Cheap Dream Theater: Images and Words - Live in Tokyo (Video) Price

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Customer Reviews of Dream Theater: Images and Words - Live in Tokyo

Actually, it's pretty funny watching DT do music videos, since now they've become the antithesis of a video band (a very good thing I might add). But the videos are still good and well-made. The best one out of the bunch is "Another Day." The video matches the lyrics to the song perfectly. The other two videos are for "Pull Me Under" and "Take the Time."

The behind-the-scenes footage is also well-documented. There's a hilarious part where Mike Portnoy points out the condoms for every member of Dream Theater. The funniest one is John Petrucci's condom which is called "the exaggerator." You have to see it to believe it! Also, there's some footage of the band recording the IMAGES & WORDS album which is quite stunning.

The best part about the tape is the live footage. For a band this young in their career, their live performances here are astonishing. "Under a Glass Moon" is played with even more intensity and energy than the studio original. "A Fortune in Lies" is another intense number filled with speedy riffs and a commanding vocal performance from James LaBrie. The "Wait for Sleep/Surrounded" medley is amazingly beautiful with excellent piano work from Kevin Moore and another great vocal from LaBrie. Mike gets to even do a killer drum solo in the middle of "The Ytse Jam." It's jaw-dropping to see what he does with his drum kit. The extended intro for "Take the Time" is actually a preview of "Puppies on Acid," which would eventually become the one-minute intro for "The Mirror."

Overall, this is a stunning 90-minute video. Everything is packed in and not a minute is wasted. Although I like the METROPOLIS 2000 DVD better than this because you get to see the band perform their masterpiece SFAM in its entirety, this is still one of my most-played tapes.

Dream Theater-Live in Tokyo
This video is a most excellent portrayal of a truly seemingly legendary band. This video features stunning live performances(complete with seperate instrument solos),MTV videos( of which mostly wound up not being shown on MTV),and the band hangin out being...well, a rock band. This release features Kevin Moore on keyboards (Pre Derek Sherinian and Jordan Rudess)! All band members play with super human skills which makes it BREATHTAKING to watch...however;unfortunately James Labrie's vocals on this are terrible. He screams a lot and never hits any of the notes he does in the studio. Vocals on some songs really disrupt the fluency of the effortless musicianship. Despite this flaw the playing is sooooo spectacular that this still get's the highest possible rating.

Good, but...
To James LaBrie - stop running across the stage! It seems that whenever the band takes an instrumental section, which, as any Dream Theater fan knows, happens quite often, the singer finds himself at a loss. Many of the high-angle shots reveal a confused-looking LaBrie jogging from one end of the stage to another, a gesture that winds up just being funny, but not so much ha-ha funny.

With that in mind, this tape comes from a time when Dream Theater, not yet sure of its niche but seeing an opening in the mainstream due to the success of Pull Me Under, was in search of rock stardom (and stage presence). Despite the sometimes laughable ways in which their hopes and youthful energies are manifested, the band is clearly fired up and puts on an excellent performance here. LaBrie's vocals are fantastic, especially taken by comparison to more recent live recordings. As for the rest of the band, what can I say? They're Dream Theater - virtuosic as always.

Aside from the live concert that it documents, Live in Tokyo also shows a few early music videos. Of these, only Pull Me Under ever made it to the air. The direction is a bit cheesy and the sets are even cheesier, but once again it shows a band that had energy and was aiming high. The scenes in Tokyo also show a side of the band that, while covered often, are well worth seeing again. Here we see 5 long-haired guys walking around joking about condoms. It's always cool to watch them just be goofy and screw around - reminds me of my own friends and humanizes a band that has such phenomenal talent that they seem godlike at times.

All told, this video offers a look at a band that deserves to be phenomenally successful at a time when it looked like they very well could be. Today, while successful amongst their market, Dream Theater no longer sees such opportunity. They came just a hair too late (pardon the pun) as 80's-style metal was pushed out by the plaid-shirted grunge crowd.

However, if you wish to see the band in a more mature form, with far more intense skill, I recommend the Metropolis 2000 DVD or tape. At least LaBrie found out what to do with himself.

Recommended for Dream Theater fans for its look at the early life of the band, with a caveat - if you don't like seeing LaBrie look a little dumb, steer clear.