DGM - Dreamland

Year of Release: 2001
Label: Elevate Records
Catalog Number: n/a
Format: CD
Total Time: 62:35:00

After a couple of tries at stinging the metal world, DGM has finally hit some pay dirt with this effort. Previous efforts have resulted in little or no buzz, and plagued by poor singing, poor production, and overall general poor songwriting, it was a wonder if they would ever rebound and get themselves on the map. Grabbing themselves a new singer, a killer production, and some serious songwriting, DGM released Dreamland to an unsuspecting audience who pretty much embraced it from the word go.

The music is now much more progressive, although still maintaining a bit of a hard rock feel at times, and it's much more mature than previous releases. The main ingredient here is definitely the addition of Titta Tani, who brings a vengeance and urgency to the band with his aggressive Joe Lynn Turner style. The band must have fed on this aspect and have come up with equally aggressive songs, realizing that they have a good thing going here in Tani, and capitalizing on his talent and most likely being inspired to write some awesome tunes as they have here. At times, the music can approach speedy levels, other times the music seems a little hard rock focused with its happy choruses, and then at other times the music is downright heavy and punchy and in your face, showing the aggressive side I speak about. The guitarist, Diego Reali has kicked it up a notch and adds tons of neo-classically based solos, while the keyboards complement the overall sound with ease and beauty. Drumming is equally punchy as well, with a certain sense of accomplishment heard in the beats, as if they all know they finally have something good here on their hands.

The production, which has plagued the band since its inception, is way above average and almost outstanding this time out. Every instrument shines with crystal sound, and accents each and every members' contributions to the fullest, especially the vocals and guitar work. The vocals stand out remarkably - as it should for a singer this good. With nary an accent, Titta's vocals come screaming out of the speakers clearly and precisely. The rest of the instruments follow suit and have their shining moment in the sound dept.

The band has been accused of being Symphony X clones in the past, which I never totally agreed with, but on Dreamland, the band steers clear of that accusation and leans more towards a more melodic metal style with progressive elements thrown in for added enjoyment. "Reason To Live" is without a doubt their best effort to date, combining some of their speedy elements with some crunch, shows what the band is capable of doing on a regular basis, and I find myself hoping that the band stays on track now with this style and continues to progress and make the music they are certainly capable of. The huge keyboard sound, the progressive elements, the guitar work, the incredible vocals can only add up to greatness the next time out and I hope they can achieve this. It's good to see a band keep at it despite the odds and release an excellent CD like Dreamland. Fans of melodic metal with added progressive elements will not be disappointed.

Tracklisting:
Dreamland (6:59) / Eternity (7:09) / Lost In Time (7:03) / The Rain Falls In The Desert (5:17) / Reason To Live (5:33) / Ego's Battle (5:05) / Lie! (7:20) / Sweet Surrender (7:01) / Feeling Forever (6:48) / You Don't Remember (I'll Never Forget) (4:20) *

*Bonus Track (Japanese Version)

Musicians:
Titta Tani - vocals
Diego Reali - guitars, bass, backing vocals
Maurixio Pariotti - keyboards, backing vocals
Fabio Costantino - drums, backing vocals

Discography:
Random Access Zone (1996)
Change Direction (1997)
Wings Of Time (1999)
Dreamland (2001)
Hidden Place (2003)
Misplaced (2004)
Different Shapes (2007)
Frame (2009)

Genre: Melodic Metal

Origin IT

Added: October 13th 2002
Reviewer: Larry "LarryD" Daglieri

Artist website: www.dgmsite.com
Hits: 2250
Language: english