan club release, Cleaning out the Closet. The songs were “Don’t Look Past Me,” and, a personal favorite, “To Live Forever.” The version of that song on their first video release from Tokyo in 1993 had a sweet Petrucci solo outro that still sticks in my mind every time I hear it.

The second set was what most people had been anticipating, the entire Images and Words played in order. The intro was a series of songs clips from all genres of music that were popular in 1992 played as if changing radio stations. It concluded with their local Long Island radio station DJ introducing “Pull Me Under.” Thus began the long awaited run through the monumental album.

“A Change of Seasons” was the lone encore tune, but a 23-minute song is longer than most encores, so it was more than satisfying. It was a great way to end the time traveling evening with a track was originally supposed to be on “Images and Words,” but had to be released a few years later as an EP.

The musicians all had their own spotlighted solos, starting with bassist John Myung’s tribute to one of his bass heroes, Jaco Pastorius, doing his solo, “Portrait of Tracy.” John Petrucci extended his solo on “Take the Time” to showcase his virtuosity. Mike Mangini’s solos are always breathtaking as he showcases his once held record of fastest drummer skills in the middle of “Metropolis.” Jordan Rudess, celebrating his 61st birthday, had a beautiful piano spot that led into the melodic “Wait for Sleep.”

James LaBrie reminisced with the audience on his memories of touring in 1992 in support of “Images and Words.” One that sticks out for him was on that relentless touring schedule, then-keyboardist Kevin Moore got pulled over for driving 110 mph in Montana. Their touring luxuries have significantly increased, and so has their stage show. However, after seeing last year’s “Astonishing” tour with the video screens covering the stage, this setup was much more stripped down, allowing us to concentrate on the music and the amazing talent of some of the top musicians in their field.

It was an evening of pure celebration of a classic album. It was hard to do it justice with these “Images and Words” indeed. If you get a chance to see this show, take the time.

https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/dream-theater/2017/peoria-civic-center-theatre-peoria-il-4be35b6a.html

Get the new book Essential Modern Progressive Rock Albums: Images and Words Behind Prog’s Most Celebrated Albums: 1990-2016 which includes Images and Words and other albums by Dream Theater.

Concert Review: Yes feat. Anderson, Rabin, Wakeman finish tour in Miami

by progrock.com | Oct 16, 2017 | Prog Report, Reviews

It has been a year since the trio of Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin, and Rick Wakeman, then going by ARW, started touring (see our review from Oct. 12th, 2016), and 6 months since Yes’ induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Shortly after that ceremony, ARW announced a second run across North America and the change to the name Yes featuring Anderson, Rabin, and Wakeman.  The tour kicked off a few months ago and now was at its final date in Miami, FL.  The beautiful Adrienne Arscht Concert Hall, typically used for Operas and Classical Music concerts, was a perfect backdrop for an exquisite evening of the classic songs of Yes performed by legendary musicians.  The stage looked brilliant and acoustics outstanding.

For anyone that saw the tour on its first run, it was obvious the band were happy to be on tour and very loose. There were mistakes and timing issues, but they were so joyful to be back on the road, it hardly mattered. Now a year of shows under their belt, would their be a noticeable difference?  Overwhelmingly, the answer is Yes. They were much improved as a unit and the performances were tighter, with one minor hiccup (we will get to that). The lighting and sound had been paid more attention to this time around, as well as the band tweaking the arrangements slightly to give some of the tunes their own flair.

The setlist was mostly the same, with 3 songs being changed out for others. They opened with the instrumental “Cinema” from 90125 and then went into “Perpetual Change”  “Hold On” was next, another ’80s classic.  They sounded great, but were just getting warmed up.  They introduced “South Side of the Sky”, put into the set instead of “I’ve Seen All Good People” that was performed last time. This was followed be a breathtaking version of “And You and I”.  Another change in the set was made with the removal of “Lift Me Up” from the Union album for the necessary inclusion of “Changes”, which was oddly left out of the early shows.  The group were flawless to this point in the show, but in a moment of forgetfulness, Trevor Rabin, shredding with precision throughout the evening, started playing a different section of the song after the 1st chorus, sending the band into a bit of confusion. However, they never stopped playing after realizing the flub and calmly returned to the second verse and continued to tear the roof off the place. Anderson noted how funny it was to have done that on their last night of the tour.

The funny thing was, the show was even better from that point on.”Rhythm of Love” was once again a highlight as the band rocked out for an extended version that brought the house down. They continued with the Rabin-era by performing the Talk ballad “I Am Waiting”, truly a lost classic and one of the highlights of the evening; a brilliant addition to the show. The band then got ready for the homestretch kicking off the massive Yes classic songs with the all-time prog anthem “Heart of the Sunrise”. When this song is performed right, it is indeed one of the best songs ever written, and that was the case here. The rhythm section of Lou Molina and Lee Pomeroy were completely in synch allowing Wakeman and Rabin to do what they do best.  Meanwhile, Anderson hit every not with ease and perfection, as he had done in the last 40 years. He was even more impressive leading the way through the lengthy epic “Awaken”. One thing becomes apparent every time you see Jon performing Yes songs, he is synonymous with Yes. He essence and voice are this music. His voice is one the greatest in rock history and it makes a difference hearing him perform these songs.

The group closed the show with the hit “Owner of a Lonely Heart” here performed over an extended 15 minute jam that included a brief section of the Cream hit “Sunshine of Your Love”.  Then, of course, came the encore of “Roundabout” where Rabin, does an alternate opening to the traditional acoustic guitar bit played by on the original. The band finished the song to an raucous applause and brought their crew out for a full team bow before the audience, tour having been completed.  Yes with ARW, are still only getting better and hopefully there is more to come.  There are rumors of new music by the trio, which would be great.  But if all they did was play these classics for years to come, that would be more than enough for fans of these incredible musicians.

Setlist: https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/yes-featuring-jon-anderson-trevor-rabin-rick-wakeman/2017/adrienne-arsht-center-miami-fl-5be3ebb4.html