Falling into Infinity was produced by Kevin Shirley. The album's writing and pre-production phases were stressful periods for the band, as they were feeling constant pressure from the record label to deliver a more radio-friendly album. It was recorded in June 1997 at Avatar Studios (previously known as Power Station Studios) in Manhattan.
Following a brief tour in support of the A Change of SeasonsEP, Dream Theater entered Dream Factory Studios in East Rutherford, New Jersey, in early 1996 to begin writing material for a new album.[1] It was their first time writing with keyboardist Derek Sherinian, who replaced Kevin Moore in 1994.[2] Around this time, Elektra Records was exerting pressure on the band to write concise, radio-friendly songs.[1] Consequently, creative conflicts arose, with guitarist John Petrucci accepting the label's plea for change and drummer Mike Portnoy fighting against it.[3]
For over a year, Dream Theater wrote songs without being given permission to record them; according to Portnoy, at one point they became so frustrated that they considered retirement.[4] In March 1997, the band was finally given the go-ahead to record the new album with Kevin Shirley producing.[5] By May, the band had enough material for a double album but was told to keep it to one disc for budget reasons.[6] As a result, certain songs were not included on the final cut of the album, including "Raise the Knife", "Where Are You Now", "Cover My Eyes", "Speak to Me", "The Way It Used to Be", and "Metropolis Pt. 2", the latter of which was later expanded into its own album,[7] with the rest being included on the 1999 fan club CD "Cleaning Out the Closet".[8] Shirley made significant alterations to some of what was left on the album; most notably, he took the middle section out of "Burning My Soul" and turned it into what would become "Hell's Kitchen".[9] Shirley also recommended that the band work with Desmond Child to re-write "You or Me", resulting in Petrucci being flown down to Florida to work on the song with Child. Following the sessions, the song became "You Not Me".[10]
Actual recording for the album began on June 2 at The Power Station recording studio, known then as Avatar Studios from 1996 to 2017 (and reopening in 2020 as Power Station at BerkleeNYC), located at 441 West 53rd Street between Ninth and Tenth Avenues in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood in Manhattan, New York City.[11] In contrast to the difficult writing and pre-production stages, the band considered the recording sessions trouble free and enjoyable. The album, titled Falling into Infinity, was completed on July 30.[12] Originally, Petrucci and Portnoy wanted to call it Stream of Consciousness, but the rest of the band rejected the name because they felt it was too pompous (although the phrase "Stream of Consciousness" is found in the song "Lines in the Sand" and would later become the title of the instrumental piece on Train of Thought). Its eventual title was proposed by Petrucci,[13] and its cover art was designed by Storm Thorgerson.[14]
Composition
Falling into Infinity is Dream Theater's only studio album to feature keyboardist Derek Sherinian (pictured in 2012).
Falling into Infinity is the first Dream Theater album to feature multiple songs with lyrics by Mike Portnoy. Portnoy and the rest of the band were forced to write more lyrics following the departure of Kevin Moore.[15] All of Portnoy's lyrics were inspired by his frustration with Elektra Records: "New Millennium" and "Just Let Me Breathe" are aimed at the music industry and label, and "Burning My Soul" targets A&R man Derek Oliver.[16] John Petrucci wrote six lyrics for the album, including those for "Peruvian Skies"; lead singer James LaBrie and bassist John Myung each contributed lyrics to one song each, "Anna Lee" and "Trial of Tears" respectively; while "Hell's Kitchen" is an instrumental. Both "Peruvian Skies" and "Anna Lee" deal with the subject of child abuse. As is the case with most Dream Theater albums, the songs were given working titles during production; for example, "Lines in the Sand" and "Burning My Soul" were originally called "Cat's Tail" and "Carnival of Clams", respectively.[17]
In the official Dream Theater biography Lifting Shadows, author Rich Wilson described Falling into Infinity's musical style as having an "accessible nature".[18] In his review of the album for AllMusic, Jeremy Ulrey noted of the album: "Like many other progressive bands playing difficult music, Dream Theater inevitably chose to trim down both their bombastic production and intricate songwriting for a more laid-back approach, both live and in the studio."[19] Its writing was inspired by a multitude of artists including Elton John.[20]
Falling into Infinity was released on September 23, 1997.[12] In America, the album debuted at number 52 on the Billboard 200.[21]Falling into Infinity received mixed reviews from critics and fans. In a three out of five star review for AllMusic, Jeremy Ulrey called it "the band's weakest effort since their debut."[19] Rich Wilson has described it as "one of the patchier albums in the band's catalogue."[12]
According to Lifting Shadows, Falling into Infinity was considered a commercial failure, failing to break any new ground for Dream Theater or increase their sales despite its more commercial direction.[18] As a result of the creative and personal tensions experienced during the album's production phase, it has been described as the band's "most difficult album",[22] and eventually led to their demanding to be free from record label interference for all future albums.[23] Mike Portnoy has mentioned that if Elektra Records, Kevin Shirley, and Desmond Child were not involved in the making of the album, he would have made a "completely different record".[24] In 2007, the band released a demo version of the album reflecting Portnoy's original song arrangements and track listing, including a live rehearsal of the original "Metropolis Pt. 2".[25][26]
In contrast to Portnoy's comments, John Petrucci has spoken fondly of the album, and in a 2014 interview stated, "Maybe I could set the records straight: I think that’s a really big misunderstanding. The label didn’t have an influence on the album. We wrote the kind of album we wanted to write."[27]
^"Lescharts.com – Dream Theater – Falling Into Infinity". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
^"Album Top 40 slágerlista – 1997. 40. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
^"Norwegiancharts.com – Dream Theater – Falling Into Infinity". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
^"Swedishcharts.com – Dream Theater – Falling Into Infinity". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
^"Swisscharts.com – Dream Theater – Falling Into Infinity". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
^"Dream Theater". Billboard. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
^. Archived from the original on October 19, 2015. Retrieved July 21, 2012.
