Back in the early years of the millennium, progressive metal veterans Dream Theater honoured several of their favourite bands by playing their records from start to finish. These renditions include Deep Purple's Made in Japan, Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon and Iron Maiden's The Number of the Beast. Lost Not Forgotten Archives: Master of Puppets - Live in Barcelona, 2002 obviously features the band's homage to the legendary thrash metal quartet that might be the most commercially successful genre band ever.

It might be debatable whether one prefers Metallica's gritty originals or Dream Theater's more playful renditions of the material. Nobody can however deny that the eight songs played here are executed with technically stunning musicianship. The drum play by Mike Portnoy is dynamic, playful and tight all at once and easily outperforms Lars Ulrich's efficient but simpler style. John Myung is able to replicate Cliff Burton's style easily which is remarkable on its own but sadly fails to add his own note to the original material. John Petrucci on the other side has to vary constantly between gritty riffs and melodic soloing and accomplishes these transitions with remarkable ease that underlines the fact that he is one of the greatest guitarists in the world. James LaBrie's vocals sound surprisingly gritty as he is clearly enjoying himself while performing this unusual material. His vocals might not be as unique as James Hetfield's original performances but the vocals are nevertheless the most positive surprise on this release. Perhaps he should focus on thrash metal on his next solo album. Jordan Rudess has the difficult job to add keyboard sounds to support John Petrucci on guitar while the original material didn't have any of that. While the keyboards add new touches here and there, they are simply stated rarely employed and overall rather unnecessary. The production is raw which benefits the grittier sounds but it's slightly irritating during announcements and crowd recordings.

At the end of the day, some elements here sound better than in the original versions such as the dynamic drum play and outstanding guitar work. The vocals are on the same high level which comes as this release's most positive surprise. The bass guitar play and the keyboards could however sound slightly more adventurous. The final result is certainly worth the attention of both Dream Theater and Metallica fans. I'm a fan of both bands and didn't expect to like this bootleg as much as I do. It has a lot of replay value and it's very interesting to compare it to the original material. Check this release out on Spotify and buy the record if you end up liking it as much as I do.

Final rating: 80%

The third release in Dream Theater's new archives series is Lost Not Forgotten Archives: Train of Thought - Instrumental Demos (2003). Initially released twelve years ago, this record is only interesting for the most adamant collectors, faithful fans and musicians who appreciate Dream Theater for their instrumental skills but have issues with James LaBrie's vocals. From the latter perspective, Mike Portnoy fan boys might consider this record a dream come true.

However, James LaBrie's melodic vocals breathe life into the band's technically appealing musicianship. Without him, many performances sound like a mixture of jam sessions and endless instrumental wankery. This is why things are quickly getting boring here. The opening ''In the Name of God'' might be almost two minutes shorter than the official version but it feels much longer due to the lack of diversity, emotions and power brought by the vocals. The focused, poignant and sinister single ''As I Am'' also works only half as well without its charismatic chorus.

There are a few positive exceptions when the demo versions sound as great as the regular songs. The shorter rendition of ballad ''Vacant'' sounds refreshing as it clocks in just under three minutes and should have been kept as concise for the final version in my opinion. Instrumental tune ''Stream of Consciousness'' is slightly longer than the official version but ends on some dynamic studio banter.

At the end of the day, Dream Theater's Lost Not Forgotten Archives: Train of Thought - Instrumental Demos (2003) is only interesting for a limited number of fans. This might be a welcome release if you are either a musician eager to learn how to play these songs or if you don't like vocalist James LaBrie. Occasional and even regular fans can skip these demos without any regrets and focus on the other more interesting archives releases so far such as the energetic live rendition Lost Not Forgotten Archives: Master of Puppets - Live in Barcelona, 2002.

Final rating: 55%

Lost Not Forgotten Archives: A Dramatic Tour of Events – Select Board Mixes is the second release in the new Dream Theater archives series started earlier this year. This double-album had been released digitally as Happy Holidays seven and a half years earlier. Only adamant collectors will be willing to pay roughly twenty bucks for a release that was a free download just to have a physical version with a new cover artwork.

