Search - Liquid Tension Experiment :: Liquid Tension Experiment 1

The definition of instrumental rearkickery

Beefcake the Mighty | 07/30/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Liquid Tension Experiment's debut marked several firsts: for one it marked the first collaboration between keyboard guru Jordan Rudess with Petrucci/Portnoy and it marked the first real time that the main Dream Theater songwriting core of Petrucci/Portnoy were free to write a full album of instrumental music without having to make structure for vocals. The result is a stunning album that sounds like a hybrid of insane jazz/fusion and DT's brand of bombastic, melody-drench, and ultra-technical prog-metal.



The songs are excellently crafted, especially when one considers that the album was written AND recorded in a mere 2-3 weeks. The opener 'Paradigm Shift' sets the tone for the album right from the get-go, exploding out of your speakers with a lightning-speed shred lick and exploding into a melodic progression of most excellent riffage. Excellent. Luckily there are tons of highlights here other than Paradigm, including the gorgeous 'State of Grace', the powerful and driving 'Freedom of Speech', the jam-fest/prog-fest 'Universal Mind' (the second half of which, starting with the solo piano in the middle, is one of the greatest streches of music I've ever heard), and the wholly-improvised 30-minute 'Three Minute Warning'. There's no way you can go wrong on this album no matter what track you pick.



Any fan of prog, metal, fusion, jazz, or music in general needs to pick up this disc as well as the arguably superior LTE2. Essential."