Customer Reviews

When Dreams Become Reality

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(20)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I definitely didn't expect to like this as much as I did.

Musically, the album is wave after wave of rocking hooks rarely interrupted by a slow song or two. The lead singer has a truly infectious voice that feels like a genuine throwback to the bands Thieves and Liars are clearly trying to emulate. The guitar licks are memorable, though most of them take a few listens to sink in.

My complaints are minor. The album would have been better served if the two slow songs weren't clustered together. Also, the two (nearly) intrumental tracks feel like slight letdowns considering the meat of the rest of the package.

Lyrically, the album is modeled over the story of Joseph from the Old Testament (you know- magnificent coat, sold to slavers, rules Egypt?). Complemented by a booklet that illustrates the story, this is a concept album that largely pans out.

Finally, I'm grateful for what rare bands like this do for christian rock. The industry has, in the past, limited itself to cliches- feeling like a parody of the secular industry rather than another legitimate arm of it. With bands like this infusing the field with their creativity, there is hope yet for those who occasionally want to listen to quality music that reflects their beliefs and values.

Highly Recommended.

Thieves and Liars "When Dreams Become Reality" wears its influences on its sleeve, from psychedelic soundscapes reminiscent of Pink Floyd to the raw drive of Led Zeppelin (with a little Deep Purple thrown in). The problem with the album, which keeps it from being awesome (in my opinion), is that the band doesn't really find their own sound throughout. While listening to this, I couldn't get past the idea that the band is still looking for their own musical voice. I do applaud the group for bringing back the concept album - the Christian themes do not come across as preachy or overdrawn.

Standout tracks from this album include "Betrayed by Blood" and "Road to Nowhere". Borrow this album, if you can, and make your own decision before buying.

The debut album by Thieves & Liars, "When Dreams Become Reality" sounds familiar yet refreshing upon an initial listen. As many reviews have noted Thieves & Liars channel much from the great acts of the 70's, like Zeppelin and Floyd, but they also sound a bit like latter day acts like the Black Crows. While none of this comparison is bad, what does it ultimately say about a new band? What is their unique contribution to the tapestry of rock? Upon multiple and extended spins of the disc the listener is likely to tire of Thieves & Liars, not to the point where one won't still give it play, but rather to the numbing point of so many other forgettable albums of the 21st century. "When Dream Become Reality" is definitely not a bad album, but it is largely forgettable and Thieves & Liars may be one of those groups that simply vanish from the musical map with little hoopla.

Led Zeppelin. AC/DC. This album makes big brags. But can it back them up? Yes and no.
On one hand, these guys aren't greats. But they sure are talented. The singer has a great voice and the guitarist sure can play.
The album starts off like a good concept album should. A rumbling almost ominous open building into the next couple tracks of hard rock, then spilling into a set of soft melodies. From there it finishes off with a couple more rock tracks and a nice introspective track at the end.

Now personally I think the band reminds me more of Velvet Revolver than AC/DC. Is there enough punch to the album to set it apart from any other rock band? Well, that's debatable.

Bottom Line:
Liars and Thieves has a great starting point, and some good musicians. But there are a couple things weighing them down. Like is there really that much of an audience for their kind of rock? And what are they waiting for? Seems like they are on the brink of greatness but something is holding them back. Honestly looking forward to their next album. And this one isn't too bad either.

I requested this CD because of the group's comparison with Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd. I assumed that the compositions would be fresh and exciting. Instead, I've found nicely stitched pieces that reminded me Deep Purple, maybe some Led Zeppelin, and one Pink Floyd's voice snippet.

In other words, the group delivers rich sound that was interesting to hear once, but which was not novel enough to keep me focused. The songs sounded to me like nicely stitched sound patterns. Talented performance, but not the compositions.

...if I said I didn't like this album.

I do!