The release itself has more positive than negative elements to offer. On the positive side, this record offers two discs with a total of thirteen songs and a running time of two hours. The selected tracks include some intriguing rarities such as power ballad ''Peruvian Skies'', narrative progressive metal epic ''The Great Debate'' and the airy, dreamy and imaginative ''The Count of Tuscany'' that clocks in at just under twenty-two minutes. The musicianship is excellent as usual. New drummer Mike Mangini is given the occasion to shine in his ''Drum Solo'' as well as in the diversified instrumental ''Ytse Jam''. Quiet bassist John Myung delivers the goods in the double closer consisting of his own complex epic ''Learning to Live'' and the playful, powerful and sinister ''As I Am''. Guitarist John Petrucci convinces as usual with poignant riffs as heard in ''Endless Sacrifice'' and soulful melodic guitar leads as witnessed in ''Another Day''.

On the negative side, keyboardist Jordan Rudess shines a little bit less than he usually does. There are few solo spots or improvisations to be heard and the keyboards are sometimes buried under the guitar sounds in the production. Singer James LaBrie delivers good average performances that don't match his energetic vocal skills of the nineties or his recently established more mature sound in the past few years. The crowd recordings sound canny as if they had been made with an old cell phone. This release is overall best compared to the bootleg style presented on Chaos in Motion 2007-2008.

At the end of the day, Dream Theater's Lost Not Forgotten Archives: A Dramatic Tour of Events – Select Board Mixes is a good but not excellent live document that is only interesting for adamant collectors and faithful fans. Occasional fans can skip this release without any regrets but should check out other releases in the archives series such as the excellent Lost Not Forgotten Archives: Images and Words - Live in Japan, 2017.

Final rating: 70%

At fifty-six years old and more than thirty-five years into her impressive career, it only makes sense for Japanese legend Hamada Mari to release an extensive compilation with three discs, forty songs and two hours and thirty-one minutes of music. This release comes as a regular edition with a generous booklet and a limited edition with a forty-page photo booklet and a large plastic folder with a picture of the singer. Both editions offer value for money and are equally recommended to faithful collectors, occasional fans or new admirers who have only recently been coming across one of Japan's most influential and successful singers.

The songs on the three discs are presented in chronological order. Hamada Mari started as a heavy metal and hard rock artist supported by Loudness drummer Higuchi Munetaka, versatile compositor, guitarist and producer Kitajima Kenji, Make-Up guitarist Matsuzawa Hiroaki, X-Ray guitarist Yuasa Shin as well as Heavy Metal Army and Eastern Orbit keyboarder Nakajima Yuki. This impressive group of rock and metal musicians is responsible for Hamada Mari's early breakthrough with songs such as the energetic, melodic and pumping ''Tokio Makin' Love'' with its playful drum patterns, bumblebee bass guitar sounds, ecstatic guitar riffs and solos, atmospheric keyboard layers and the singer's own high-pitched screams that almost make her sound like a female counterpart of Judas Priest's legendary singer Rob Halford. The first disc also features some danceable but never shallow hard rock tunes like the catchy ''Misty Lady''. An extraordinary ballad can be found on the first disc with ''Promise in the History'' with its excellent keyboard layers and Hamada Mari's astonishing vocal range that will send shivers down your spine and make you want to cuddle your girlfriend.

The second disc shows a shift towards adult-oriented rock music and pop music. Even though the second disc is the weakest of the three in my opinion, Hamada Mari's pop music is never shallow and should easily please to fans of artists like Jennifer Rush. The free-spirited, light-hearted and positive ''Return to Myself'' as well as the uplifting ''Hey Mister Broken Heart'' convince with their sincere emotions and easily outperform many popular Western pop artists of the nineties.

