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Topic ClosedWhich is the worst Dream Theater album ?
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Poll Question: Which is the worst Dream Theater album ?
Poll Choice Votes Poll Statistics
35 [25.18%]
4 [2.88%]
5 [3.60%]
20 [14.39%]
6 [4.32%]
6 [4.32%]
9 [6.47%]
15 [10.79%]
24 [17.27%]
15 [10.79%]
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The Quiet One View Drop Down
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Points: 15745 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 05 2009 at 16:39
Originally posted by rdtprog rdtprog wrote:

Falling to Infinity. The only cd they did with the pressure of a record company to make some hits. But ironically, the longest tracks are the worst songs on the cd!


What I find ironic is that under the pressure of the record company to release a somewhat 'commercial' album, they made one of their best albums, definitely better than all those made with Rudess Wink (not being sarcastical or joking)
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Points: 5285 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 05 2009 at 16:45
Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by rdtprog rdtprog wrote:

Falling to Infinity. The only cd they did with the pressure of a record company to make some hits. But ironically, the longest tracks are the worst songs on the cd!


What I find ironic is that under the pressure of the record company to release a somewhat 'commercial' album, they made one of their best albums, definitely better than all those made with Rudess Wink (not being sarcastical or joking)


I got the impression you don't like the heavier side of DT!Wink
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Points: 15745 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 05 2009 at 16:47
Originally posted by rdtprog rdtprog wrote:

Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by rdtprog rdtprog wrote:

Falling to Infinity. The only cd they did with the pressure of a record company to make some hits. But ironically, the longest tracks are the worst songs on the cd!


What I find ironic is that under the pressure of the record company to release a somewhat 'commercial' album, they made one of their best albums, definitely better than all those made with Rudess Wink (not being sarcastical or joking)


I got the impression you don't like the heavier side of DT!Wink


That's one part, but the main issue is the unoriginal side of DTWink
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Points: 1361 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 05 2009 at 17:01
I only have six of them but I can safely vote for Octavarium.  Just so dull.  And the title track that everyone raves about as being the saving grace ain't no great shakes IMHO.
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Points: 6802 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 05 2009 at 17:04
Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by jampa17 jampa17 wrote:

Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by J-Man J-Man wrote:

Their debut is very good, just the production quality is laughable. Falling Into Infinity is their worst IMO.

-Jeff


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Falling Into Infinity > Octavarium and Scenes attached

TAKE THAT YOU FOOL! Wink
 
Here you said it... right...??? or what do you mean then...??? not that have the same sound but that the ideas from the Falling into Infinity where long developed in those two albums... right...??? jejeje... if it's not what you meant... jejeje.. sorry...!!! Embarrassed


No, that's not what I meantWink

I meant that Falling Into Infinity is better than Scenes and Octavarium. And no, I do not think that in Scenes and in Octavarium the ideas from Falling Into Infinity are developed at all.
 
got ya...!!! Ok... at least we agree that Falling into Inifinity is way better than their last four albums... right...??? nothing to do with heaviness but with their tired ideas with the solution of monsterfull and fast solos.. right...???
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Points: 66270 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 05 2009 at 17:05
Originally posted by rdtprog rdtprog wrote:

Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by rdtprog rdtprog wrote:

Falling to Infinity. The only cd they did with the pressure of a record company to make some hits. But ironically, the longest tracks are the worst songs on the cd!


What I find ironic is that under the pressure of the record company to release a somewhat 'commercial' album, they made one of their best albums, definitely better than all those made with Rudess Wink (not being sarcastical or joking)


I got the impression you don't like the heavier side of DT!Wink
I won't say it is 100%, but I have noticed that if a song's lyrics are written by Mike Portnoy, I tend to like those songs less then those songs whose lyrics are written by Petrucci or LaBrie.  I think the songs with lyrics written by Portnoy tend to be the heavier tracks with harsher vocals and I don't think that LaBrie sings as well on those songs as he does on the songs where he or Petrucci wrote the lyrics.
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Points: 15745 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 05 2009 at 17:13
Originally posted by jampa17 jampa17 wrote:

Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by jampa17 jampa17 wrote:

Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by J-Man J-Man wrote:

Their debut is very good, just the production quality is laughable. Falling Into Infinity is their worst IMO.

