| Black Clouds & Silver Linings | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | June 23, 2009 (2009-06-23) | |||
| Recorded | October 2008 – March 2009 | |||
| Studio | Avatar, New York City | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 75:25 | |||
| Label | Roadrunner | |||
| Producer | ||||
| Dream Theater chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Black Clouds & Silver Linings | ||||
Black Clouds & Silver Linings is the tenth studio album by Americanprogressive metal bandDream Theater, released on June 23, 2009 throughRoadrunner Records.[2][3] It was the last album to feature drummer and founding memberMike Portnoy untilParasomnia (2025) following his return in 2023.[4][5][6]
The album was recorded between October 2008 and March 2009 atAvatar Recording Studios|Avatar Studios inNew York City, where they previously recordedFalling into Infinity (1997) andSystematic Chaos (2007).Black Clouds & Silver Linings was produced byJohn Petrucci and Portnoy (their final album to be produced jointly as of 2024, sinceParasomnia was solely produced by Petrucci), and was engineered and mixed byPaul Northfield.
Black Clouds & Silver Linings was a major success for Dream Theater, becoming their highest-charting album on theBillboard 200, where it peaked at number six.[7]
Dream Theater began to work on the album in October 2008.[3]Mike Portnoy describedBlack Clouds & Silver Linings as, "a Dream Theater album with 'A Change of Seasons', 'Octavarium', 'Learning to Live', 'Pull Me Under' and 'The Glass Prison' all on one album."[8]Jordan Rudess said at aNAMM Show thatSpectrasonics virtual instruments were used on the album.[9]
The album's lyrics were written by John Petrucci and Mike Portnoy, and all except one concern personal experiences about disturbing or difficult moments of their lives. Most songs were written by Petrucci, "A Nightmare to Remember" was based on a childhood car incident; "The Count of Tuscany" was about an actual encounter he had inTuscany; and "Wither" was about the process of songwriting for him.[10] "The Best of Times" was written by Mike Portnoy about his father, who died from cancer. "I just wanted to write something that was a tribute to our life together," said Portnoy, who played the song for his father prior to his death.[11] "The Shattered Fortress" is the final part of Portnoy'sTwelve-step Suite, reprising and concluding themes and motifs from the suite that began on 2002'sSix Degrees of Inner Turbulence album. The remaining song, "A Rite of Passage", concernsFreemasonry; a video of the edited single was released on May 8, 2009.
"Wither" was released as a single on September 15, 2009. In addition to the album version of the song, the single contained an alternate version featuring only a piano and vocals, a demo version with John Petrucci on vocals, and a demo version of "The Best of Times” with Mike Portnoy on vocals. There was also a video to follow it which was released on November 18, 2009.
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 68/100[12] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [13] |
| Blistering | [21] |
| The Metal Forge |  [20] |
| Metal Hammer | (positive)[14] |
| Metal Review | [19] |
| Metal Storm | [18] |
| PopMatters | 6/10[15] |
| Record Collector | [16] |
| Sputnikmusic | [17] |
| 411mania.com | 9.5/10[22] |
Initial critical response toBlack Clouds & Silver Linings was generally favorable. AtMetacritic, which assigns anormalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received anaverage score of 68, based on five reviews.[12] Rich Wilson, author ofLifting Shadows, previewed the album forMetal Hammer, calling the album "Dream Theater’s finest and most balanced album in a decade."[23] Eduardo Rivadavia ofAllMusic gave the album four out of five stars writing, "Black Clouds & Silver Linings is still an archetypal Dream Theater album; one that's unlikely to broaden their audience all that much, but is conversely guaranteed to thrill their hardcore converts with its renewed devotion to the most exigent and stimulating facets of the band's chosen musical domain."[13] Similarly David Buchanan ofConsequence of Sound, an online music magazine, said: "that this release will not necessarily bring in new fans but will also not disappoint the current flock, and this is very true. There are no improvements, but no sheer letdowns, either." He gave the album four and a half stars out of five.[24] The album was named as one ofClassic Rock‘s 10 essentialprogressive rock albums of the decade.[25]
The album debuted at No. 6 on theBillboard 200 selling 40,285 copies.[7] It was the first time in the band's history that they had cracked the Top 10 on that chart, and is currently the band's highest single week sales of an album. The album also debuted at No. 1 on Billboard Top Internet Albums, and No. 2 on Billboard Top Rock Albums.[26] The album also marked the first time that the band hit the number one spot inFinland.
