When I first heard the subtitle for this DVD, 20th Anniversary World Tour, it sounded absurd. Could my favorite "new" band really be going on 20 years old now? It seems like it was just yesterday when I first heard "Pull Me Under" on the radio, courtesy of Baltimore's 98-Rock, and was completely blown away. Then again, it was 14 years ago.

The song's parent album, Images And Words, is one of those rare gems that only comes along a few times each decade and completely alters your musical perspective. Dream Theater was everything I had been waiting for in a band - the progressive grandeur of Yes, the power and intensity of Metallica, the melodic charm of Boston, and the instrumental virtuosity of Rush. They were my band, and progressive metal was my new religion.

The core members of Dream Theater — John Petrucci, John Myung, and Mike Portnoy —  first came together while attending Boston's Berklee College of Music in 1985. After recruiting Petrucci's old high school bandmate, Kevin Moore, to play keyboards, and then adding Chris Collins on lead vocals, they formed the band Majesty and released a self-produced demo tape in 1986. Fellow New Yorker Charlie Dominici eventually replaced Collins on lead vocals and the band was soon forced to change their name after discovering that another Majesty had already beaten them to it.

In 1988 they signed their first record deal and set out to record their debut album as Dream Theater, titled When Dream And Day Unite. After only a few live shows promoting the new album, Dominici was abruptly fired from the band, and the search for another new lead vocalist would begin again.

In 1991, after auditioning more than 200 people, the band finally found a new lead singer in Canada's James LaBrie. That same year they scored a new record deal with ATCO Records and finished up their landmark sophomore album, Images And Words, which would finally put them on the map.

I have seen Dream Theater on nearly every tour, playing all types of venues. As good as these guys are in the studio, they are even better live. The insane level of complexity to some of their songs does not even phase these guys when performing live. I doubt you will be seeing too many Dream Theater tribute bands any time soon.

The Images And Words tour will always be my most memorable since it was the first time I saw them play live. It was a small, outdoor concert pavilion and only a few hundred people were in attendance, but the show was magical. They reached their peak on the Scenes From A Memory tour and have not looked back since.