-Jeff


Angry

Falling Into Infinity > Octavarium and Scenes attached

TAKE THAT YOU FOOL! Wink
 
Here you said it... right...??? or what do you mean then...??? not that have the same sound but that the ideas from the Falling into Infinity where long developed in those two albums... right...??? jejeje... if it's not what you meant... jejeje.. sorry...!!! Embarrassed


No, that's not what I meantWink

I meant that Falling Into Infinity is better than Scenes and Octavarium. And no, I do not think that in Scenes and in Octavarium the ideas from Falling Into Infinity are developed at all.
 
got ya...!!! Ok... at least we agree that Falling into Inifinity is way better than their last four albums... right...??? nothing to do with heaviness but with their tired ideas with the solution of monsterfull and fast solos.. right...???


EDITED: MISUNDERSTOOD EVERYTHINGEmbarrassed

Yes, we do agree! haha, I definitely do not like the excessive aimless guitar solos and restless drumming, neither do I like James (and much less Portnoy's!) nowadays vocals, seem pretty un-recognisable.


Edited by The Quiet One - October 05 2009 at 17:23
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jampa17 View Drop Down
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Points: 6802 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 05 2009 at 17:15
Originally posted by rushfan4 rushfan4 wrote:

Originally posted by rdtprog rdtprog wrote:

Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by rdtprog rdtprog wrote:

Falling to Infinity. The only cd they did with the pressure of a record company to make some hits. But ironically, the longest tracks are the worst songs on the cd!


What I find ironic is that under the pressure of the record company to release a somewhat 'commercial' album, they made one of their best albums, definitely better than all those made with Rudess Wink (not being sarcastical or joking)


I got the impression you don't like the heavier side of DT!Wink
I won't say it is 100%, but I have noticed that if a song's lyrics are written by Mike Portnoy, I tend to like those songs less then those songs whose lyrics are written by Petrucci or LaBrie.  I think the songs with lyrics written by Portnoy tend to be the heavier tracks with harsher vocals and I don't think that LaBrie sings as well on those songs as he does on the songs where he or Petrucci wrote the lyrics.
 
I feel exactly the same... really... with the exception of The Best of Times, every song from Portnoy is heavy and mean... that's why their first albums where better... more Moore and Petrucci... but now is only Portnoy and Petrucci... and that's too metal oriented for me... is not that metal is bad... just that Mike don't write that well... and his melodies are kind of... nu metal wannabe... not that great...  
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Points: 6802 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 05 2009 at 17:31
Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by jampa17 jampa17 wrote:

Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by jampa17 jampa17 wrote:

Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by J-Man J-Man wrote:

Their debut is very good, just the production quality is laughable. Falling Into Infinity is their worst IMO.

-Jeff


Angry

Falling Into Infinity > Octavarium and Scenes attached

TAKE THAT YOU FOOL! Wink
 
Here you said it... right...??? or what do you mean then...??? not that have the same sound but that the ideas from the Falling into Infinity where long developed in those two albums... right...??? jejeje... if it's not what you meant... jejeje.. sorry...!!! Embarrassed


No, that's not what I meantWink

I meant that Falling Into Infinity is better than Scenes and Octavarium. And no, I do not think that in Scenes and in Octavarium the ideas from Falling Into Infinity are developed at all.
 
got ya...!!! Ok... at least we agree that Falling into Inifinity is way better than their last four albums... right...??? nothing to do with heaviness but with their tired ideas with the solution of monsterfull and fast solos.. right...???


mmm....no....LOL  We don't agree on anything, haha..well almost...

For me it's :

Pre-Scenes(90's, excluding Scenes) > Post-Scenes (Scenes onwards)

For me, with the entry of Jordan Rudess, Dream Theater started to focus on just Petrucci and Portnoy while the rest just backed up some mediocre stuff compared to what they're capable. Also the fact that in recent albums they've been needing ideas from other bands to make a song isn't something I enjoy.

