Many would think of heavy metal groups as no-talent braggarts who sing raucous melodies about death, sex, and devil-worship. Now, alternative music is mainstream, which has pushed not only the "no-talent braggarts," but the truly talented heavy metal bands underground. Now only hard-core fans are listening to these talents. One such band is Dream Theater.

"Images and Words" is a collection of diverse songs with sounds ranging from soothing piano passages reminiscent of Beethoven, to mind-stirring lyrics that should grab Rush fans, to a Metallica-like crunch. The album starts off with a bang with "Pull Me Under," which starts off fairly mellow, then explodes into a full-fledged heavy metal song. "Pull Me Under" is complete with massive jackhammer riffs, including lyrics like "Every day sends future to past/Every breath leaves me one less to my last." The song, however, is not about death, as many may argue; it is about the inevitable passage of time. Songs that follow are entitled "Another Day" and "Take the Time," featuring vocalist James LaBrie's impressive vocal range and keyboard/ guitar/bass harmony solos by Kevin Moore, John Petrucci, and John Myung, respectively.

"Another Day" also displays Dream Theater's diversity by featuring an alto sax. Following "Take The Time" is a beautiful song about a young man's dreams of his lover, called "Surrounded." "Surrounded" starts off very softly with Moore on piano and LaBrie softly singing lyrics "She will slowly yield the light/As I awaken from the longest night." The song gets heavier, but no less beautiful ("Heaven must be more than this/When angels waken with a kiss/Sacred hearts won't take the pain/But mine will never be the same ... She whispers words to clear my mind/I once could see but now, at last, I'm blind").

Epic songs follow like "Learning to Live" and "Metropolis-Part I: The Miracle and The Sleeper," as well as a rarity among heavy metal albums: a lullaby. When I first heard the song, I began to get drowsy. The song is aptly titled "Wait For Sleep."

"Images and Words" is for anyone who likes heavy metal with a classical edge, classical music with a metallic edge, or for anyone who enjoys listening to a group of talented musicians of any genre. Dream Theater has excellent potential for becoming a musical legend, and deserves all the airplay that they get. My only hope is that Top 40 radio stations don't get a hold of "Images and Words" for they have the ability to kill bands while boosting their popularity. I'm looking forward to seeing Dream Theater in concert, and their next album. .





Review by K. L., Old Orchard Beach, ME