Livebericht Dream Theater

Ein Livebericht von TexJoachim aus Dortmund (Westfalenhalle) - 30.01.2004 (17445 mal gelesen)

Ok, the idea to organise a DREAM THEATER concert on the very day on which the clash of the soccer teams Schalke 04 and Borussia Dortmund takes place was a bad one. (For all of you not living in the German Ruhrgebiet: the enmity between fans of both soccer clubs is legendary. As a result, a massive police force is always around to prevent a clash of them.)
So, there was little wonder that I had to step through a pile of glass shreds after I left the train that had brought me to Dortmund. No wonder too, about the packed subway train full of drunken soccer fans that made more noise than any ears could take. Nevertheless, I was able make it to the Westfalenhalle in time. After an obligatory search by the security personnel I was in the hall and off to the merchandise booth. Oh my bloody god! What in the world made them charge EUR 25, 30 or 60 for tshirt and EUR 35 for a longsleeve. They asked for EUR 25 for the latest DREAM THEATER CD "Train of Thought". No wonder that the bootleg tshirts sold for EUR 10 after the concert were highly in favour with the audience. But I disgress.

Let us turn to the really important stuff: at 8PM DREAM THEATER started the show. Directly from zero to hero, because the waiting audience got 'Take me as I am' and 'This Dying Souls' pushed into their throats. A good start, even when one takes into account that James' voice wasn't in top condition at the beginning. After the third song, however, his voice was warmed up and DREAM THEATER presented a show worth of a royal audience. Three videoscreens erected above the stage were used to show animations, shots of the musicians or the CD covers of the songs being played right now. Well done, just like the lightshow.
The band's performance on stage was rather static, but the videoscreens made for that. Mike additionally made up the other half of the show elements. Besides his obligatory drum-solo, drumming while standing, throwing and (not) catching of sticks his facial gestures were worth seeing.
After one and a half hours the lights in the hall went on. A fifteen minutes break for both band and audience. Time to get a beer and to releave the tension in the neck muscels. Just after ten, the band went back on stage and gave us additional one and a half hours on music. We got 'Stream of Consciousness', 'Caught in a Web' and 'In the name of God'. Shame that they didn't play 'Pull me under', but one cannot have everything.

Final judgment: Beautiful concert, very good playing time (3,5 hours), only the merchandise prices should be reconsidered.