Customer Ratings & Reviews

Music was a bit different than normal Dream Theater, but did not live up to reviews.

Compared to my other DT CDs this is about average, nothing new ...

They've done better but it's still not too bad. Give it a try.

This is something different. Not digging it to much.

Good cd, but not as good as it could have been......

Not what thought it was going to be. Never got through it and gave it to a co-worker--still waiting on a review.

the tracks just don't seem to go anywhere.I'm not a fan !!

I love this album! However, people who aren't into rock opera/musicals will likely not enjoy most of it. Guitarist John Petrucci originally came up with the story while they were still in the midst of the previous self-titled album (affectionately known in fan circles as DTXII). He and keyboardist Jordan Rudess wrote the music together at Jordan's keyboard. You can really tell because it is very piano-driven, more than any album since Six Degrees and probably the most of any album they've ever written. There are musical interludes that include lots of orchestral elements, but there are also many more vocals than a usual DT album because of the story. James sings all of the characters, each with a different style and timbre, and he sings with much more emotion on this than any other album from start to finish. I would say the closest he gets to this on any other album is when he sang the "Me" character for Ayreon's The Human Equation (also a rock opera) written by Arjen Lucassen. James and Jordan really shine on this album. John Myung gets some moments where he really shines with short bass guitar solos, and Mike Mangini is just awesome on drums - so tight - and I love the drum sound on this album. The orchestra and choirs really add to the entire experience. As someone else posted, this is the best album of the Mangini era.... so far!

Easily the best record of the Mangini era & already a candidate for disc of the year. One of D.T.'s strongest records ever. The diversity of material, the concept, & the freshness of it keeps it from becoming stale or boring. James Labrie puts in an amazing performance, vocalizing each character with appropriate pitch. The rest are brilliant as always. Some fans may feel that they have been recycling ideas on the last few discs, but this will bring you back to the fold. All on only one listen; you will be "ASTONISHED."

'The Astonishing' is a new record from Dream Theater spanning two discs and over two hours of music. It's a concept album set in dystopian future where music is outlawed, replete with artwork of the fantasy world and its cast of eight characters. There's a lot to digest with such large effort, but it includes plenty of hi-fidelity riffing from John Petrucci and some of James LaBrie's best vocal performances to date. A quick, early favorite track of mine is 'Our New World' from the end of disc two:

An inspiring Jordan Rudess and an awesome production, of course it's not regular music but if you're a fan like I am go foward it.

I gave this album several listens to give it a chance to grow on me. I definitely prefer the first disc to the second. There's a lot of good music here (the double disc is over two hours long), but it just feels bloated and often drifts into the realm of treacle. Still, the musicianship is incredible, as usual, and since it's Dream Theater, most of their loyal fans are going to buy this one anyhow. I will say this - a few weeks ago I saw the concert where they played this album in it's entirety, and it translated MUCH better to a live performance than on the recording.

Probably my most favorite band. I love that they created their own Tommy-like epic, but it takes a while to listen to. There's great moments on both discs.

I love this band and this album is enough music for the whole year.

I should have kept in mind that I saw somewhere that this is a rock opera. I hate rock operas, and this is one of them. My main issue with the format is that RO's usually care more about story than about typical (in any way) song structures. The story here is run of the mill, and the tracks shy away from any interesting vocal dynamics that James LaBrie is actually capable of. The music also feels quite neutered. Dream Theater is known for extreme virtuosic guitar and drum play, and I kept waiting for it to show up on this album, but I kept getting disappointed. It's way too long, and so it's incredibly boring.

I bought this album so I would have new music to listen to on a long drive from Ohio to Florida. I managed to make it through one time. And while there were a couple of bright spots, it really didn't connect with me. On my second time through I found myself skipping to the next song on almost every song. Now, I have been a Dream Theater fan since their first album, When Dream and Day Unite, but I can't seem to get into this very, very long concept album.

I regret buying this record, it's horrible in my opinion. What the guys in Dream Theater were thinking is beyond me... At times I thought I was listening to a Christmas album, no joke. The electronic components on this record sound like they used equipment from 20 years ago, just weak and bland. I wouldn't recommend anyone buying this, stick with Old Dream Theater if you don't want to get disappointed. I put this record in the same category as Metallica's St. Anger record which was God awful.