Maps of Music

A View from the Top of the World (2021)

Where the lyrics of A View from the Top of the World take you, and where it was really made.

The album's opening track, "The Alien", won the band's first Grammy, and the record itself was made in the band's own studio, DTHQ.

Key places

Recorded at the band's own studio (2021)

Recording site Cove City Sound Studios — The album was recorded at DTHQ, the band's own studio, which the band built and moved into in late 2020. The point marks the city-level location. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Mixed and mastered at Backstage Studios (2021)

Recording site Backstage Studios — The album was mixed and mastered at Backstage Studios, the studio where the final sound of the record was shaped. The point marks the studio's exact site. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Cover photo location in Norway (2021)

Album cover Kjeragbolten — The front cover photo was taken at Kjeragbolten, a boulder in the Kjerag mountain area near Sandnes in Norway. The point marks the site shown on the cover. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• A View from the Top of the World: fifteenth studio album by American progressive metal band Dream Theater
• Released October 22, 2021
• First album recorded at the band's own studio, DTHQ (Dream Theater Headquarters)
• Fewer than nine tracks, the first such album since Black Clouds & Silver Linings (2009)
• Ends with its longest track, and includes a track of at least ten minutes, a combination not seen since Dream Theater (2013)
• Last album featuring drummer Mike Mangini, who left in October 2023 when original drummer Mike Portnoy returned
• Opening track "The Alien" won a Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance in 2022

Background

• Work began about a year after the previous album, Distance over Time (2019)
• Metal Addicts reported in April 2020 that the band planned a new album in 2021
• The band had recently rescheduled and then cancelled its touring plans because of the COVID-19 pandemic
• Guitarist John Petrucci discussed an eight-string project with Ernie Ball Music Man in an August 2020 interview, hoping to use it on the next record
• In an October 2020 Revolver interview, Petrucci said the band would enter DTHQ, its newly built studio, within weeks
• Four of the five members wrote together in the studio
• Frontman James LaBrie contributed remotely by video conference from Canada, to avoid risking his voice
• Writing sessions ran for four months until March
• LaBrie then flew from Canada to New York to record vocals
• Andy Sneap mixed and mastered the album, marking his first collaboration with the band
• Sneap had recently worked with Petrucci on Petrucci's second solo album, Terminal Velocity (2020)

Recording

• Recorded at DTHQ, New York
• Mixed and mastered at Backstage Studios
• James Meslin credited for engineering and additional production

Cover

• The front cover photo shows Kjeragbolten in Norway

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com · fr.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Disc 1

Disc 2

Disc 3

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band formed in 1985 in Boston, Massachusetts.
• Petrucci, Myung and Portnoy formed the band under the name Majesty while attending Berklee College of Music.
• The band was renamed Dream Theater in 1988 after a legal challenge from a Las Vegas group also named Majesty.

Members

• Current members are John Petrucci (guitar), John Myung (bass), James LaBrie (vocals), Jordan Rudess (keyboards), and Mike Portnoy (drums), who rejoined in October 2023.
• Petrucci and Myung have remained in the band since its founding.

Career

• The band has released 16 studio albums; Images and Words (1992) is its highest-selling release.
• Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory (1999) received high critical acclaim.
• By 2018 the band had sold over 12 million records worldwide.
• The band has been referred to as one of the "Big Three" of progressive metal, along with Queensrÿche and Fates Warning.
• A View from the Top of the World's lead single "The Alien" won a Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance in 2022.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Teased on July 26, 2021, by revealing the initials and runtimes of the seven song titles
• Title announced two days later, with release planned for October 22, 2021
• "The Alien" and "Invisible Monster" released as singles before the album
• Music videos for "Awaken the Master", "Transcending Time" and "Answering the Call" released after the album came out

Records

• "The Alien" won the Grammy for Best Metal Performance in 2022, giving the band their first Grammy win
• This was the band's third Grammy nomination
• Earlier nominations: "On the Backs of Angels" in 2012 and "The Enemy Inside" in 2014

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The album is the last to feature drummer Mike Mangini, who left in October 2023 when original drummer Mike Portnoy returned.
• Dream Theater teased the album on July 26, 2021, by revealing the initials and runtimes of its seven song titles.
• The album is the first since Dream Theater (2013) to contain a track of at least ten minutes and to end with its longest track.
• Petrucci's eight-string project with Ernie Ball Music Man was discussed in 2020 as something he hoped to use on a future Dream Theater record.
• LaBrie wrote remotely from Canada during the early sessions to avoid straining his voice.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · es.wikipedia.org

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