The third disc represents a shifts towards symphonic rock and power metal territories with slightly progressive song structures and more epic lengths. The power metal epic ''Momentalia'', the atmospheric and profound ''Historia'' and the fast, melodic and sacral ''Black Rain'' best represent these changes here and show the pop singer not only returning to her heavy metal roots but adapting a more contemporary, intellectual and playful style where the instrumental work is as essential as the timeless vocals.

At the end of the day, Hamada Mari's Light for the Ages - 35th Anniversary Best～Fan's Selection is the perfect compilation for new fans, occasional admirers and faithful collectors alike. This is the first record of Japan's greatest singer that I have purchased and I have listened to this compilation many times in the past two years and a half. The compilation works particularly well on long car rides through untouched wilderness on smooth summer days. Anybody who likes hard rock, pop music, symphonic power metal or a combination of all those genres should purchase this outstanding release and support Hamada Mari while she's still releasing music and playing concerts.

Final rating: 90%

Whether you appreciate them or not, Japanese kawaii metal legends Babymetal, who have combined heavy metal musicianship with Japanese pop vocals and aesthetics, have been one of the most innovative and controversial bands of the past decade. Several viral singles were followed by the release of the successful first strike Babymetal. The band members grew up, gained more experienced and matured in their approach to music as witnessed on the excellent sophomore output Metal Resistance. The group's concerts also became more colourful, creative and emotional. That tendency started to change when backing singer, dancer and occasional songwriter Mizuno Yui left the band for health reasons roughly three years ago. Her energetic, joyful and innocent style is missing from a band that has continuously lost its unique appeal in the past three years and focused on collaborations with other musicians, singers and songwriters and shorter concerts relying on impressive special effects instead of emotional depth. The last studio record Metal Galaxy was already a step back in that regard but the recent concerts were also a lot less impressive than the ones the band had performed in its prime.

The group's latest live record 10 Babymetal Budokan celebrating the group's anniversary is another testament to the band's slow but steady decline. On paper, this release seems intriguing with two discs, thirteen songs and a running time of eighty-seven minutes. However, as soon as the new version of ''Babymetal Death'' kicks in, disappointment overthrows euphoria. Instead of having the singers perform energetically to this epic melodic death metal song, we get a new approach without any vocals and three additional minutes of aimless musicianship that makes for a directionless start.

The numerous guest appearances during the show prevent the band from being itself and can rather be seen as unnecessary distractions. Overrated melodic death metal singer Alissa White-Gluz's additional vocals on ''Distortion'' are completely pointless as the track would sound much better without her. F.Hero's nervous rap passages on ''PA PA YA!!'' sound like a gimmick that might be slightly amusing at first contact but quickly ends up being completely nerve-firing. Stretching quirky heavy metal song ''Headbangeeeeerrrrr!!!!!'' to seven and a half minutes, epic symphonic power metal anthem ''The One'' to nine and a half minutes and fast-paced and technically stunning power metal closer ''Road of Resistance'' to almost fifteen minutes weren't good choices as those renditions slow down efficiency, momentum and style alike.

To be honest, there are still a few decent performances to be found on 10 Babymetal Budokan that remind of old days when the focus was on the singers and their energetic performances. First single ''Doki Doki Morning'' still makes you want to jump around while headbanging and singing at the same time. Melodic hit single ''Karate'' is by far the best song on this double live album as it finds the perfect balance between emotions and grace while being catchy and epic at the same time. This concert would have benefited from some simpler approaches focusing on the two remaining singers instead of adding unnecessary guest performances and endless instrumental wankery.

Babymetal have recently been releasing a cryptic video that might either hint at a hiatus until the new album and touring cycle will begin or even an end of the band. If the band decided to carry on, it should either focus on integrating Mizuno Yui back into the band or on stripping things down and focusing on honest emotions rather than overwhelming diversity. As it is now, everything the band has released in its first seven years of existence remains highly recommendable but the outputs of the past four years have been disappointing. Perhaps a short hiatus and reorientation are exactly what this band needs in order to come back in full strengths in a few years.

Final rating: 33%