If you are fan of Classic Rock of the '70s and '80s, this album is for you. The CD packs a mighty punch song after song. The musicianship reveals the talents of this dynamic group -- delivering a CD that reminds us why we love classic rock so much.

The album begins with a song entitled The Dream. It has a sort of Rick Wakeman meets Led Zeppelin vibe--starting soft and slow and crescendoing into a ripping guitar solo. You'll hear organ mixed with raw interludes surreal background vocals.

The Dream segues to Betrayed By Blood - -powered by a fast drum beat, a driving guitar riff and, raw AC/DC style vocals. This song will get your blood pumpin' with it's unapologetic homage to Rush.

Song after song you will find yourself wanting to jump into air guitar improvs -- they are all supported by a catchy guitar riffs that are energized and riveting. And it doesn't stop there. The subsequent tracks stay strong or get stronger with surprises at every corner.

Tracks 5 & 9 (Run & Good Times) have overtones of Black Sabbath -- and again made me want to get up and rock. This album is never boring.

Track 6 (Alone) is one of the few slow tunes--and reminds me of a cross between Floyd and Emerson, Lake & Palmer. It's not sweet but pensive, with a melodic guitar offering harmonized by strong, emotional vocals. It's a reprieve from all the hard jamming of the previous tunes and prepares for the second half of the CD which is decisively more mellow for a few songs before the tempo is kicked up again.

The last song (Author of Dreams) winds down with a rock-opera style delivery that serves as the perfect framing device from first to last track. It helps us recover our blood pressure, like a cool down walk after a hard workout.

The lyrics are thoughtful and emotional. Production quality is excellent, even given the fact that they are using equipment methods from the '60s and '70s. It certainly lends things an authentic air. The packaging is also first rate, and the album comes with a storybook that is well illustrated and enjoyable to read. Top marks there.

If I had to find fault, then I would say it is perhaps the variety of sources Thieves and Liars draws it's inspiration from. Instead of sounding like one group, it sounds like several. Vocals change from song to song. Playing styles vary. This is not bad, but it indicates to me that Thieves and Liars have still yet to find their own voice. Perhaps by their second album they will have more of a focus.

That said, I really enjoy When Dreams Become Reality and anticipate it perhaps even becoming a new classic in my collection.

Perhaps the worse thing about this CD is the tag and review that attempts to bring in comparisons to some of the greatest classic rock bands ever; i.e. Zeppelin, Floyd and AC/DC. 'Thieves & Liars' definitely shows they are influenced by the greats, but at no point do I feel they are trying to be or replace the mighty Zep and/or Floyd.

The most common criticism I read is in reference to the lack of consistency or the band not being able to find their sound. Those that feel this way are totally missing the point and should go back to the simple riffs and basic hard rock of Zeppelin and AC/DC. What 'Thieves & Liars' has done is to create an amazing concept album. Some people just can't understand concept albums. The whole purpose of the varied styles is to convey emotion. Much like an orchestra might do or a movie score or even an opera. The varied pace and style helps to bring you on Joseph's journey. The brilliant lyrics also help the listener to get inside Joseph's head and gain an understanding of what his emotions and feeling might have been. People need to get beyond the 'Technicolor Dreamcoat' and read the original story to fully understand that this was a big event in Biblical history. Put yourself in Joseph's sandles and try to imagine what he went through during this traumatic time. THEN give this CD another listen. Maybe then you'll understand what a great job the guys of 'Thieves & Liars' did on their debut album.

one first listen to this CD will tell you that this is a mixture of hard rock and progressive. it is like a band mixing Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and Queensryche and singing about the Bible. this is a concept album about the life of Joseph. this is the second band from the Facedown roster that I have listened to that is not metalcore. I enjoy metalcore, don't get me wrong. song no.2, entitled "Betrayed By Blood", kicks into high gear. there are a lot of metal/hard rock bands that inspire you to think, and Thieves and Liars are one of them. the title of this album, "When Dreams Become Reality" reflects off of the life of Joseph in the Book of Genesis. if you are into hard rock and progressive or are an overall metal fan, whether Christian or secular, you should get this album.

