Dream Theater Album By Album Thread

Yeah, I'm gonna go there. I may be a newbie, but if there is any way to create a polarizing discussion, it is to ask a DT fan what their best album is.

And I know the rules, but I think for everyone's best interests, I'll start with the album that got 98% of the world introduced to the band: Images & Words. Then we'll do what everyone else did and go back and get that first album. I won't be doing singles, compilations, or live albums (studio only) and I'll only be doing label releases (they were rather prolific with fan club & 'bootleg' stuff) and will include the EP. For each album I post, I'm going to highlight each track (where it is worth doing) and call out which I think to be my favorite from the album (and thus draw further lines in the sand).

IMAGES & WORDS


The product of years of frustration - searching for a new singer, dealing with label woes - Images & Words shows off everything that would make Dream Theater the darling of prog rock for the next two-plus decades, even if many would not discover them until years later. Despite having one hit song (a joke that would later define their retrospective compilation), Images & Words would fly mostly under the radar, not going gold until several years later. But their rabid fan base, of which I became one at this album's time of release, would ensure they were not forgotten.

Nor will that damn triggered snare ever be....

1. "Pull Me Under" Kevin Moore 8:14

From those crisp clean opening notes, a new sound was defined. Dream Theater blew the doors off with the opener and dared others to compete. Lyrically also a strong work, the words borrow liberally from Shakespeare while building to each chorus's crescendo. The irony is, despite its sheer majesty, this song doesn't even come close to demonstrating the band's musicianship. There are the requisite time changes and finger-twisting solos, but one would have to only wait just a bit longer for more...

2. "Another Day" John Petrucci 4:23

When I hear that To Live Forever was dropped from this album in favor of this song, I shake my head. The song itself is not bad, but there is an almost Broadway feel to James Labrie's performance that would haunt DT's albums even to this day. And why they brought in a session musician for a sax solo is beyond me. But these are quibbles. This song is but a waystation to...

3. "Take the Time" Dream Theater 8:21

Here is your real introduction to what Dream Theater is. Eight-plus minutes of riffs, chords, beats, and solos taken from just about every genre of music imaginable. And with the song being one of the few true 'team' efforts in the DT songwriting canon, there is something for everyone here. However, despite the kick-ass nature of the song, it has always left me a bit cold. Great song, but it lacks the emotion of...

4. "Surrounded" Moore 5:30

Surrounded is where Dream Theater truly shows the diversity of their sound - that they can write solid tunes among the set-pieces. Moore's opening keys build to a feeling of being in a room where the sun is just beginning to creep in, echoed by his lyrics. Each verse adds to the idea of having your eyes opened by the love of another. I was touched by this song twenty years ago, and it still gets to me now and has one of my favorite lyrics. And while that delay-driven solo is just awesome, nothing could prepare you for...

5. "Metropolis—Part I: "The Miracle and the Sleeper"" Petrucci 9:32

It is a friggin' masterpiece. The opening keyboard lines with the building percussion always gave me the feeling of sliding through a highway tunnel, submerged underground, and emerging with city in view to the thunderous opening chords of this song. Every note is carefully chosen, and reflects years of practice and hard work. This song is what musicians aspire to - not guitar players, drummers and bassists: musicians. Sadly, I am no musician, for if I were, I might be able to better appreciate...

6. "Under a Glass Moon" Petrucci 7:03

I never fell for this song. The opening chords soar, and when the drums & bass kick in, you feel like they're on to something, but then the song just becomes a frenetic exercise in wankery that sometimes seem to be more important to DT than the song itself. But in case you feel like you're about to lose hope...

7. "Wait for Sleep" Moore 2:31

Is this the shortest DT song? I'll have to revisit at the end of the thread and see, but it hardly matters - it is a great one. While it certainly feels like a lead-in to the next track, it also stands alone quite well. But as that last note fades...

8. "Learning to Live" Myung 11:30

If you ask me (and I did), I would say this is my favorite track from I&W. Myung shows that he and Moore are the heart of the band, where Petrucci and Portnoy are the *ahem* balls. The stark simplicity of the lyrics and the atmospheric take of the first verse's backing track embrace you, and then the middle section kicks in and takes you on an emotional roller coaster, the high point being (for me) a quiet and contemplative acoustic interlude that builds to the song's - and album's - bravura climax. "Through nature's inflexible grace, I am learning to live." Indeed.