April 11, 2023
falling, into, infinity, fourth, studio, album, american, progressive, metal, band, dream, theater, released, september, 1997, through, eastwest, records, band, only, studio, album, feature, keyboardist, derek, sherinian, following, departure, kevin, moore, 19. Falling into Infinity is the fourth studio album by American progressive metal band Dream Theater released on September 23 1997 through EastWest Records It is the band s only studio album to feature keyboardist Derek Sherinian following the departure of Kevin Moore in 1994 Falling into InfinityCover art by Storm ThorgersonStudio album by Dream TheaterReleasedSeptember 23 1997 1997 09 23 RecordedJune July 1997StudioAvatar Studios in ManhattanGenreProgressive metal progressive rockLength78 12LabelEastWestProducerKevin ShirleyDream Theater chronologyA Change of Seasons 1995 Falling into Infinity 1997 Once in a LIVEtime 1998 Singles from Falling into Infinity Hollow Years Released 1997Falling into Infinity was produced by Kevin Shirley The album s writing and pre production phases were stressful periods for the band as they were feeling constant pressure from the record label to deliver a more radio friendly album It was recorded in June 1997 at Avatar Studios previously known as Power Station Studios in Manhattan Contents 1 Background 2 Composition 3 Release 4 Track listing 5 Personnel 6 Chart performance 7 ReferencesBackground EditFollowing a brief tour in support of the A Change of Seasons EP Dream Theater entered Dream Factory Studios in East Rutherford New Jersey in early 1996 to begin writing material for a new album 1 It was their first time writing with keyboardist Derek Sherinian who replaced Kevin Moore in 1994 2 Around this time Elektra Records was exerting pressure on the band to write concise radio friendly songs 1 Consequently creative conflicts arose with guitarist John Petrucci accepting the label s plea for change and drummer Mike Portnoy fighting against it 3 For over a year Dream Theater wrote songs without being given permission to record them according to Portnoy at one point they became so frustrated that they considered retirement 4 In March 1997 the band was finally given the go ahead to record the new album with Kevin Shirley producing 5 By May the band had enough material for a double album but was told to keep it to one disc for budget reasons 6 As a result certain songs were not included on the final cut of the album including Raise the Knife Where Are You Now Cover My Eyes Speak to Me The Way It Used to Be and Metropolis Pt 2 the latter of which was later expanded into its own album 7 with the rest being included on the 1999 fan club CD Cleaning Out the Closet 8 Shirley made significant alterations to some of what was left on the album most notably he took the middle section out of Burning My Soul and turned it into what would become Hell s Kitchen 9 Shirley also recommended that the band work with Desmond Child to re write You or Me resulting in Petrucci being flown down to Florida to work on the song with Child Following the sessions the song became You Not Me 10 Actual recording for the album began on June 2 at The Power Station recording studio known then as Avatar Studios from 1996 to 2017 and reopening in 2020 as Power Station at BerkleeNYC located at 441 West 53rd Street between Ninth and Tenth Avenues in the Hell s Kitchen neighborhood in Manhattan New York City 11 In contrast to the difficult writing and pre production stages the band considered the recording sessions trouble free and enjoyable The album titled Falling into Infinity was completed on July 30 12 Originally Petrucci and Portnoy wanted to call it Stream of Consciousness but the rest of the band rejected the name because they felt it was too pompous although the phrase Stream of Consciousness is found in the song Lines in the Sand and would later become the title of the instrumental piece on Train of Thought Its eventual title was proposed by Petrucci 13 and its cover art was designed by Storm Thorgerson 14 Composition Edit Falling into Infinity is Dream Theater s only studio album to feature keyboardist Derek Sherinian pictured in 2012 Falling into Infinity is the first Dream Theater album to feature multiple songs with lyrics by Mike Portnoy Portnoy and the rest of the band were forced to write more lyrics following the departure of Kevin Moore 15 All of Portnoy s lyrics were inspired by his frustration with Elektra Records New Millennium and Just Let Me Breathe are aimed at the