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Dream Theater - Metropolis 2000: Scenes From New York Number of Items: 1 Format: Color Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Studio: Wea/Elektra Entertainment Product Group: DVD Release Date: 2001-04-24 Buy from Amazon

Customer Reviews: Total numer of reviews: 159 Average rating: 4.5 "Scenes of extraordinary skill" What makes this DVD special is its documentation for posterity of how extraordinary it is when people truly master a skill. I'd grown somewhat tired of Dream Theater's intensity and self-indulgence over the years, although I could never say I stopped "liking" the band. After watching this disk, however, I have a newfound appreciation for just how amazing and inspiring these guys are as musicians, composers and performers. I've never seen them live, so this DVD provided me with the visual evidence of their skill that I've always lacked. They are "only" rock musicians, yet they are more professional at what they do than any corporate CEO I've ever met. If this DVD doesn't make you think about the sheer amount of effort and dedication it takes to become extraordinary, I don't know what will. Can you believe it--a band from the 1990's that actually earned its own success? To all the manufactured boy and girl bands of the 90's, I'll pay for your copies of this DVD if you'll watch it. On a similar vein, I couldn't help noticing the portion of DT's fan base with shaved heads, Dream Theater tattoos, and piercings. I can only imagine how far the members of Dream Theater would have gotten if their very existence had revolved around someone else's work and ridiculous attempts to look "fashionable," rather than evolving and attempting something extraordinary themselves. Yes, there is MUCH to learn from this disk.... The DVD interface is a little rough, and it takes a while to get from one menu item to the next. It's no big deal, though. For those who complain that the sound is too low: look for a dial on your stereo labeled "volume," then turn it up to 11. That should do the trick. This DVD shattered my ears at 5. Thanks for the entertainment and the inspiration, Dream Theater. This disk is proof that you've earned your success! "Awesome dvd Concert, adequate sound quality" As the title mentions the dvd concert is great, every single band member is a proficient in the instrument he plays. the songs are performed very nice and the camera focuses on the players enough time to see what the heck is going on. the only disadvantage i can locate is the sound quality(2.0 stereo) (come on you guys, you can do better than that:)) and some lack of enrgy on stage. All in all, I think that purchasing the specific dvd is worh the money! "if you love the music" If you love the music that dreamtheater has to offer and have not yet seen them live, this is for you. so buy it and then go out and get tickets for their next tour "I can't live without it!" Wow, I can't tell you how much I love this thing....I don't know how any fan of this band could ever dislike it. The entire "Scenes From A Memory" album played live(perfectly, I might add), the "Mind Beside Itself" trilogy, "Learning To Live" and "A Change of Seasons", plus a great commentary by the band. Convinced yet? If not, then read on. The live show is simplay fantastic, I could not have been more impressed by it. Some of my favorite parts: John Petrucci's incredible guitar solos, especially in "Fatal Tragedy", "Through Her Eyes", "The Spirit Carries On", "A Change of Seasons" and the one he does with Theresa. Watching Jordan Rudess play. It's so awesome. He can play solos like a guitar player, yet he can play some beautiful piano music as well. It's always fun to watch him. Watching Mike Portnoy play. Watching him just fascinates me, and makes me want to just buy a drumset and start playing. The Dance of Eternity. Watching it played live blows me away, especially since I'm a musician. I don't know how much it appeals to non-musicians, but I think it's great. John Myung is indeed underrated. You will see him doing some pretty crazy stuff on here, but I'll admit, you can't always hear the bass as well as I'd like to. Anyways, the only complaint I have(and this is a small one) is that the "scenes" get kind of annoying. Again, that's a small complaint. Still worth more than 5 stars. You may have heard that the sound quality is bad. I don't really know much about that stuff, but I didn't notice any problems. I can hear it fine. The commentary is great too. It's all great. Now that I've seen this DVD, I can't live without it. If you love Dream Theater, buy this now, it's absolutely necesarry. "Am I even worthy of this?" A week before purchasing this, I was fortunate enough to actually get to see Dream Theater in concert, and needless to say, it was amazing. Your mind can bearly comprehend what you're actually seeing these guys do. After that great show, I could never imagine that the magic, the essence of this experience could ever be captured on tape. I was wrong. This DVD is just perfect. The cinematography is fantastic, allowing for you to see each musician from a multitude of camera angles, and the picture is clear as a bell. I've read complaints about the recording not being loud enough, and I do see what they mean, but really it's no big deal. That's where expensive, hi-tech stereo equipment comes in. :) The DVD centers around Dream Theater's live performance of "Scenes from a Memory" at the Roseland show, intertwined with a nice little "music video" to help visualize the story. The video's not really that great, but it serves its purpose. The important thing here is the music. Now, of course it would be nearly impossible to ever duplicate the magic that is SFAM, but this is about as good as it gets. The boys put on a high-energy performance with spot-on precision and truckloads of emotion. John Petrucci nearly lights his guitar on fire. Watching him spit out those lightning-fast solos is just awe-inspiring, and even more impressive when you see that it's almost all flat-picked. This guy is the master. Mike's drumming is equally impressive, epecially on the outro to "Finally Free". You get a good view from a camera behind him of his octopus-like fills. When I saw them live, it was hard to see what he was doing from the floor, so it was really cool to actually be able to watch him play. John Myung's playing is incredible to watch, too. He may not get many opportunities to stand out in all the madness, but when you see him gracefully navigate the fretboard of that 6-string bass, you know he's freaky good. All 4 members are in top form, and James LaBrie puts on a powerful performance. His duet with Theresa is especially good (that's a lot of vocal power there). He's got a great stage presence too. He's a wild man with that mic stand (at the concert, he nearly clipped John Myung in the head 2 or 3 times). Just a perfect performance. But wait, there's more! In addition to all this, you get over an hour of bonus material, including 5 extra songs ("A Change of Seasons", "Learning to Live", and the "Mind Beside Itself" trilogy), some behind-the-scenes footage, and hilarious audio commentary from Mike. My only complaint? No "Metropolis Part 1"! Oh well. You just can't have it all! If I sound like a yammering idiot here, it's because I'm having a hard time putting the absolute perfection of this package into words. The only way you can truly understand is to experience it for yourself. Buy this, and let the magic resonate from your speakers.