 

imo still the bands best release. when moore left it took a lot out of the band. he might not have been the best keyboard player the band ever had but he was the best songwriter they ever had. after AWAKE there are only 3 albums in the bands catalog that i would say stand up to the work they did with moore

 

I think Awake is slightly better. I/W is deservedly praised as the legendary album it is, but I feel with Awake they had matured a bit and they got the production pretty dang perfect for the musical content of the disc.

I/W is for when Im feeling upbeat and peppy and Awake is for late nights, brooding about the future, lol

That being said, Take The Time is, and has always been, my favorite Dream Theater song. It has the massive chorus hooks, the RIDICULOUS intrumental parts, the whole package. It was the first DT song to get stuck in my head.

All this being said, If anyone's interested, I resequenced I/W and made it flow, in my opinion, MUCH MUCH better. One of my biggest gripes with the album is its sequencing. Always put me off a bit....

Can't believe I'm only the 3rd post so far! This will be fun if others join in, ala the Yes thread

 

yeah. i don't have any opinion on the bands debut really or much of what they did starting in the early 2000's. the bands newest release though is the best thing they have done since the 90's

 

A great album.... Dream Theater's 2nd best album. Unfortunately the production of the triggered snare is horrible. But the mix of the drums was always a problem.

 

If you haven't heard anything since Metropolis, I IMPLORE you to hear their 2000's material. That being said, their latest album is definitely not their best since the 90's imo.

Basically, they tried to make a definitive DT album, hence it being self-titled, but it really comes off like they were trying just a bit too hard and its not as good, imo, as A Dramatic Turn Of Events.

Now THERE is a great album

 

i have heard a few of the albums from the 00's but most of them come off as too metal and not enough prog. train of thought being the worst offender. i might check out dramatic turn of events though as it has been getting high marks too. portnoys last album though got slammed, systematic chaos right?

 

Ah Images and Words, that's where I got introduced to Dream Theater thanks to a recommendation from a fellow Rush fan. It's a great album to me.

 

whats amazing is when portnoy left i thought it was over. no moore or portnoy there goes most of the writing but in fact the 2 post portnoy albums have been getting very high marks and people are saying this is the bands best stuff of the last decade. guess portnoy was the one putting too much metal influence on things

 

Systematic Chaos was in 2007. Portnoy's last was Black Clouds/Silver Linings in 2009. Systematic Chaos is definitely a mixed affair, but Black Clouds is, and was acknowledged, as one of their best in a long time.

That being said, if you're not a metal head, or at least appreciative of metal, 2000's Dream Theater will not be for you.



Also, the following albums had the following themes:

2000 - Scenes From a Memory (the concept album. Probably their masterwork, imo)

2002 - Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence (1 disc of separate songs and one disc with the 42-minute title track, discussing various mental illnesses)

2003 - Train Of Thought (they specifically wanted to make their heaviest, most metal album yet. Its a great album itself, but if you don't care for metal you won't like it.)

2005 - Octavarium (They tried to make "A DREAM THEATER ALBUM", if you will, while sticking to a theme revolving around the musical octave. The title track might just be THE Dream Theater track of Dream Theater tracks. I'm serious)



For 2007's Systematic Chaos, they basically decided to have no more themes and just go in and record whatever. This album is seriously hindered by its sequencing, IMO. That aside, your enjoyment of the album will really revolve, once again, on your specific musical tastes. Their is a lot of metal but also a lot of prog and even a 25-minute epic split into beginning and ending bookmarks for the album. That works great as is, but I personally prefer it as a single track.

I've resequenced that album in addition to Images and Words and really feel they flow much better. I'll post my tracklists if there is interest.

Black Clouds/Silver Linings is another one for the Metalheads out there, but at the same time the prog is back just as much. The Count Of Tuscany is one of my top 5 favorite DT songs.

Now, for A Dramatic Turn Of events, I really feel they made a quintessential Dream Theater album. Its their first album since the 90s that FEELS like a 90s DT album, ya know? Its got the metal, but its also got the ballads, and the gamut of other DT trademarks, but not in a constant metal pummeling fashion. Its cover art really gives an idea of the feel of the album, imo.

Its like a fresh breath of air, kinda.

