In case you have been living under a rock, DREAM THEATER is the biggest Progressive Metal band in the world.  They formed in 1985 under the name MAJESTY.  The band is extremely prolific releasing numerous EPs, demos, and concert album/videos over the years.  They are no slouch with recording full length albums either- "Distance Over Time," is their 14^th full length studio album and their first since 2016's "The Astonishing."

I'm a different kind DREAM THEATER fan; what I'm about to say will probably have some of their fans waiting to prog-punch me in the face but here it goes:   I enjoy the bulk of their releases but I prefer their heavier stuff. Sure, "Images and Words," "Awake," and "Scenes From A Memory" are all great releases but they mean little to me when compared to their later stuff.  I simply prefer the heavier side of the band.  "Train of Thought," "Systematic Chaos," and "Black Clouds and Silver Linings," mean much more to me because they combine a true Metal sound with true Progressive structures.

I discovered DREAM THEATER when "Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence" came out.  That was back in the day when there were still paper catalogues to buy music from.  I had heard their name but never their music so on a random pick, I decided to order that album.  It arrived some weeks later and upon the first notes of "The Glass Prison," I was blown away and knew the band was special.  That feeling of hearing the band the first time? That can never been replicated but "Distance Over Time," comes pretty damn close.  It has an almost magical feel to it and the same exuberant energy from the band that I heard on "Six Degrees."  Clearly, the band has found their footing and have been reinvigorated and inspired.

I did not like "The Astonishing."  It straight up pains me when my favorite bands release music that I just don't like but try as I might, I never could grasp "The Astonishing." Was it me?  What is the band?  I tried to figure it out for a long time.  Since then, I have been rooting for this band to really make a complete turn around and blow my face away. How does "Distance Over Time," fit into the band's overall career? It fits surprisingly well into basically any era of the band but this is another more abrasive release-some of Petrucci's best and most Metal riffs can be found in this album.  Likewise, Myung drops the hammer down quite often as well. Since Petrucci is the only guitarist, so much depends on Myung to keep the riffs and rhythm going while his counterpart is blazing through a solo.

I've always felt that in some of their previous albums, a focus was often times put on one member/instrument than others. "Octavarium," for example, was very keyboard oriented and a showcase for Rudess's insane skills. "Train of Thought," was very Petrucci centered, especially guitar solos. I could go on but what I'm leading to is "Distance Over Time," is an album that really feels like the band has came together as one.  Each individual member gives the best performance they have in years but none of them go total self-indulgent and perform in excess.   Each instrument, including LaBrie's vocals, isn't telling a story but rather a page of a book that is each song.  Basically, after the bloat that was "The Astonishing," the band has got out of their own way and now see the forest for all the trees.

Over the last couple weeks, I have read so many reviews of this album that say stuff along the lines of, "DREAM THEATER scales back their sound this time around," or "DREAM THEATER streamlines its sound."No offense to those writers but I disagree. I think a lot of those other reviews/reviewers are saying these things because of "The Astonishing," an over bloated album of two hours of sonic excess.  Compared to that album, I think anything the band could had done could be seen as "streamlined," or "scaled back," unless of course they made a three hour long album.  Honestly, I think using those phrases really discredits this album because when I, and most people I assume, read stuff like that the assumption is the band is taking a more mainstream approach and that simply isn't true.  Sure, the overall album is "simpler" in terms of vision and story but their playing is not.  It isn't like the band has decided to stop being virtuosic and made an album full of three minute long radio rock tunes.  No, the songwriting is still done with technicality in mind but instead of being all over the place in terms of pacing and structure, the song writing is more focused.

"Untethered Angel," is the first single chosen to represent the album.  I think that was a pretty good decision; it is a great opener and gets the ball rolling quick enough.  The chorus is simple but catchy, backed by devastating drums from Mike Mangini. Although this is his fourth studio album with the band, he has really hit his stride here.  I'm not saying he was a slouch on his other performances but his technicality sometimes hindered him-in essence, he has played so well that it seems it was hard for him to fully express emotion.  However, his hands and his heart have found their balance together and he delivers both an impressive and impassioned performance on each track.  Rudess and Petrucci have one of their famous guitar/key duels that just gives the whole track a classic DREAM THEATER sound.

