Distance Over Time is the fourteenth studio album by Americanprogressive metal bandDream Theater, released on February 22, 2019, and the band's first release onInside Out Music.[1][2]Distance Over Time was announced alongside a tour of North America during which Dream Theater would support the new album and celebrate the 20th anniversary of its fifth studio album,Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory (1999).[3][4][5] On December 7, 2018, the lead single "Untethered Angel" and its music video were released.[6] The second single, "Fall into the Light", was released on January 11, 2019.[7] The third single, "Paralyzed", and its accompanying video were released on February 8, 2019.[8] It is the band's most successful album chart-wise to date, taking top 10 positions in 19 countries (including going to number one in Germany and Switzerland).
Musically, Dream Theater decided to create a "tight and focused" album with a heavier sound than its previous album,The Astonishing (2016).[9] "At Wit's End" was the first piece that was written[10] and the writing process for the whole album took 18 days, makingDistance Over Time their fastest written album to date.[11] The band compared the speed and style ofDistance Over Time's writing process to that of its 2003 album,Train of Thought.[12]
At just under 57 minutes long, not including a bonus track,Distance Over Time is Dream Theater's first studio album with a run time under one hour in length since 1992'sImages and Words, and their shortest since the band's 1989 debut,When Dream and Day Unite. It is Dream Theater's third studio album to not feature any songs longer than ten minutes, afterWhen Dream and Day Unite and 2016'sThe Astonishing.
"Room 137" is Dream Theater's only song with lyrics written by Mike Mangini.
Distance Over Time was met with critical acclaim; it received an average score of 82/100 from 6 reviews onMetacritic, indicating "universal acclaim".[13] Writing forAllMusic, Thom Jurek praised the album as a reaffirmation of Dream Theater's identity and appreciated its degree of freshness and energy.[14]Consequence of Sound reviewedDistance Over Time positively, stating that "Calling an hourlong album streamlined might seem strange, but that's exactly whatDistance Over Time is compared to Dream Theater's last release, 2016's 34-song, two hour and ten minute opusThe Astonishing. Though the length is certainly shorter this time around, Dream Theater's expansive arrangements and complex songwriting haven't been scaled back on their 14th studio album.”[17]Kerrang! said, "Sacrificing none of that trademark musicianship, this is Dream Theater at their most accessible, and they lose nothing for it".[13]
On the day of its release,Distance Over Time reached the top spot oniTunes' Top 100 Albums list.[24]Loudwire named it one of the 50 best metal albums of 2019.[25]
Similar to his previous Dream Theater album artwork,[26] art directorHugh Syme was once again criticized for his use of stock imagery for theDistance Over Time artwork. Fans quickly pointed out the artwork was literally just two stock pictures put together.[27]
The stock imagery usage in conjuncture with the artwork's simple concept has led to many sightings of similar looking designs in various media. Just 12 days after Dream Theater revealed theDistance Over Time artwork,The New York Times Magazine used a nearly identical image of a robot arm holding a human skull for a cover story titledWhat Will Become of Us?[28]
^"Slovak Albums – Top 100".ČNS IFPI. RetrievedJanuary 3, 2021.Note: On the chart page, select SK - Albums - Top 100 under the left field and "201909" on the field besides the word "Zobrazit", and then click over the word to retrieve the correct chart data.
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