Review: LEVIN MINNEMANN RUDESS “LMR” 2013

Review By Sagiv Shaniv

LMR Artist: LEVIN MINNEMANN RUDESS (supergroup)
Album: LMR
Label: Lazy Bones
Release Date: October 2013

Track list:
1. Marcopolis
2. The Twitch
3. Frumious Banderfunk
4. The Blizzard
5. Mew
6. Afu Vulu
7. Decent
8. Scrod
9. Orbiter
10. Enter the Core
11. Ignorant Elephant
12. Lakeshore
13. Dancing Feet
14. Service Engine

Here we are again my readers, ready and set for another exquisite experience named: “LMR album Review.”
What are we dealing with here? It is a super group composed of three highly appraised musicians: Jordan Rudess, the phenomenal keyboards-and-wizardly-sounds player from Dream Theater, Marco Minnemann, the ever-busy drummer (and guitarist on this piece), with dozens of albums in which he took part in his record and Tony Levin, the virtuous bass player with seniority of over 40 years and counting.
Considering the rich background of these musicians, it is no surprise the album is so diverse. Every track sounds different from the next and with a fresh approach to progressive instrumental music.
The use of the instruments is remarkable and the players’ experience with them is strongly felt, even a progressive music layman can tell those guys have earnestness.
The album is rich with bizarre sounds thanks to Jordan Rudess, the iPad apps wizard. Tony Levin contributes his part as well with complicated bass lines and artistic chapman stick (an instrument I was not familiar with prior to this album) melodies. There is little to say about the tight drumming, for it is known that Marco Minnemann is rather outstanding in this field – it is up to the listener to get to know this musician’s unique style.

The music as a whole is superb. All is in place, with various tracks and original tunes across the album. Every piece of this puzzle speaks for itself. Some are mid-tempo, some are lightning-fast and technical, but all express the same spirit of love for musical exploration.
However, I believe this album is not for every common listener. Some might say it’s rather simple for a progressive album, but I reject this notion. Yet, I believe a Dream Theater fan (such as I) will enjoy and understand this piece more than the common listener, due to many a motif present in this album which are similar to those found in DT instrumentals.
As of conclusion, this album is excellent in its niche. I am skeptical of the commercial success it will gain, but that is normal for such albums; a listener with a progressive background will enjoy it and that’s the important thing. Rock!

Rating 9/10