To sum up the 90's albums:

Images & Words has the most creative compositions and solos, however has obvious flaws like Portnoy's excessive double-bass drumming and LaBrie's total high-pitch vocals.

Awake has the flaws from I&W mastered, but the compositions aren't as strong.

A Change of Seasons has the Dream Theater song.

Falling Into Infinity is Dream Theater playing Prog Rock with some varied styles(not using the ideas from other bands to then develop their songs like they would do later) It also features James' strongest vocals IMO, and from the rest of the band it's all simply great.
 
Funny... I see your points now... as I see it...
 
-Their 90's albums are all great, don't mind bout doble bass ussing -in fact, I love it- and Labries high notes are quite ok, but now adays do not like it as ten years ago, guess I'm getting old, or at least my ears does...
 
-Their 00's era is like you said, Portnoy and Petrucci's ideas... yes, we noticed the ausence of Myung in the writing... but I say the problem is Rudess... he's kind of out of his element here... He just uses strange keyboards and stuff just to feel he's bringing something besides his strange patches that don't fit with the band sound. I see Awake as perfection of sound of keyboards in rock... and Falling as a fresh alternative... but He can't do that without fill any spot with crazy solos...
 
-Still, I do believe their are the best rock band in history, and everything they do is interesting... but they put their standards too high with Awake and I&W, and it's so difficult to reach it, that many people has felt let down... but still their worst album is quite interesting in fact...


Edited by jampa17 - October 05 2009 at 17:34
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Points: 15745 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 05 2009 at 17:39
^ agree completely on both first points.

Not much in the 'best rock band in history' part, not even close IMOWink  Still, like I said somewhere else, Dream Theater is a band with some really gifted musicians which you really don't know if they're planning to work as a team making wonders like Images & Words and Falling Into Infinity, or work seperately and create a wack fest.
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Points: 6802 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 05 2009 at 17:58
Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

^ agree completely on both first points.

Not much in the 'best rock band in history' part, not even close IMOWink  Still, like I said somewhere else, Dream Theater is a band with some really gifted musicians which you really don't know if they're planning to work as a team making wonders like Images & Words and Falling Into Infinity, or work seperately and create a wack fest.
 
I am really unrespectable of history... so I can say that DT is my favorite band and no other band can make me feel that great... I could say Elvis Presley is the best in Rock and Roll cause all his contribution in the 50's... The Beatles following close in the 60's and Van Halen for the revolution of the late 70's and 80's... I know some should say I'm crazy... but is difficult to make me change my mind about it... DT rules man...!!!
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Points: 195 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 05 2009 at 19:05
Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by rdtprog rdtprog wrote:

Falling to Infinity. The only cd they did with the pressure of a record company to make some hits. But ironically, the longest tracks are the worst songs on the cd!


What I find ironic is that under the pressure of the record company to release a somewhat 'commercial' album, they made one of their best albums, definitely better than all those made with Rudess Wink (not being sarcastical or joking)


One of their best compared to nowadays CD's perhaps. And I can't disagree more with "the longest tracks being the worst" : one of the highlights during their Systematic Chaos tour was the revival of Lines in the Sand, which has lots of vibe and emotion despite having guest vocals. New Millenium and Trial of Tears have great instrumental passages, sorely missed on their latest albums.
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Points: 195 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 05 2009 at 19:21
Originally posted by rushfan4 rushfan4 wrote:

Originally posted by rdtprog rdtprog wrote:

Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by rdtprog rdtprog wrote:

Falling to Infinity. The only cd they did with the pressure of a record company to make some hits. But ironically, the longest tracks are the worst songs on the cd!


What I find ironic is that under the pressure of the record company to release a somewhat 'commercial' album, they made one of their best albums, definitely better than all those made with Rudess Wink (not being sarcastical or joking)


I got the impression you don't like the heavier side of DT!Wink
I won't say it is 100%, but I have noticed that if a song's lyrics are written by Mike Portnoy, I tend to like those songs less then those songs whose lyrics are written by Petrucci or LaBrie.  I think the songs with lyrics written by Portnoy tend to be the heavier tracks with harsher vocals and I don't think that LaBrie sings as well on those songs as he does on the songs where he or Petrucci wrote the lyrics.


