Maps of Music

Octavarium (2005)

Where the lyrics of Octavarium take you, and where it was really made.

The final track ends on the same note the first one begins, so the album loops back on itself.

Key places

Where Octavarium was recorded (2005)

Recording site The Hit Factory — Octavarium was recorded here between September 2004 and February 2005. It was the last album made at this studio before the studio closed. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Eighth studio album by American progressive metal band Dream Theater
• Released June 7, 2005; the band's final release with Atlantic Records
• The Atlantic contract had lasted fourteen years
• Creative concept drawn from the musical octave: eight naturals and five accidentals
• Last album recorded at The Hit Factory in New York City

Background

• The band finished a North American tour supporting Yes in summer 2004, then took a two-month break
• The band reconvened at The Hit Factory in November 2004 to start the eighth album
• The goal was a classic Dream Theater album that drew on the band's various stylistic influences
• The band wanted less complex music, with songs that were quicker to appreciate
• Songs were written by stripping the sound down to piano, guitar and vocals
• Keyboardist Jordan Rudess had used a Kurzweil K2600 and Korg KARMA on the earlier orchestral piece Overture
• An orchestra conducted by Jamshied Sharifi worked with the band for the first time on The Answer Lies Within, Sacrificed Sons and Octavarium
• The orchestra was chosen for sight-reading ability, so parts were recorded in at most two takes

Recording

• Recording ran from September 2004 to February 2005
• Each song was given a different key, and sound effects linked the tracks
• The final track ends with the beginning of the first track, making the album a cycle
• Rudess performed the instrumental introduction of Octavarium on lap steel guitar and Continuum
• Mastering was done at Sterling Sound, NYC

Cover

• Artwork by Hugh Syme
• The giant Newton's cradle idea came from discussions between Syme and Mike Portnoy
• Eight suspended balls and five birds echo the piano keys and the album's five-and-eight concept

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

• Octavarium peaked in the top five in the Finnish, Italian, and Swedish charts
• It reached the top ten in the Dutch, Japanese, and Norwegian charts
• Critical reception was generally positive
• Writing for Blistering, Justin Donnelly praised the album as diverse, melodic and hard hitting all at the same time and ranked it among Dream Theater's best releases
• Billboard praised the band's shorter songs and warmer instrumental textures, singling out The Root of All Evil, These Walls and I Walk Beside You
• Harley Carlson of MetalReview.com said the album successfully showcased the band's ability to craft emotive music, though something seemed missing
• Vik Bansal of musicOMH praised Never Enough, Panic Attack and Sacrificed Sons but called The Root of All Evil Dream Theater by the numbers
• Greg Pratt of Exclaim! praised the artwork and production but found little that blew minds
• Tammy La Gorce of AllMusic noted that a post-hardcore edge had invaded the band's theatrical heavy rock

Reappraisal

• Jeff Wagner, in the book Mean Deviations: Four Decades of Progressive Metal, called it the most diverse Dream Theater album since their beginnings
• Wagner noted a strong Muse influence on the track Panic Attack

Records

• Top five in Finland, Italy and Sweden
• Top ten in the Netherlands, Japan, Norway and Poland
• 36th on the US Billboard 200
• Did not get past 72nd on the UK Albums Chart
• About 62,000 copies sold in the United States by 18 August 2005
• No certifications in the countries where it was distributed (as of the French article)

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The last session at The Hit Factory ended on a Friday night, after which the lights went off and the studio doors closed for good.
• Portnoy shut down the official Dream Theater and Mike Portnoy forums a week before release, reportedly in response to a leak.
• Portnoy wrote the lyrics to Never Enough as a response to fans who he felt complained about everything the band did.
• Panic Attack is a playable song in Rock Band 2, where it is listed as the hardest song for both bass and drums.
• Rudess released a solo piano version of The Answer Lies Within on his 2009 album Notes on a Dream.

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

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