The album won a 2009Metal Storm Award for Best Progressive Metal Album.[27]
All tracks are written byJohn Petrucci,Mike Portnoy,Jordan Rudess andJohn Myung except where noted, per album liner notes.
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "A Nightmare to Remember" | Petrucci | 16:10 |
| 2. | "A Rite of Passage" | Petrucci | 8:36 |
| 3. | "Wither" (music: Petrucci) | Petrucci | 5:25 |
| 4. | "The Shattered Fortress"
| Portnoy | 12:49 |
| 5. | "The Best of Times" | Portnoy | 13:09 |
| 6. | "The Count of Tuscany" | Petrucci | 19:16 |
| Total length: | 75:25 | ||
The 3-disc Special Edition included a bonus disc of six cover songs, entitled "Uncovered 2008/2009". These tracks were originally released separately, one per week, in the weeks leading up to the album's release. "To Tame a Land" had been previously released on the 2008 Iron Maiden tribute albumMaiden Heaven.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original artist | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Stargazer" | Ronnie James Dio,Ritchie Blackmore | Rainbow | 8:10 |
| 2. | "Tenement Funster"/"Flick of the Wrist"/"Lily of the Valley" | Roger Taylor/Freddie Mercury/Mercury | Queen | 8:17 |
| 3. | "Odyssey" | Steve Morse | Dixie Dregs | 7:59 |
| 4. | "Take Your Fingers From My Hair" | Randy Jackson | Zebra | 8:18 |
| 5. | "Larks' Tongues in Aspic, Part Two" | Robert Fripp | King Crimson | 6:30 |
| 6. | "To Tame a Land" | Steve Harris | Iron Maiden | 7:15 |
| Total length: | 46:29 | |||
Also included in the three disc special edition are instrumental tracks of the songs, without overdubs or solos.[28]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "A Nightmare to Remember" | 15:39 |
| 2. | "A Rite of Passage" | 8:36 |
| 3. | "Wither" | 5:29 |
| 4. | "The Shattered Fortress" | 12:47 |
| 5. | "The Best of Times" | 13:20 |
| 6. | "The Count of Tuscany" | 18:48 |
| Total length: | 74:39 | |
A deluxe collectors’-edition boxed set of the album was also released. Packaged in a silver foil embossed black velvet box the set includes the 3 Special Edition CDs, a 180-Gram Double LP, a DVD with isolated audio tracks for each instrument, alithograph of the album cover, with only 100 being signed by Hugh Syme, and a mouse pad. Those who pre-ordered were able to download a newly recorded cover song each week beginning on May 19, 2009 until the album's release. 100 box sets contained a "silver ticket" entitling the purchaser and one guest to a meet-and-greet with the band.[29] This version was also a Limited Edition release, only 14,000 were made.[30]
|
|
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[31] | 16 |
| Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[32] | 18 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[33] | 36 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[34] | 34 |
| Canadian Albums (Billboard)[35] | 6 |
| Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI)[36] | 14 |
| Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[37] | 26 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[38] | 3 |
| Europe (European Top 100 Albums)[39] | 1 |
| Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[40] | 1 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[41] | 9 |
| German Albums Chart (Offizielle Top 100)[42] | 3 |
| Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[43] | 1 |
| Irish Albums (IRMA)[44] | 91 |
| Italian Albums (FIMI)[45] | 5 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon)[46] | 8 |
| Mexican Albums (Top 100 Mexico)[31] | 7 |
| Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[47] | 7 |
| Polish Albums (ZPAV)[48] | 4 |
| Portuguese Albums (AFP)[49] | 14 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[50] | 15 |
| Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[51] | 13 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[52] | 3 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[53] | 9 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[54] | 23 |
| USBillboard 200[7] | 6 |