The content of Thieves & Liars' album "When Dreams Become Reality" is very much a mixed bag, quality-wise. At times it's incredible stuff; at others though it's sub-par. I think that has something to do with the fact that T&L almost classifies in three categories of music altogether: one in which they shine well (acid rock), one in which they pass (goth rock), and one in which they fall precariously close to being downright terrible (classic hard rock).

In general, I don't much like lead singer Joey Bradford's vocals. Everyone else is pretty spot-on, even when the music itself is lackluster, but Bradford's voice just lacks power and vocal quality. There are places in which this works, don't get me wrong, but in others - specifically the more upbeat classic hard rock tracks - his wavering performance leaves a lot to be desired. Perhaps some formal training (or cough drops?) would do him well.

However, I'm not saying I don't like this album. It has its highlights, and those highlights are well worth it. I'll break it down by genre:

CLASSIC HARD ROCK: Tracks 2, 3, 4, 5 and 9 are very 70s/80s classic hard rock. Hearing these, I get simultaneous visions of Black Sabbath, Kiss, Metallica, AC/DC and Aerosmith in varying degrees. Track 2, "Betrayed by Blood", is the best of these in my opinion, but the rest fall into the sub-par category mentioned earlier. The riffs and beats are very distinct, yet very average, and our lead singer fails to impress with his runny vocals. Truthfully, I would like to see the band play in other playgrounds than this: I love hard rock very much. But I don't love Thieves & Liars hard rock at all.

ACID ROCK: Tracks 1, 6, 7, 10, 11 and 12 are very different. Bringing to mind some of the acid rock ballads of the 70s, they sound like a good mix of "Moody Blues and Led Zeppelin meets Pink Floyd". This is what T&L does well: slow and trance-like, simple but powerful. And my old nemesis Joey doesn't detract from things here, not overstretching himself but actually fitting in very well with the style. Particular highlights include Track 6, "Alone", a depressing, slow ballad which is emotionally powerful in every way; and my favorite piece on the album, Track 7, "Forgotten", which, like the best bits from Floyd and other 70s ilk, doesn't hurry along its 9-minute course, being long but worth every minute.

GOTH ROCK: This leaves Track 8, "When Dreams Become Reality", the title track, in a category of its own. Consider modern and last-decade gothic rock bands like Marilyn Manson and Nine Inch Nails, and throw in a touch of old school 80s rock sounds and riffs, and you wouldn't be far off. It's a good halfway point for the two genres, and I'd like to see T&L experiment more with this in the future.

So there you have it. This album is grating where it's bad, decent where it's good, a solid retro tribute to old school metal and rock. I give it 3.5 out of 5 stars (rounded up to 4 out of respect for the work that goes into producing any album). I've heard better, but it's still very much worth a listen.

Thieves and Liars seeks to tell the story of Joseph the biblical dream interpreter. Its a concept record that succeeds in it's concept but at times seems to be all over the place musically. At its best its an homage to the kind of 70's rock music that inspired so many of todays best bands. The singer finds the perfect pitch as to not sound too girly. It seems that the band plays great together and certainly knows how to take advantage of what they do well. Where the album kind of loses me is when they try too hard to do the hard groovin rock songs. The best tracks were the slow, moody, mellow, melodic ones. Whenever they slowed down the tempo I was loving it but when things got kicked up a notch I started to tune out and lose interest. I hope their next one focuses more on the slwoer side of things. The less they try to BE a hard rock band the better they'll be at it. A band thats still finding it's own sound but does manage to pull out one hell of a debut. This is usually the kind of record you get from a band on their third or fourth time out. Perhaps they are a bit ahead of themselves but I'd rather a band shoot for the stars then aim for the ground. Solid release. Looking forward to more stuff from the band.