This is true, Portnoy follows some kind of pattern which makes LaBrie's singing a little awkward on his songs. And Myung, what the hell happened? Has he just resigned  to be another back-up  bass member in  music?


Oh by the way, my vote went for the Systematic Chaos. Even though it is not bad per se, it feels rather empty and forced to be likeable. In the Presence of Enemies is somehow the standout track, even though this epic falls short compared to their prevoius ones.

I also think When Dream and Day Unite is a strong album, despite being a messy debut. That energy of the early days will always be remembered Clap
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Points: 25 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 06 2009 at 08:55
I like how no-ones voted for Images & Word and Awake!
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Points: 3126 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 06 2009 at 10:37
^ OK, I'll be the first then (runs for cover!) Wink.
 
Images And Words is my least favourite of the DT albums I've heard.  There, I've said it.  The only ones I don't know are the debut and Falling Into Infinity.
 
IAW is good and there are some great tracks on there but to me it just doesn't knock me out the way I expected from all the glowing reviews.  I was expecting something incredible, and that's just not how I see IAW.  Everybody seems to rave about IAW and it just hasn't hit me at all.  I have to say that Pull Me Under and Metropolis are superb though and easily my favourites from IAW. 
 
Testimony to DT's quality is I'd still give IAW 3 stars, not bad for a band's "worst album" Wink.
 
IMHO, after this album they improved greatly on Awake which is a much better album.  I easily prefer DT from SFAM onwards, that's by far my favourite DT era.  I do though appreciate I'm probably in the minority in this view........
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Points: 7 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 12 2009 at 22:36
Originally posted by HeroOfYesterday HeroOfYesterday wrote:

I like how no-ones voted for Images & Word and Awake!


Can't believe no one else voted Awake.  Its definitely their worst album, extremely inconsistent. The Mirror is easily the worst song DT has ever written, Voices close behind it.  1st 4 songs are really good, thats about it.
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Points: 6802 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 14 2009 at 20:55
Originally posted by guitarherosucks guitarherosucks wrote:

Originally posted by HeroOfYesterday HeroOfYesterday wrote:

I like how no-ones voted for Images & Word and Awake!


Can't believe no one else voted Awake.  Its definitely their worst album, extremely inconsistent. The Mirror is easily the worst song DT has ever written, Voices close behind it.  1st 4 songs are really good, thats about it.
 
Guess you like Systematic chaos and the last one... right...??? I cannot tell you what I think... because I'm putting on my AK-47 just now to go and hunt you down...
 
 
 
not really...!!! Wink
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Points: 403 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 14 2009 at 21:20
Wow somebody voted for SFAM that's  unusual..ShockedWell I think their worst album is BC&SL well I really can't stand some lyrics in The Best of Times and The Shattered Fortress..DeadLOL
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Points: 1698 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 14 2009 at 21:26
^I voted SFAM Tongue You can read all about it in my review.

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Points: 25210 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 15 2009 at 00:21
Debut is okay.
Images and Words, best DT album ever
Awake, second best.

And indeed probably 2 of the finest prog metal albums ever.
ToT, third best, but the gap between their first and second best is larger between Awake and ToT for me though.
FII is their 4th best.

SFAM is honestly not a 5 star thing for me at all, most like 3.5 at most. Dance of Eternity is a truly awful song, and the album has some other boring numbers. But the guitar solo on The Spirit Carries On is Petrucci's best studio guitar solo ever, so that alone bumped it up to 3.5 from what could have otherwise been a 3 star album for me. Finally Free also has some super tasty guitar work too and is the best track on the album.

The rest, honestly I don't even listen to anymore (except for perhaps The Glass Prison from Six Degrees).
Black Clouds took the band to even greater depths of sh*ttyness, so it gets my vote.





Edited by Petrovsk Mizinski - October 15 2009 at 00:21
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