music industry and label and Burning My Soul targets A amp R man Derek Oliver 16 John Petrucci wrote six lyrics for the album including those for Peruvian Skies lead singer James LaBrie and bassist John Myung each contributed lyrics to one song each Anna Lee and Trial of Tears respectively while Hell s Kitchen is an instrumental Both Peruvian Skies and Anna Lee deal with the subject of child abuse As is the case with most Dream Theater albums the songs were given working titles during production for example Lines in the Sand and Burning My Soul were originally called Cat s Tail and Carnival of Clams respectively 17 In the official Dream Theater biography Lifting Shadows author Rich Wilson described Falling into Infinity s musical style as having an accessible nature 18 In his review of the album for AllMusic Jeremy Ulrey noted of the album Like many other progressive bands playing difficult music Dream Theater inevitably chose to trim down both their bombastic production and intricate songwriting for a more laid back approach both live and in the studio 19 Its writing was inspired by a multitude of artists including Elton John 20 Release EditProfessional ratingsReview scoresSourceRatingAllMusic 19 Falling into Infinity was released on September 23 1997 12 In America the album debuted at number 52 on the Billboard 200 21 Falling into Infinity received mixed reviews from critics and fans In a three out of five star review for AllMusic Jeremy Ulrey called it the band s weakest effort since their debut 19 Rich Wilson has described it as one of the patchier albums in the band s catalogue 12 According to Lifting Shadows Falling into Infinity was considered a commercial failure failing to break any new ground for Dream Theater or increase their sales despite its more commercial direction 18 As a result of the creative and personal tensions experienced during the album s production phase it has been described as the band s most difficult album 22 and eventually led to their demanding to be free from record label interference for all future albums 23 Mike Portnoy has mentioned that if Elektra Records Kevin Shirley and Desmond Child were not involved in the making of the album he would have made a completely different record 24 In 2007 the band released a demo version of the album reflecting Portnoy s original song arrangements and track listing including a live rehearsal of the original Metropolis Pt 2 25 26 In contrast to Portnoy s comments John Petrucci has spoken fondly of the album and in a 2014 interview stated Maybe I could set the records straight I think that s a really big misunderstanding The label didn t have an influence on the album We wrote the kind of album we wanted to write 27 Track listing EditAll music is composed by Dream Theater No TitleLyricsLength1 New Millennium Mike Portnoy8 202 You Not Me John Petrucci Desmond Child4 583 Peruvian Skies Petrucci6 434 Hollow Years Petrucci5 535 Burning My Soul Portnoy5 296 Hell s Kitchen instrumental 4 167 Lines in the Sand Petrucci12 058 Take Away My Pain Petrucci6 039 Just Let Me Breathe Portnoy5 2810 Anna Lee James LaBrie5 5111 Trial of Tears I It s Raining II Deep in Heaven III The Wasteland John Myung13 06Total length 78 12 Japanese edition 3 bonus discNo TitleLyricsLength1 Take Away My Pain demo version Petrucci6 492 Speak to Me demo version LaBrie6 25Personnel EditDream Theater James LaBrie lead vocals and backing vocals arrangement John Petrucci guitar background vocals arrangement Derek Sherinian keyboards backing vocals arrangement John Myung bass Chapman Stick on tracks 1 and 8 arrangement Mike Portnoy drums percussion backing vocals harmony vocals on track 1 arrangementAdditional credits Doug Pinnick additional vocals track 7 Kevin Shirley engineering mixing production Rich Alvy engineering assistance Barbara Lipke engineering assistance Dave Swope mixing assistance Leon Zervos mastering Storm Thorgerson cover artChart performance EditChart 1997 PeakpositionCanada Top Albums CDs RPM 28 53Dutch Albums Album Top 100 29 16Finnish Albums Suomen virallinen lista 30 5French Albums SNEP 31 42German Albums Offizielle Top 100 30 9Hungarian Albums MAHASZ 32 10Norwegian Albums VG lista 33 20Swedish Albums Sverigetopplistan 34 14Swiss Albums Schweizer Hitparade 35 43US Billboard 200 36 52UK Albums OCC 37 163References Edit a b Wilson Rich 2007 Lifting Shadows The Authorized Biography of Dream Theater Essential Works Limited p 186 ISBN 978 0 9545493 7 4 Bio Derek Sherinian Official Website Archived from the