Warthur Opting to call their second album "Liquid Tension Experiment 2" rather than give it a distinctive title was a sound call on the part of Liquid Tension Experiment, because like so many sequels the album is just like its predecessor, only more so.

On the plus side, there's no equivalent here of the extremely long Three Minute Warning improvisation from the first disc; all the music on here seems much more composed and there's little sign of the band just jamming away simply to fill up the CD. So if you wanted to love the first album but found yourself hitting "stop" as Three Minute Warning began you'll probably enjoy this one from beginning to end.

On the other hand, what's left is much the same as the composed material on the previous album - very technically flashy, little emotional depth or substance. If you're cool with that, add another star.

Warthur Liquid Tension Experiment were a supergroup put together at the suggestion of the Magna Carta label, who thought it'd be cool to get Mick Portnoy and John Petrucci of Dream Theater together with Tony Levin and Jordan Rudess for some jamming. The end result is an interesting instrumental album which, when it really cooks, is actually pretty fascinating.

To a certain extent you're listening to Jordan Rudess' audition for Dream Theater here, because it was in these sessions that Portnoy and Petrucci decided that Jordan was what that band needed in the keyboardist's spot, but if you set that point of historical interest aside the album is pleasant but a bit unfocused. Some of the more metal-tinged pieces are good, but when the band go full-out jazz fusion my attention begins to drift. The half hour long improv session of Three Minute Warning might be a fascinating insight into the band's working, but I suspect most people will prefer the preceding eight tracks of compositions which emerged from jam sessions such as that one; even there, though, my attention begins to drift after the first four tracks or so.

Add another star if you are particularly keen on listening to prog superstars jamming for jamming's sake, but for my part I tend to prefer more direction and focus and cohesion in prog metal; if you're the same, approach with caution.

Stooge Some sequels are right up there (if not higher) than the original: The Godfather Part 2, T2: Judgement Day, The Empire Strikes Back. LTE 2 is something of a sequel, and while I don’t think this one tops the first LTE, it can definitely stands proudly beside it.

Right off the bat, we get “Acid Rain”, which is probably heavier than any song that was on their previous album in spite of the constant presence of various keyboard sounds. One thing that I noticed immediately was a riff that repeats in the last few minutes of the track that sounds similar to Al Di Meola’s “Race With The Devil On Spanish Highway”.

“Biaxident” revisits a bit of that Dregs/Kansas progressive rock territory the band touched on greatly in the debut album. Rudess’ keys give this composition most of its colour. “914” has hints of 80’s fusion music in the tone and phrasing of Rudess’ playing. This fades into “Another Dimension”, which is one of the LTE songs that most reminds me of what Dream Theater does. In the more minimal riffing sections, Labrie’s vocals wouldn’t sound too foreign on top, but he’s got his own side projects to worry about.

While the debut only had “3 Minute Warning” to push casual listener’s patience, this album has a total of 3 tracks that push past the 10-minute mark. “When The Water Breaks” begins as a delicate number. The members soon deviate a bit spin off their exercises of skill, and the pacing of the track picks up speed as it moves on. “Chewbacca” does not quite bring the Wookie to mind, nor is it epic like the movies he starred in. I’d say it’s the least memorable track on this album despite the awesome name. Fortunately, with “Liquid Dreams” and album concluder “Hourglass”, both tracks that are on the softer side, the album ends on a bit of an upswing.

One thing that disappoints me with this one is that while the Petrucci-Portnoy-Rudess trio built on their already solid chemistry (all now DT members at this time), it seems like Tony Levin’s presence is reduced to some degree. While you can hear him throughout most of the album, the volume isn’t at the level it was on the debut (aside from on “914” and the few parts that make more liberal use of his skills). I also preferred his tone on the debut (in this case, a minor complaint), but this may account for my perceived differences in volume.

I very much consider LTE 2 to be a natural follow-up to their first album, and think this too is a rather good instrumental rock/metal record. The first gets the edge in terms of composition, but this follow up tops it in the increased willingness to experiment.

Stooge This all-star band consists of Dream Theater members John Petrucci and Mike Portnoy, with former Dixie Dregs keyboardist (and future DT member) Jordan Rudess, and King Crimson/Peter Gabriel’s Tony Levin holding the low end on bass and Chapman Stick.

When Portnoy was given the invitation to form this supergroup, he could have took the easy way out and produced instrumentals in the vein of Dream Theater’s “Erotomania” or the frantic sections in “Metropolis, Pt. 1”. The passion and spirit carries over for making well-thought out and interesting compositions, but this project is musically quite different from Portnoy’s main band.

It definitely has something to do with the influence of Steve Morse on Petrucci’s playing style as well as Rudess being a former Dreg, but a good portion of this material reminds me of a heavier Dixie Dregs (minus the country/bluegrass elements). Tracks such as “Paradigm Shift”, “Kindred Spirits” and “Universal Mind” have that tight rhythmic groove and soaring leads that much of Morse’s material contains (with the Dregs and solo).

No doubt that Petrucci shreds on this album, but there are some rather memorable moments where his playing either relies on fewer notes but more emphasis on subtlety and melody (“Osmosis”, “Freedom Of Speech”, “State Of Grace”), but even in these moments the band can’t help but show off their chops. However, on the tracks “The Stretch” and “Chris and Kevin’s Excellent Adventure”, the theatrics are minimized slightly as guitar is eliminated from the equation. These tracks serve as effectively punchy interludes to showcase Tony Levin’s abilities, with most of the support coming from Rudess on “The Stretch” and Portnoy in “Adventure”.

Just as things were going along smoothly, we hit the ironically titled “3 Minute Warning”. The liner notes give warning about “extreme self-indulgence”, and that really isn’t that far off. This piece, 28 minutes spread over 5 tracks, is basically an extended jam session. I mustn’t have found it all that worthwhile initially since I didn’t have this part of the album ripped to my computer prior to this review, and while there are a few bright spots, it’s like most jams – hit and miss.

Overall, I’d say LTE is a well-put together instrumental album that should please many fans of progressive rock or metal.

UMUR "Liquid Tension Experiment" is the self-titled full-length studio album by US progressive metal act Liquid Tension Experiment. The album was released by Magna Carta in March 1998. Liquid Tension Experiment is an instrumental progressive metal/ fusion project by three members of Dream Theater and bassist Tony Levin (known for his work with among others Peter Gabriel and King Crimson).

The music on the album is intrumental progressive metal/ fusion. All musicians are extremely skilled and we´re treated to technical playing on a very high level. While the tracks feature re-occuring themes, much of the material sound like it was created while jamming. Tony Levin´s use of the chapman stick gives the bass part of the music a rather significant sound, but it´s mostly guitarist John Petrucci and keyboard player Jordan Rudess who leads the show with one blistering solo after another. There´s room for more mellow melodic work too though and the album balances between faster paced progressive metal/ fusion and mellower almost new age sounding sections. Drummer Mike Portnoy is as usual a powerhouse.

While the album is in many ways a both pleasant and solid effort, I generally think it´s too obvious that this is a side-project the members created to have fun. It´s not like the music reflect that they have anything important on heart or that they spent oodles of time writing and discussing how the music should sound. While such a loose approach to writing music works for some, I wouldn´t say I find this particular album a great artistic success. If you think you can enjoy light weight progressive metal/ fusion with a rather carefree approach to writing memorable tunes this might be something for you. For me personally the album passes by without many hooks or memorable moments to hold on to and I´m ultimately left a bit unimpressed with the songwriting and with the sterile sound production too. A 3 star rating is warranted.