 

Yea, its weird to think about considering the fact that Portnoy is involved in 50 different things at once and half of it isn't metal at all. The four Transatlantic albums are all fantastic and they are nothing but 70's-inspired prog fests with 25-minute epics and keyboards and whatnot.

I think Portnoy saw DT getting recognized in the 2000s after the debacle of the previous decade and wanted to try and see what DT could accomplish, ya know? Nothing wrong with that at all, but Portnoy is kinda a metal trend guy and I think that began to seep into more recent DT albums, wanting DT to be keeping up with the times, kinda deal

 

Loved Images and Words when it came out and I still love it although I like several later albums far more. I saw the guys plenty live during this time period up through Awake/Change of Seasons and they killed it every time. Surprised at the lack of love for "Another Day". I find it to be one of their better ballads!

 

for some reason i thought that was 1999. that was the last great thing i heard from them. thats why i kept saying since the 90's. i am a metal head too and don't mind heavier stuff i just think it was getting too heavy and not enough prog. i use to own trin of thought but traded it in after awhile. i really liked 3 songs on it but i wasn't feeling the rest.

 

It was '99, my mistake, lol

Yea, I feel ya on the metal though. Different strokes for different folks. Portnoy used to complain that he was constantly trying to please the fans yet would end up pleasing noone as what some fans loved, other fans hated, etc.

 

I guess I'm a bit alone in this, but I loved the heavier Dream Theater. As mixed as everyone is on Systematic Chaos, I LOVE that album. It's my favorite Dream Theater album and I absolutely adore "In the Presence of Enemies". It might just be my favorite song of all time (depending on what day you ask me. It might also be "Shine on You Crazy Diamond" or "In the Mist She was Standing" on that particular day). I really liked "Black Clouds and Silver Linings", but lyrically, it was pretty mediocre. That being said, I still really like their less heavy material and I've been surprised at how good the 2 albums since Portnoy left have been.

 

An absolute classic album IMO. The band was young, hungry and inspired and the sounds and style of the music really influenced all prog metal that was to follow. Kevin Moore and his unique sense of melody and great lyrics are a very special part of this record.

When I first heard the record in '97-'98 I was big into Metallica, Megadeth and also Yes and ELP plus I had just started drumming on a serious level. They were a perfect mix of everything I was into at the time and Portnoys drummimg blew me away! I'd have to rank this as my 2nd favorite DT release.

 

You sound like me. My wolf pack now numbers 2.

 

i have no problem with metal at all. i like slipknot, slayer, megadeth, korn, death. etc. the issue is the band trying to go too far in one direction. it was like ELP's 90's albums. sure they had traces on 70's ELP and were prog but they tried too much to fit in with early 90's queensryche or fates warning with a bit of early 90's rush and dream theater thrown in. thats cool and all but if i buy an ELP release i don't want to hear other 90's prog bands styles. that being said i like the 90's ELP albums but i have to be in the mood to hear it. when i kept getting new dream theater stuff i wanted to hear a sound more like the 90's not like metallica attempting to be a prog band

 

That sax is killer!

 

Yea, thats what I meant with Portnoy wanting to keep DT relevant and follow trends and stuff. I totally agree with you.

 

Dream Theatre are very hit and miss with me. I never really liked Images And Words to the extent others did....some ok songs but nothing blows me away...now onto Awake thats a classic album indeed!

 

every album by them has at least 2 good songs and that says a lot because some albums only have 6 songs lol

 

Awake is awesome! James really nailed the Awake era songs on the last tour IMHO!

 

Only "When Dream And Day Unite" is real....
I really love that album - and it is the only album of DT which has a place in my collection.
I can't stand the voice of James LaBrie...did you ever watched the WDADU Anniversary DVD ??? It is a mess what he did with the songs...Charlie was the one I can listen to over and over again. Would be so great to know how the 2nd album would sound with his amazing Geddy lee-like voice...unfortunately we will never know...

 

DT may well be the one band with whom I've had the most difficulty in defining where I stand in regard to them - I sort of like them and I sort of don't. There's something both intriguing and off-putting in the way they combine progressive rock and metal. As I come from the progressive rather than the metal side of things, it's usually the amount of metal elements that determines my ranking of each DT album. Images and Words is rather easy on the metal, at least in comparison to some of their later releases, so it's hardly a wonder that it's one of my biggest DT favourites.