original on September 18 2012 Retrieved July 22 2012 Wilson Rich 2007 Lifting Shadows The Authorized Biography of Dream Theater Essential Works Limited p 188 ISBN 978 0 9545493 7 4 RhinoEntertainment Dream Theater 20th Anniversary Documentary Video YouTube Retrieved July 23 2012 Timestamp 30 35 Wilson Rich 2007 Lifting Shadows The Authorized Biography of Dream Theater Essential Works Limited p 193 ISBN 978 0 9545493 7 4 Wilson Rich 2007 Lifting Shadows The Authorized Biography of Dream Theater Essential Works Limited p 195 ISBN 978 0 9545493 7 4 Portnoy Mike How did Dream Theater figure out which songs to include and which ones to leave off of Falling Into Infinity Mike Portnoy Official Website Archived from the original on August 2 2016 Retrieved July 15 2012 Portnoy Mike What are the contents of the 1999 Fan Club CD and how many were pressed Mike Portnoy Official Website Archived from the original on October 14 2014 Retrieved October 6 2014 Wilson Rich 2007 Lifting Shadows The Authorized Biography of Dream Theater Essential Works Limited p 196 ISBN 978 0 9545493 7 4 Portnoy Mike How did Desmond Child get involved in co writing You Not Me Mike Portnoy Official Website Archived from the original on August 2 2016 Retrieved July 20 2012 Wilson Rich 2007 Lifting Shadows The Authorized Biography of Dream Theater Essential Works Limited p 201 ISBN 978 0 9545493 7 4 a b c Wilson Rich 2007 Lifting Shadows The Authorized Biography of Dream Theater Essential Works Limited p 202 ISBN 978 0 9545493 7 4 Portnoy Mike How did the album title for Falling Into Infinity come about Mike Portnoy Official Website Archived from the original on August 2 2016 Retrieved July 21 2012 Falling into Infinity Liner Notes EastWest Records 1997 Wilson Rich 2007 Lifting Shadows The Authorized Biography of Dream Theater Essential Works Limited p 189 ISBN 978 0 9545493 7 4 Wilson Rich 2007 Lifting Shadows The Authorized Biography of Dream Theater Essential Works Limited p 203 ISBN 978 0 9545493 7 4 Portnoy Mike What were the working title for songs on Falling Into Infinity Mike Portnoy Official Website Archived from the original on August 2 2016 Retrieved July 22 2012 a b Wilson Rich 2007 Lifting Shadows The Authorized Biography of Dream Theater Essential Works Limited p 205 ISBN 978 0 9545493 7 4 a b c Ulrey Jeremy Falling into Infinity Dream Theater AllMusic Rovi Corporation Retrieved November 22 2013 Portnoy Mike Was Anna Lee inspired influenced by Elton John s music Mike Portnoy Official Website Archived from the original on August 2 2016 Retrieved July 22 2012 Billboard Artists Dream Theater Billboard Retrieved July 27 2015 Wilson Rich 2007 Lifting Shadows The Authorized Biography of Dream Theater Essential Works Limited p 208 ISBN 978 0 9545493 7 4 RhinoEntertainment Dream Theater 20th Anniversary Documentary Video YouTube Retrieved July 22 2012 Timestamp 33 30 Portnoy Mike Would Mike say that Falling Into Infinity a blatant attempt at radio success Mike Portnoy Official Website Archived from the original on August 2 2016 Retrieved July 22 2012 Dream Theater Falling Into Infinity Demos 2007 Mike Portnoy Official Website Retrieved July 22 2012 Portnoy Mike What would Mike have done differently with Falling Into Infinity if he would have had full control Mike Portnoy Official Website Archived from the original on August 2 2016 Retrieved July 22 2012 JOHN PETRUCCI INTERVIEW THE LABEL DIDN T HAVE AN INFLUENCE ON THE FALLING INTO INFINITY ALBUM RockBook Retrieved July 27 2015 Top RPM Albums Issue 3347 RPM Library and Archives Canada Retrieved January 3 2022 Dutchcharts nl Dream Theater Falling Into Infinity in Dutch Hung Medien Retrieved November 18 2021 a b Dream Theater Falling Into Infinity in Finnish Musiikkituottajat IFPI Finland Retrieved November 18 2021 Lescharts com Dream Theater Falling Into Infinity Hung Medien Retrieved November 18 2021 Album Top 40 slagerlista 1997 40 het in Hungarian MAHASZ Retrieved November 24 2021 Norwegiancharts com Dream Theater Falling Into Infinity Hung Medien Retrieved November 18 2021 Swedishcharts com Dream Theater Falling Into Infinity Hung Medien Retrieved November 18 2021 Swisscharts com Dream Theater Falling Into Infinity Hung Medien Retrieved November 18 2021 Dream Theater Billboard Retrieved November 18 2021 Chart Log UK Archived from the original on October 19 2015 Retrieved July 21 2012 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Falling into Infinity amp oldid 1147305498, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
