Customer Reviews

Live at the Fillmore

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am normally not a fan of live music, mostly because I am a fan of polished production technique, and many bands who perform the styles of music I enjoy (progressive/avant-garde rock and metal) are often handicapped by the nature of their music when they attempt to reproduce it live. Dream Theater is one exception, and Dredg is another. Of course, these two bands are completely different stylistically, but they have the same knack for pulling off complex, instrument-heavy, effects-laden music in a live setting.

The members of Dredg are an extremely grandiose and artistic band, and their albums are sonically dense, with sound effects, choral sections, a cornucopia of guitar effects, and multi-tracked vocals and guitar. Because of this, their music would be extremely difficult to perform live, but as this concert attests, they perform admirably. I was especially glad to notice that Gavin Hayes' vocals were up to par, since his vocal style is such an integral part of the band's sound. Another neat thing about this live performance for Dredg fans is the inclusion not only a good set list of songs from their last three albums, but one or two unreleased rarities. Long set (19 tracks), great value and excellent performance.

I have seen Dredg live about 6 times and not one show was not worth the time and money, in fact I would like to see a Dredg show as much as possible if I could, but this live cd is just as good. Same ol Road has been given a new face and well as Sang Real. The show opener and closer are fantastic and the old school favorite of mine "Yahataze" is performed as well. The sound is immaculate and the show is intense. I can never get enough of listening to Dredg, they are one of the top five best live acts in the world!

After hearing El Cielo and Catch without Arms, I was intrigued by the music of Dredg but not overly impressed. This live recording has prompted a newfound respect for the band. The songs are replicated quite accurately and the vocals, had they not been up to par, would have destroyed this recording. Fortunately, Gavin Hayes does a remarkable job of maintaining great voice throughout and proves that Dredg is serious about their music. The selection of songs is great and makes for a perfect addition to the Dredg library. It would have been great if this concert was filmed for a DVD. Maybe that's next.

If you're a fan of dredg then you'll probably like this album. It's them...live. I've seen some live footage and heard some live recordings and I've never been that impressed. Nor am I big fan of live records but I enjoy this one. They definately pulled it off well. The songs are quite simular to their album versions though they do very slightly. I usually much prefer the polished album versions but the small differences in the live performance add a new element to the songs I've heard so man hundreds of times already. It's a great listen and makes for great background noise also. So if you're a dredg fan and looking to pick up something new i'd recomend this. (there are also a few previously unreleased tracks which are sweet)

I have to admit that when I heard this CD was coming out, I was skeptical as to how dredg were going to pull off their live performance. Their studio work, as much as I love it, has more than a few "enhancements". Special effects like that are difficult to use live, and I wasn't sure how dredg's music would sound stripped down for the live recording. Thankfully, Live at the Fillmore is not much of a disappointment.

to start with the positives (which completely outweigh the negatives), the track selection is amazing. Not only a good selection from all 3 albums, but also a few rarities, including "Stone by Stone" and a different version of "The Ornament" with vocals. The instrumention, also, is excellent. the songs are played simillar enough to be easily recognizable, but different enough to make listening to them live worthwhile. To be honest, I wasn't a big fan of the way the instruments sounded on "Catch" and on this CD the instruments sound much more earthly. The songs from "El Cielo", which suffer the most from missing the special effects from the studio recordings, have all been arranged and the compromises don't bring them down at all. "Canyon Behind Her" is definitely a highlight, esspecially the new "heaviness" of the breakdown section. My only minor gripe is that Gavin's vocals don't sound as strong as they do in the studio. However, this is common of all live recordings. He could no have done a better job, and neither could many other vocalists. The only differences is, most bands go back into the studio and correct little things like that afterwards and apparently this band doesn't. This is truely the band live, and so in the respect my only complaint is more of a compliment anyway.

If you're a true Dredg fan than you will love this cd to add to your collection! It includes a few songs off each album that the band has released previously. This is a great cd then to enjoy a variety of songs without having to get all three albums loaded up in your cd changer, you can enjoy abit of variety on just this one!

Dredg is clearly a step above most bands. Their live performance is outstanding and I don't usually care for 'live' recordings.

Okay so I dont usually buy live CD's due to the fact that the sound often sucks, or that the audience cheering/shouting etc. etc gets in the way of the actual music. Not so in this case. I was really impressed by the clarity and quality of the music on this CD, but that might be a bit biased because dredg is easily my favourite band of all time. Ive listened to this CD so many times and the tracks Sang Real, Same Ol' Road and the closing songs Yatahazee and 90 Hr Sleep are definite standouts. It was also nice to hear otherwise unreleased music with Stone by Stone and a short intro, The Warbler.

This CD very much focuses on the songs itself and the tracks cut off after each song to skip to the next one. This isn't such annoyance though. I recommend this CD to anyone who values quality live recordings and awesome music from an awesome band;) Next thing dredg need to do is release a live DVD!

I was at this show, and I still listen to this album over and over.

dredg have so much energy live that it is unbelievable. This live CD is over 70 minutes long, and has a setlist to die for, including some previously unreleased tracks like The Warbler and Stone By Stone. The only song I would have liked to see would be Matroshka, but that doesn't stop this from being a 5-star album. Highly recommended for dredg fans; a worthy purchase either way.