"Paralyzed," is the next track up and I would imagine its length, 4:17, is something some fans might get upset by and maybe why some critics say this album is more streamlined.  Keep in mind, that although DT are well known for their long tracks they are also not strangers to shorter compositions.  The length of a song doesn't really matter per say...it is what happens within this time frame that really should be judged.  So what do the guys do with such a "short" track?  A lot.  It begins with a Heavy Metal crunch and pounding drums as it builds up to an explosion with Petrucci laying down a groove laden heavy riffs. Labrie's vocals are in fine form here-I've read a lot of fans over the years complaining about how his vocals aren't what they used to me; I just don't hear that.  He has always been one of the best vocalists in the scene and this records continues the trend. DREAM THEATER just wouldn't be the same without him.  Period.   During the track, he gets expressive during the stanza's and then soars on top of the piano parts.  The middle part of the song is a light keyboard section which fits in smoothly along with the passionate guitar solo that ends up shredding towards the end.

"Fall Into The Light," is one of my favorites on the album because, at times, it is intense as the band can get.  The first minute really displays the simple truth that DREAM THEATER can let go of their Prog side enough to be just as heavy as any other Metal band.  The keyboards and drums work very well here together, both of them playing off each other.  I have to hand it to Rudess for being so goddamn indispensable.  A lot of keyboardists use the keys to create symphonic textures, ambient distractions, or just to fill up the background. Rudess, however, plays his keyboard like it should be used: an instrument just as important in rock/metal music as the guitar or drums...an instrument that if it was removed from the songs would do more than just change them-it would utterly destroy them. Listen to his keyboard solo in this song and tell me I'm a liar.

Around the halfway point of the song, we are treated with some wonderful guitar and bass melodies and, towards the end of the song, the guitars and bass finish it off strongly. "Barstool Warrior," maybe have a bit of a goofy name but the track is simply one of the best songs this band has ever performed.  I could spend a whole page just writing about why this is but I can assure you everything about this song screams classic DREAM THEATER.  Petrucci's solos tell a story unto themselves, the temp is frantic in just the right places, LaBrie's voice is near angelic.  Keys drums, and bass play their parts to perfection acting as stars on clear night to allow the songs to follow along their painted sky journey.

The track that follows, "Room 137," is the exact opposite but no less effective. This one is easily one of their heaviest tracks and one I would recommend to a new fan to help ease them into the band's sound.  This is one of those tracks that is instrumentality impressive and one you can throw on to rock out with the windows down on the way home. Myung is the hero of "S2N", his bass is heavy but with a funk vibe to it being the catalyst from which the rest of the song is born.  There is a very energetic, exciting, and frantic sound to the song as if the band can't wait to get it out for us to hear-I can tell they had a lot of fun with this one.  It just has a certain rhythm to its foundation that cannot be denied. On top of all that, LaBrie and his amazing chorus is icing on this cake.

"At Wit's End," really stuck with me due to its desire to introduce heavy and light elements into the song without sacrificing the song's (or the album's) pace.  I found this track to include a little bit of everything Dream Theater has done and is another song I would ask someone to listen to who doesn't know this band that well.  If they aren't impressed by LaBrie's stunning performance or the insane guitar/key solos, then they can't be helped.  I was really impressed with the part around the 5:30 mark that highlighted the vocals and bass while still letting the drums play. "Out of Reach," is the album's ballad, built up mostly with keys and vocals as the driving force.  As far as their ballad's go, I think it is one of their better ones and its placement on the album is spot on, sandwiched between two longer tracks to allow for a breather to the listener and to also show they can take it easy and let go up the desire to cram six thousand notes into a song.

"Pale Blue Dot," is the last track on the album and although not the longest I think as far as scope goes its probably the most epic of them all.  The heavy riffs mixed with the keys in the song's early moments is another layer to the band I've always enjoyed.  Things heat up and get brain bending crazy at the 4:25 mark with drums, keys, and guitars just frickin' everywhere.  Passages like this are when Dream Theater are the top of their game and including more of them in the last track guarantees the album ends with a strong finish.  5:49 to 6:43 is Prog bliss and they fit more into this minute than most bands do in several songs.  The keys stopping and starting build up a rhythm of their own while the bass and drums are the current that drags you down into their sea of Prog Metal bliss.

It doesn't factor into my review since it is a bonus but the track "Viper King," is good enough to had been a regular track.  In particular, LaBrie's voice is astonishing (sorry, been waiting the entire review to do that) but the entire band is laser focused on another barn burner of a track. There are a few things about the album that somewhat bug me but nothing to hurt the score.  I, much like most DT fans I imagine, do miss having one long epic song for one the tracks.  After "The Astonishing," I understand why this track doesn't contain any real long songs...and  perhaps previous masterpiece epics like "The County of Tuscany," "Octavarium", and "Illumination Theory," have perhaps spoiled us.  I also miss having an instrumental represented too but, hey, you can't have it all.  Dream Theater included enough here for all to enjoy.

For my money and humble opinion, "Distance Over Time," is DREAM THEATER's best album since 2009's "Black Clouds and Silver Linings."